txGarage » sports car

Lexus IS C reviewed:

Adam Moore — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 02:42:31 +0000

Updated: Now go see the video HERE.

Lexus IS350 C reviewed by txGarage

First, I’ll have to admit, I’m not a big fan of taking a sedan and turning it into a two door convertible. There is a big difference between a roadster, speedster, and a 2+2 convertible as I’ve un-eloquently ranted about in other reviews. We’ll put these pre-existing criticisms aside to see what’s what with this IS convertible.

You guessed it. It’s out with the old and in with the new, and the dated Lexus SC is out. The new IS C is in and being based off the IS platform is an automatic plus in our book. Lexus’ old 2+2 convertible was all about plush luxury and not so much about handling or agility. The IS C on the other hand is being marketed by Lexus as bringing fun and sporty driving to a Lexus convertible, and basing it off a sporty sedan seems the right way to go. So did it work? Does the IS C stand up to Lexus’ marketing mantra? We’ll look into that in just a bit. First, let’s take a look at the exterior styling.

Exterior

Again, starting off with the IS platform was a great choice for Lexus. The front end looks sporty and aggressive. The Bi-Xenon high intensity headlights with LED daytime running lights really set off the front end style. I know that the LED daytime running lights are just a rip-off of Audi’s headlight design, but I don’t care, I really think it looks great. Then come around the side and checkout those 17” ten spoke aluminum alloy wheels, with beefier rear tires than those in the front.

Unfortunately, this is where the aggressive, sportiness of the IS C starts to become compromised. To fit that big heavy hardtop into the trunk and still have space for – things, they have gone with a Volvo-ish looking rear end. It’s bigger and longer than the sedans backend and just doesn’t fit with the overall design of the car. Nonetheless, this is a pretty car. And that fact was vocalized to us over and over again, especially by women and children.

Interior

Inside the IS C is a display of what Lexus does best: luxury. The simi-aniline leather (yes I looked it up and it’s a real thing) seats were fantastic. They were geared for comfort and as such were not heavily bolstered. The power seat was complimented with three memory positions and an automatic feature that pushed the seat and steering wheel out of your way while entering and exiting the car. Both front seats had a one-touch button on the side that moved the seat forward for easy entry into the back seats. Space on the inside was adequate, but there were sacrifices. There wasn’t much room in the rear for adults and even having a child sitting behind this 6’1” driver required moving the seat to an almost uncomfortable position. Without back passengers the cabin feels roomy and once you drop the top, even more so.

Speaking of the top, Lexus claims that it’s the fastest three-piece metal hardtop in the world. With fifteen motors and thirty seven sensors working in unison, this hardtop is stowed away in about 20 seconds. That might sound pretty quick in the hard top folding world, but seems long in the real world, especially since you have to be at a complete stop the entire time the top is working.

The last note on the interior would be for the clock. I’m happy that Lexus decided to include an independent clock. It bugs me when your only clock is integrated with the navigation screen and while performing certain tasks, you lose the ability to tell the time. But the clock that Lexus chose for this IS C looked like it was pulled from a 1980’s Toyota, and just didn’t fit the feel of the modern luxury car. Just something that bugged me the entire week.

Sport

Coming into this review with my preconceived notions of a luxury convertible, I didn’t expect much in terms of sportiness. Lexus blew those thoughts out of my head quickly. Anyone who knows about cars and handling that I managed to get to take a ride with me in this Lexus agreed. They were surprised on how flat it stayed and how composed it was through cornering with the top up or down. The 306 horsepower, 3.5 liter V6 did a good job of pushing this overweight car around and the six-speed automatic transmission, while in manual mode and shifted by paddles on the steering wheel, did a good job as well. I still wouldn’t call this a sports car. There is no getting around the fact that 3,906 pound car is still a lot for a V6 to push around, and it weighs more than 450 pounds more than the sedan. Even with this weight, you still get from a standstill to 60 mph in 5.8 seconds, about the same as my Genesis Coupe 3.8 V6. Not too shabby.

You can also now get some F package options. Anything from suspension, wheels, brakes, exhaust, and more aimed at bringing more sports to this sporty coupe.

Competition

Our test car, the IS350 C, totaled out at $53,522 with a little over $7,000 in options and extras packed in. When you get into that price range, you are looking at Corvette, BMW 335, and Audi A5 money. Lexus wants to pit this car against the BMW and I really think it gets close, but I can’t help but feel that it really won’t hold up to the BMW. When you get to the looks, the IS C is just a little too awkward and compromising.

I still have that nagging feeling too that this could be a much better car if only it were a standard coupe. Save on weight, save on money, and don’t compromise on the looks in the rear – this would do more for me than wind in my hair, top down driving does. I guess it left me wanting Lexus to build an “IS-F C”, but make the C stand for coupe. A fixed roof over head, that awesome V8 up front powering the rear wheels. Now that’s a car that would really get my attention.

Check out the entire photo gallery on Facebook!

Day7: 2010 Shelby GT500

Adam Moore — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 14:53:17 +0000

Day 7 2010 Shelby GT500

Day 7 with the 2010 Shelby GT500 was by far the most fun we had all week. We worked hard and tried to get lots of video and pictures of the car to show to you guys. As we talk about in the video, after tearing up the streets of Texas for a week in the GT500 we were never faced with an obstacle that the car couldn’t handle. Ford, SVT, and Shelby have made a great car with this one and we cant wait to check out the 2011 GT500 with the all aluminum block!

Till then, check out our video!

Check out Days 1 – 2 – 3 – 4 - 5 and check out our review!

Review: 2010 Shelby GT500

Adam Moore — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 01:01:04 +0000

2010 Shelby GT500

When you think about the history of Carroll Shelby, his racing, and his cars, there is no doubt that performance Mustangs pop into mind. As a matter of fact, Shelby Mustangs have been ever improving for the past 45 years making Shelby one of the most signed names on a car in the world. Carroll graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School in Dallas, Texas making him a Texas boy who’s heart never went to far from home. The Terlingua Mustang was named after the town where Shelby decided to open a ranch with Dallas friend David Witt.

No wonder the Shelby Mustangs fit in so well here in Texas, no matter if your driving down a long highway to the middle of nowhere or a back windy country road, this car does it all. In the 2010 GT500, this was apparent to us at txGarage as we never wanted to get out of the car. And although this thirsty beast needed to stop for fuel more often than we would have liked, it just gave us another reason to burn rubber out of a parking lot.. There really isn’t a lot that I could find wrong with this GT500. Yes the fuel economy wasn’t that great; yes the interior was still a little cheap for spending $51,000 – although it has improved greatly – and yes the ride was a little harsh and the clutch was heavy; however, all this stuff would be whisked out of your head as you smash down on the throttle sending the back wheels into a panic looking for grip and finally being far down the road from where you were a few seconds ago. The GT500 isn’t, by far, the most powerful car money can buy and it doesn’t put that power down as well as other cars out there, but for the shear and raw emotion and theater of it all, you simply cannot beat this thing. Never have we been so scared – entertained – in a production car. The shear madness of it is worth every penny! The looks are just about the most menacing you can find but when you climb into the cockpit, its actually quite comfortable and nice. The SYNC system is a great addition to all Fords and we still got great use out of it in this car, although it took us 3 days to even bother with touching it. The practicality, yes practicality, of this car can’t be beat as well. If I really had to pick one car to compare it to, it would be an Aston Martin for the British. Aston Martins are not the fastest cars you can buy for the money, but the pure emotion and beauty they portray are unbeatable. I think of the GT500 as the American Aston Martin: it’s beautiful and emotional. That is what makes the car so great, and on that thought its quite a bargain too.

The 2010 GT500 was built starting with the formula from the 2008 GT500KR. In 2011, the GT500 will be getting an all aluminum block right out of the Ford GT super car. The GT500 now has a steel block. Even if the power doesn’t go up, in which case there is no need, the car will be much lighter and hopefully add to the driving experience. Other potential down sides to the current GT500 are the all new 2011 GT with the reintroduction of the 5.0. This new GT will finally feature all the latest engine technology while also increasing horsepower and fuel economy. They already have a wonderful interior, and with a little shopping trip to Ford Racing, the 2011 Mustang GT could easily be made to run with the big boys of the Mustang brand. For the name -Shelby- and the looks of the GT500 though, it’s still a hard choice to pass up.

Mega Gallery: 2010 Shelby GT500

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2010 Mazda 3

Adam Moore — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 20:21:22 +0000

2010 Mazda 3

In 2003 when the Mazda 3 was launched replacing the boring looking but fun to drive Protege, I was excited. Mazda had just introduced the RX8 and only a year before had come out with the Mazda 6. Mazda was really on the move back to being the sporty “zoom-zoom” company it should be. The Mazda 3 was such a big hit, in my mind, because it really showed that Mazda was getting back into the sporty grove with a good looking, small, sporty car. Anyone who is into compact sports cars, then and now, knows that the European spec Ford Focus basically rules. So when we heard that this new offering from Mazda was to be built on the platform of the second generation European Focus we knew we had to get our hands on one.

The first generation 3 did not disappoint. Mazda made sure to give it a good range of engines with plenty of pep, also releasing a Mazdaspeed variant for an even more sporty experience. The interior was nice and not too cheap for its price range, the looks where spot on for the market and the power and handling was excellent. So the successor of this understated machine would have to be even better, and that’s always hard to top in these markets.

So does the 2010 Mazda 3 live up to its “Zoom-Zoom” heritage? I would say yes for sure. The exterior, although it has been made fun of for being too “smiley face” looking in the design, actually looks good in a fun sporty way. That’s the overall theme of this car, small and fun, so why not give it a fun looking exterior. The rear is more aggressive and sportier than before with beautiful molded lines and sharp tail lights. The interior has a clean fill with lots of black and splashes of chrome and red thrown in. The cluster has improved and the center console has a more grown up feel to it. A Grand Touring package adds navigation and loads of extra buttons on the steering wheel and all over the car. By no means is this an uncomfortable place to be on a long trip. Speaking of long trips the driving and handling of the car is again just that much better than the old. Where this car shines is with its new bigger and better engines.

You have the base sporting a 2.0 liter with 148 hp and 135 lb-ft of torque. The one to have is the 2.5 liter “s” with a six speed manual gear box pushing 167 hp and 168 lb-ft of torque.

All in all I think Mazda has been on the move up since its introduction of the Mazda 6 in 2002. They are still an understated company that has the potential to grow. The new Mazda 3 and Mazda 6 are making this clear. If you want a fun to drive cheaper car with lots to smile about and not much to be down about, I suggest looking at your Mazda dealership.

2010 Mazda 3

The 2010 Suzuki Kizashi:

Hennessey Venom GT

Toby — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 16:21:39 +0000

Hennessey Venom GT

Our buddies at Hennessy announced a few years ago that they would be building a supercar of their own. Going from a tuning shop to producing your own supercar doesn’t happen overnight and now almost two years after their announcement they are telling us the car will be debuting at the Geneva Motor Show in March 2010.

If you have been following the Venom GT you know it was supposed to be powered by the Viper V10, as Hennessey has a good relation with the Viper brand. We also heard that it would be weighing in at 2700 lbs with a 1,000 horsepower ratting. Now we are hearing a little different, but better, story. Hennessey is now saying that the Venom GT will be powered by a “Hennessey V8” the weight is down to 2400 lbs and horsepower is up to 1,200 bhp. This spectacular looking mid-engine supercar will be able to deliver the goods, but will it make a real splash within the supercar world? That we’ll just have to wait and see…

Let us know what you think!

My Plea to Penske and Saturn:

Adam Moore — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 22:01:16 +0000

Hearing the news of Penske’s purchase of Saturn from General Motors I was quite pleased with the decision. I think that Roger Penske is a good business man and a car guy to boot! They have had a lot of success with their racing teams and if they could bring that to Saturn they can’t go wrong, at least not as bad a GM ran Saturn.

Penske obviously doesn’t build cars though, and their answer is Korean auto maker Samsung Motors. Samsung builds cars and car parts for both Nissan and Renault, two fine car companies to say the least. So let’s take a look at what Penske should/could bring over to the US with Saturn.

2010 Renault Alpine Sportscar:

In France this car should be built on the same platform and technology as the 370Z and G37, but we already have a 370Z and a G37 in the US. So why not bring over the Alpine? Penske and Saturn are going to need a nice sports car and I’m sure that Penske race teams wouldn’t mind the switch from Porsche to the Alpine (or Saturn version).

renault alpine

The Clio:

The Clio is a great little hatchback with good fuel economy and good utility. The US has rejected European style hatchbacks before but with the Mini craze and the fuel mindedness they are starting to make an impression on American drivers. The Clio is a great example of a European hatchback with the good enough base models but also Renault pumps out sports edition and Cup edition models that are quite fun to drive. This would be a great addition to the Saturn lineup.

the Clio Sport

The Magane:

The Renault Magane is offered in a four-door sedan, a four-door wagon, and a two-door coupe! With great looks and practicality it would be the sedan/wagon/coupe to offer.

The Magane

Infiniti FX37:

We have an Infiniti FX37 here, it’s called the Infiniti FX37… but as SUV’s go this is the one I would want my Saturn based off of. I has a great power train and a great setup, it is a very cool and powerful SUV.

Infiniti FX37

The Nissan Primastar

It’s not really an exciting or too interesting of a vehicle but bringing it over can help in many ways. Penske, now having access to their own car company, they shouldn’t have to use GMC vehicle anymore and the Primastar should do the trick. Also Ford has been talking about bringing the Transit Van to the US and this would be a direct competitor.

Nissan Primastar

I could go on but I think I’ll stop here and let yall comment with more of your suggestions.

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