I am interested in buying an ISF but am not completely familiar with this engine. My question is, is this engine/transmission worth the premium and what is the reliability compared to an IS 350 that has the 3.5 engine. I really like the extra power and the fact that so few were made makes it unique but I would be purchasing one with around 100K miles for 20's so I would need it to go for a long time. How many miles can these run with care?
Here you go.....I'd stay away form the IS for the years you're considering. These years have the D4 engines (direct injection only)
10:29 mark is where he talks about the cars you're looking at. He's a master tech at a Toyota/Lexus dealership in the Chicago area.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9komTDz8TdM
OP is looking at 2008-2012.
yeah, I caught my reading mistake right when the page refreshed and went to the top
Toyota Care Nut was referring to the IS250 which had DI only. OP is not referring to that model, but rather the IS F with the V8 (had both port and DI).
See below:
https://carkiller.com/scottykilmer/qa/lexus-isf/#post-2364
(applies to ISF)
https://carkiller.com/scottykilmer/qa/hey-lexus-rc-f-owners-any-issues/#post-33686
https://carkiller.com/scottykilmer/postid/33686/
Realize maintenance/repairs on those will be higher than a non-F version. Just replacing the starter and knock sensor on those V8 engines will cost several thousand dollars when they fail. I would recommend IS350 over ISF for a daily driver. Nevertheless, if you have the means (budget) then you will need to find a good example that does not have multiple owners and has not been abused - that will be tough. And be sure if you find one to have an independent, honest mechanic (like Scotty) with a fancy scan tool check out and road test the vehicle make sure nothing is worn out.
TLDR: Do some research to see if those years were recalled for melting panels. The full version of the TLDR: As someone that owned a 2007 Lexus LS (but pretty sure this was a problem for all Toyota/Lexus cars at the time) the entire door panel, dashboard, and glove compartment had a problem with melting fake leather that in really extreme cases would create a bad odor. I believe Toyota/Lexus had a temporary program that customers could enroll into to get it "fixed" (I'm using quotes because I think that they just replaced them with the same new panels that melted in the first place), so if you do purchase one check to see if the previous owner has any records of Toyota replacing the panels. Also, if you want to read more about it just google "Lexus panels melting".
Also side note I loved that Lexus even with the melting panels me and my dad shared that car and combined drove it about 450,000mi and eventually sold it (with both the transmission and engine still running amazingly).