Taste of Lexus 2005, Orange County
Taste of Lexus driving event.
The big deal was the introduction of the new Lexus IS250/IS350. The big "deal" at this series of events was the staged races between Lexus vehicles and their competition. IS350 vs. BMW 330i in an autocross, RX400h vs. everything else in 20mph-65mph acceleration, etc. Competely staged, but the uneducated sheeple found them pretty convincing.
Predictably the IS250 and IS350 lines were very long; they had more IS350's than IS250's at the Orange County event, so the IS350 line actually moved pretty good. First reactions after sitting in the IS250 was that the car was small; the swept A-pillar blocked my view and my head almost hit the headliner-- and I am not that tall. Handling was responsive but very artificial-feeling; performance in the IS250 was lackluster at best, and the electronic nanny didn't allow too much fun. The course they had setup was a straight away almost to 3rd gear, brake, then a left-hand 180 sweeper that was just wide enough to allow a little fun, but not too much extra room if you cooked it too hot. Then a series of slalom gates, then some slightly higher speed turns. About 45~60 seconds long, I didn't get an accurate time while I was there.
The IS350 felt much like the IS250, but first gear pulled like a beast by comparison. The extra torque was very nice. Pity it's not a driver's car compared to the 3-series.
Drove the Mercedes E500 and Lexus GS300 next. Both were relatively boring. Lexus still isn't up to Mercedes' trademark isolation, but to be fair the GS300 was a pretty decent drive. The course for these cars was a short straight that angled right, a sharp left into a straight with a slight evasive right-left turn, then a tight right-hand turn into slalom gates. I skipped the 545i and GS430 due to long lines, although I suspect the 545i would have been a good drive.
Next up was the RX400h. Very boring drive, but the video display was amusing. Skipped the Cadilliac SRX and BMW X5 3.0i-- no point on such a boring course. Finally to the "off road" course-- not much of a course. Some 4x4"s laying in the dirt and a steep angled ramp. 2WD high was fine for everyone, including the RX330. The LX470, GX470, and some others were there. Pretty blah compared to the last Mercedes event I was at.
The cool stuff was the food. Nice snacks everywhere. The main tent's car and graphics displays were overdone to the point of annoyance with all the lights, but it wasn't bad. The on-camera interviews and drives every 30 minutes or so (featuring a "competition" between a Lexus vehicle and its competitor) were broadcasted to video screens all over the event, which kept the lines from getting too boring, was definitely a nice touch. Gimmicky but very effective.
A nice event. Very well run.
