The very good reasons why there will be no Lexus RC 250
Lexus is not making an RC 250, and we could not be more pleased. The 2015 Lexus RC sports coupe will come three ways when it is introduced in the US this late fall. It will come as an RC 350, with the V6 we know form the IS 350, but with some minor tweaks. It will also come as an RC 350 F Sport. Of course, we Lexus fans know that means upgraded tires, different suspension settings, more futuristic instrumentation cluster, and more aggressive look, particularly from the front. Third, the RC coupe will be made as the mighty RC F.
IS 250 Too Slow
The first reason we love that there will be no RC 250 is that now every major automotive publication in the US gets to skip the negative reviews that say “this car is slower than my grandmother’s Camry.” Those journalism majors over at the print publications would think of 1200 words that said that in a fancy-pants way, but either way it would be true. The 2.5-liter V6 in the IS 250 has some merits, but in a car with any aspirations for sportiness it simply is too low on torque to be relevant. Yes, we all say it is smooth. In the same way saying an unattractive gal “has nice hair.”
Lexus 2-liter Turbo Coming
The second reason that we love the fact there is no RC 250 is that it is more clear evidence that Lexus is moving to the 2.0 liter turbocharged 4-cylinder as its base engine. That new engine is about to debut in the NX 200t. We are driving that vehicle this week and cannot wait to report our findings. The specifications on the engine speak volumes. The new 2-liter turbo has roughly 235 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque. That is 31 more hp and a whopping 73 ft-lbs more than the IS 250’s engine. Lexus will surely introduce the RC 200t at some point in the coming 18 months.
Having spent a lot of time in loaner Lexus IS 250s, all of which were AWD versions, this Lexus fan will not be sad to see the engine go. Let’s now hope that RC’s are not overwhelmingly sent to dealers with all-wheel-drive. Spoiling a great rear-drive, front-engine layout by adding AWD is such a shame.
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