You knew that the second-gen IS produced the IS-F, but did you know about their hardtop convertible? It’s true: Lexus made this to complete with, I assume, the G37x convertible and the E93. Maybe. And perhaps the Mercedes something-something. But not likely.
Badged as the IS 250C or IS 350C depending on which V6 the buyer went for, these things are pretty uncommon because no one bought them. Why did no one buy them? Well other than hovering around $46,000... It was a luxury hardtop convertible (niche segment) and it was a Lexus that wasn’t an ES350 or RX350. Not much overlap there.
Here’s what probably didn’t help: the looks with the top down...
.... And the cargo space. Not bad for an exciting McLaren, but totally awful for any car you have to drive every day. Such is the life of a hardtop convertible.
Visually, there was some promise. The rear looked good below the awful hump lid...
.... And there is some potential with the profile with the top up.
A coupe could have been a better volume seller, fighting the G37 coupe, A5s, and lower-trimmed E92s, instead of grasping at straws in the hardtop convertible pool.
Well anyway, thanks for reading.