Prior to its arrival in South Africa in July, the all-new Lexus IS will already have accumulated over 1.6 million kilometres of testing and development - enough for two return trips to the moon.
Testing of the all-new IS took place on road, track and in the laboratory, with the IS tested to breaking point in the ice and snow of the northern hemisphere, the heat of the southern hemisphere, and gruelling circuits such as the Nürburgring in Germany and Fuji Speedway in Japan.
Key to attaining the "fun to drive" characteristics of the new IS was a new development process in which driving dynamics had priority over all other functions, said IS chief engineer Junichi Furuyama.
"The conventional approach to development would involve developing each of the individual aspects with 'fun to drive' as the outcome, much like a pyramid would be built by first constructing the foundation and then proceeding to build up from there," he said.
"The problem with this approach is that there is no knowing whether it will result in the achievement a 'fun to drive' experience.
"In contrast, development of the new IS was flipped on its head. It called, first, for the establishment of a pleasurable driving experience users will sense as the peak of the pyramid, before developing the individual performance elements to support it."
The process resulted in the adoption of new body strengthening techniques, such as laser screw weld and body bonding and a suspension system that delivers a 20% increase in roll rigidity.
"Get up close and personal with the third-generation IS and the bold new design direction, especially the brand's signature spindle grille, is strikingly evident," said Calvyn Hamman, senior vice-president of sales and marketing.
"The biggest surprise, though, is just how rewarding the 'on-the-road' experience is - this is a driver's car bar none!"
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