2025 Lexus IS 500 Road Test

A full road test of the 2025 Lexus IS 500, including a discussion of its performance statistics and the history of the Lexus IS nameplate and chassis.

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Lexus IS 500 Website:

The 2025 Lexus IS 500 sits on one of the oldest platforms in the automotive industry. But does that mean it’s not desirable or competitive against newer designs? Let’s take a closer look at this entry luxury sedan and find out.

Probably the most important thing to keep in mind with the 2025 Lexus IS 500 is that it’s sitting on a 12-year-old chassis. This car was last redesigned in 2014, which is really an eternity in modern-day automotive engineering. Now, why would Lexus do that? Why would they keep producing the same car for 12 years? Probably because the SUV dominance of today’s market means that’s where all the action is and that's where all the profit is.

I’m confident Lexus performed a business case study on this vehicle and confirmed what it’s going to take, investment-wise, to redesign the IS platform, and how long it’s going to take for that payback to come back to the automaker. And they’re likely not incentivized to redesign the vehicle based on that study. So it remains a 12-year-old Lexus chassis, and what does that mean? Well, it means that maybe the chassis could be a little stiffer and maybe even a little lighter.

But don’t forget all the things piling into modern cars, including hybrid drivetrains and mandated safety technology, which means even if you’re getting a lighter chassis you end up with a heavier total curb weight because of all those extra battery packs and electric motors and safety equipment. So the Lexus IS 500 remains extremely light by today’s standards, even with this supposedly old chassis design. It also means that you end up with a lower price and more standard features versus competitors like the BMW 3 Series and the Mercedes-Benz C-Class.

Even better, it means the Lexus IS 500 can still offer a naturally aspirated V8 and hydraulic-assisted power steering, two features you can’t get in any of the other vehicles in this category. Yes, it’s got a real exhaust note accompanied by a wide, flat torque band with paddle shifters, though that breadth of the V8’s torque means you leave the transmission in second gear through an entire series of turns. And the IS 500’s steering feel isn’t based on how a computer programmer coder thinks the steering should feel, but on a mechanical connection between this the steering wheel and the front wheels.

This particular Lexus IS 500 has the special appearance package for 2025. There’s only going to be 180 vehicles offered with this package, which costs $4,050. It includes 19-inch black Alloy wheels, suede seat inserts, and special Flare Yellow paint. With that package added to the IS 500’s $64,945 starting price, this version rings in at $68,895. But you can get into a 2025 Lexus IS for much less. The starting price for a Lexus IS in 2025 is about $41,000. That's much cheaper than the equivalent Mercedes C-Class or BMW 3 Series.

What’s interesting about the Lexus IS is that despite its aging foundation it has all the modern day luxury car features. It comes with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, it has advanced driver-assist technology like smart cruise control and lane keeping assist. It has a Mark Levinson audio system, heated and cooled seats, a heated steering wheel, and a power rear sunshade. It’s even got this very cool gauge cluster design where it will change the layout of the gauge cluster depending on how you want it set up.

I’m normally the first person to call out when a car is old and due for a redesign. But as I mentioned before, I don’t think the redesigns really help that much in terms of performance or chassis development. Conversely, what do you get with the newer cars Electric assist power steering? Hybrid drivetrains that add weight? No available V8? Higher price tags? None of that stuff interests me, but that’s what you’re going to get on all of this car's competitors in a newer version.

Personally, I’d rather stick with the 2025 Lexus IS 500, and that’s before you get into the traditional Toyota/Lexus quality that’s going to have this vehicle running for many, many years and probably at a much lower operating cost with fewer unscheduled dealer visits than a lot of its competitors. I think this car is quite compelling despite its age. Actually, maybe even because of its age. If I was looking at an entry-level luxury vehicle, this would be very high on my list.

[boostpw]

Got the 2022 IS 500 for my wife—Infrared, black interior, Premium trim. 56K miles, only issue was O2 sensors so far. Great daily and trip car—steering, seats, and sound feel top-notch. Looks mean, built solid. Not a track car, but a reliable V8 cruiser. Boring? Nah, haters are clueless

[blu_is]

Your points were spot-on! Busted butt to get mine in 2022, because of the tried and true mechanics, plus it was in V8 form. I didn’t want anything electrified or turbo’ed. I’m at 36K miles and this car is awesome! Thanks for posting.

[angelscarreviews]

Great video Karl, the 2025 Lexus IS500 is an awesome yellow sedan car that comes with the 5.0 L aspirated V8 engine, and the base model comes with a 2.0 L turbo 4-Cylinder. Overall great vehicle to go for a ride.

[CarsofGlasgow]

Great video, my mum still owns her 2014 Lexus IS 300h. It has held up well over the years.

[Kurtmind]

It's got tonnes of physical buttons. Excellent!!

[chironjo]

First time watching our channel. I really liked your low key, not much rhetoric and metaphoric language and unnecessary jokes. Straight to the point! And, this is a heck of a great car that is in my wish list.

[lsrfmkev]

Awesome great review! A lot of people discredit the IS due to its "dated interior". I was actually part of this group when car shopping until I actually drove it in-person. Now I'm happily enjoying my 2021 IS 350 F-Sport w/ the Dynamic Handling Package. No regrets whatsoever; hopefully i can upgrade to it's big brother v8 soon!

[ConfirmedPatriot]

Old school NA V8 4-door cruiser. All the physical buttons was definitely a good buying point for me. Of course the sonorous V8 was the main reason.

[dacuse]

I’ve got a 2023 Special Appearance Molten Pearl IS500…and I’ll have the vehicle for a long time! I enjoy all of the things you pointed out and more! Nice video!

[georgeherren]

The steering is electric (EPS). It does feel more natural/analog compared to some of the BMW’s. Still not the subtle feel of the old hydraulic units……2022 IS500 owner with 38k miles

[FINALV]

Great review - couldn't agree more!

[Don_Valentino]

4:10 gotta love the LFA-style gauge cluster

[snapeygolfsnapebt]

I've got an ls600h 2013..absolutely awesome machine

[burgerburglar]

“IS interior is outdated!”
“Hey look we updated the interior, you gunna buy it?”
“No I can’t afford it, but it’s cool you updated the interior”
😐

[ThedubIsSilent]

Surprised you didn't mention the most important modern feature: driver assistance. Most of its competitors have automatic emergency braking but if I recall correctly only the lexus comes with a true lane centering assistance by default that makes long drives to tracks and scenic locations all the more pleasant. It's something that is disappointingly not available with many bmws of similar size which instead do that unhelpful lane ping pong thing.

[rasmusansin]

You seem to have added hard-coded subtitles by mistake... there's a caption feature in youtube for subtitles.

[guyhomutezki]

Have the 2021 350 f sport. I'm thinking about upgrading to this.

[druyay]

Don’t get me wrong in thinking this car is amazing by saying my one let down of the car is the seat design. The interior is lovely and practical but it’s not special. And while I understand this is not a full F car, I’m a sucker for a beautiful seat. I believe I’ve seen people swap seat backs but factory options are the best

[acetigg]

Does the 2025 have wireless Apple car play??

[GarbagePaiIKid]

Entry level luxury vehicle?
Bro the IS500 is $100k+ in Canada.
I'm interested in how much they are in the USA now after Liberation Day.
conversion today is roughly $64000 USD and probably with no upgrades