Ok I am going to be picking up a 4 door sedan in the 30ish price range and these two have been the leading candidates for my wife and I. We went and looked/drove both of these yesterday. We won't be buying them until around january/feburary of next year, but I like to really study a purchase this big before I jump into it. My wife loved the TL, she just raved on and on about it. Then we got to the lexus dealer. We were both blown away by the 250. I thought the performance of both cars in my eyes were similar, and gas mileage is more of a factor for me so that was way more appealing to my cheap ***. The 250 just seemed more of a mix of luxury and a bit of sportiness which I really liked. The TL reminded me of her mother's 05 accord, we were kind of disappointed. Anyways, I am not counting out the volvo and BMW, which I will be visiting next weekend. Let me know your impressions.

 

I'm looking at the TL as well and the Lexus 250 came across my mind.

My Dad has the consumer reports for 2006, and the TL was the highest rating, and most reccommended out of all of them.

C.R. also talked about the Lexus 250's suspension not being as stable and "almost jittery". (something along those lines)

C.R. only had praises for the TL.

IMO TL > IS250

They're both great car companies so either way you win, but if you buy the Lexus we have to revoke your Honda-tech privileges .

 

it really is up to you and what you want and what you like. The IS is a RWD car and because of that it handles better than the TL and doesnt do the FWD push understeer. Then again you can also get the IS in AWD so you get the added saftey and stability in bad weather if you decide to go that route. As for the TL it is FWD so in bad weather conditions it will act better than the RWD IS but not as good as the AWD IS.

As for the TL feeling like an Accord yeah it does and is going to because they both use the same platform and are both very similar in size, but then again it could feel like something much worse.

Either way no matter what car you get it will serve you reliably as both Honda and Toyota are known for their legendary reliablities, and either car should make you happy for years to come as well.

 

I'd say both are great cars, but the TL would be my choice. The TL trumps the IS250 power wise, and it still gets great gas mileage. I think it's 23/29? Both companies are known to build reliable cars. If the IS250's interior is near the same as the IS 300, I would say go with the TL. I don't like the IS 300's interior so much.

 

Actually the interior of the 250 is completely different than the 300. Also, one thing I really liked was the keyless entry and actual push button start. I'm not talkin S2000 push button, you dont need a key. It was just little things like that, that made me like the IS better. I love honda's I have owned about 10 of them, but after my own personal experience in both vehicles, I don't think the TL should even be in the same class.

 

well the TL is an older vehicle and hasnt gone through a mid cycle improvment yet. Everything nowadays has the keyless start, but when the TL was designed there was maybe a handful of vehicles with that feature. It will take honda doing some catchup but I am sure when the mid cycle freshening on the TL occurs it will get most of the features it is currently lacking.

 

Oh yeah one more thing. Why the hell is honda still putting tape players in their cars? That was another thing that put a bad taste in my mouth. I don't think anyone even still sells cassettes..... That is kind of retarded.

 

06 TL would definitely be my choice, unless i had the cash to move up towards the IS 350, equipped with that powerful 300HP engine! I have a 2003 TYPE S and my old brother has an 05. Nevertheless, TLs are great cars - powerful and comfortable.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ITR632 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Actually the interior of the 250 is completely different than the 300. Also, one thing I really liked was the keyless entry and actual push button start. I'm not talkin S2000 push button, you dont need a key. It was just little things like that, that made me like the IS better. I love honda's I have owned about 10 of them, but after my own personal experience in both vehicles, I don't think the TL should even be in the same class. </TD></TR></TABLE>

see I feel the opposite, the 250 shouldn't even be considered with the TL, it's such a lesser car in my opinion.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ITR632 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Oh yeah one more thing. Why the hell is honda still putting tape players in their cars? That was another thing that put a bad taste in my mouth. I don't think anyone even still sells cassettes..... That is kind of retarded. </TD></TR></TABLE>

kinda nice if you don't feel like getting an ipod specific device in your car, and the fm transmitter sucks for the ipod in my area, so it works out nicely actually.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by hadboosttroy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

see I feel the opposite, the 250 shouldn't even be considered with the TL, it's such a lesser car in my opinion.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Based on?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ITR632 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Based on? </TD></TR></TABLE>

I dont know where that is comming besides people being biased towards hondas and acuras on this site. Yeah the IS250 doesnt have as much power as the TL but it does have 2 things that the TL doesnt have RWD and a platform that was designed for that type of vehicle. The TL on the other hand is Accord based and as such gives away some of its dynamic performance because it is based on a front heavy fwd platform.

 

Ok I found something that I don't like about the 250. HID's aren't a standard feature on these and they were on the IS300's. It is now an option. That is stupid, why would this not be standard on a 30k+ vehicle.... that is retarded.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ITR632 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Based on? </TD></TR></TABLE>


based on it it being an entry level lexus with 204 hp.
the 350 is a nice car, it's just ugly.

i could care less if it is rwd. looks like you answered your question with the whole HID option thing.....

 

Well I'm not going to base a vehicle purchase on headlights. I would rather have an entry level lexus with its own identity than a spruced up accord. Ford tried the whole platform thing with jag and the tauraus.

 

rock on man. go for the 250, someone's gotta buy it. i'll enjoy my glorified accord.

don't be ignorant, lexus and toyota do the platform thing as does EVERY major manufacturer.

 

Hey watch how you talk to me bud, we are just debating cars. And my statement was not ignorance, it is fact. I am sorry that you are so biased towards one car that you can't see any value in another, that seems more ignorant.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ITR632 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Hey watch how you talk to me bud, we are just debating cars. And my statement was not ignorance, it is fact. I am sorry that you are so biased towards one car that you can't see any value in another, that seems more ignorant. </TD></TR></TABLE>

so are you denying that lexus doesn't platform share? sorry, but to come on here and talk about platform sharing (which is fine) and then deny that lexus doesn't is pretty absurd. Hell, they platform share with one of the most expensive cars they sell (hint: landcruiser chassis). it would be stupid for a company NOT to platform share, don't make it sound like it is such a bad thing....

Honestly, I don't even like the tl much, so there goes the bias. For the money, it was the best car in my opinion. A 335 coupe should be replacing that soon enough....

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by hadboosttroy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

so are you denying that lexus doesn't platform share? sorry, but to come on here and talk about platform sharing (which is fine) and then deny that lexus doesn't is pretty absurd. Hell, they platform share with one of the most expensive cars they sell (hint: landcruiser chassis). it would be stupid for a company NOT to platform share, don't make it sound like it is such a bad thing....

Honestly, I don't even like the tl much, so there goes the bias. For the money, it was the best car in my opinion. A 335 coupe should be replacing that soon enough....</TD></TR></TABLE>

I never said that Lexus does not platform share. We are talking about a TL and an IS250. The IS250 does not share it's platform with another toyota vehicle that I am aware of. And whether or not it is a good or bad thing is the opinion of the consumer buying the car. IMO to share a platform between a low and high end vehicle tarnishes the image of the high end vehicle in the luxury car industry. To most people this means nothing, but to car enthusiasts you have to take notice. Of course the manufacturer can reap great benefits from this, there is no doubt there. I would be saying the same thing if the 250 was based on the camry platform. It was just painfully obvious when I sat in the TL, but I still think it is a great car.

 

i heard the new TL is coming in 2007. why dont you wait a bit and think about the new TL then compare these 2 cars

 

i got the same problem...

If you're not going to buy a car until Jan or Feb... i would save up to get the lexus 350... because that's lexus top of the line model for IS. The TL come with a lot of standard equipment unlike the lexus. i test drove both car... i would get the is 350. if it TL or 250... i go with the TL because of the price and a lot of standard equipments

 

I heard on 07, there are possibly going to come out w/ the type-s, but body modifications are SUPPOSED to be out on the 08 model b/c of their cycles honda/acura have.

between the IS250 and TL... MOST def the TL. Lilke rathabun said. I just bought my TL and my goodness... I &lt;3 TL.

IS350 is sex on wheels though... and acura's comparison to the 350 is their RL.. and IMO, the RL looks like poop.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by kdm3nac3 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I heard on 07, there are possibly going to come out w/ the type-s </TD></TR></TABLE>

 

The 350 looks exactly like the 250. I am not worried about a few extra horses, I like the performance of the 250.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ITR632 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">The 350 looks exactly like the 250. I am not worried about a few extra horses, I like the performance of the 250. </TD></TR></TABLE>

you sounds like you pretty much made your choice with the lexus.

Well, I am with you on this one, i went to a local dealer with a friend(who happens to drives is300) to pick up some lexus juice and we saw the frist badge of those new IS, they look so good imho.

the 250 is being sold for 29 out of door in glendale dealer i think, it's a smoking deal consider a top of the line camry "sport" costs 27 now a day

i would do a is&gt;TL