THE CHEAPEST V8-POWERED PERFORMANCE SEDAN ON SALE IN 2024

The times they are a-changin', and as exciting as that can be, it's also a bittersweet era in the automotive scene. We're seeing cool new plug-in hybrids and EVs popping up left and right, but we're also seeing fewer of the cars we grew up with. The list of performance sedans on the market today is shorter than it was one or two years ago. If you're looking for a V8-powered model in particular, you might not be able to find a baker's dozen without an electric motor attached to one or both axles.

Thankfully, there is still at least one V8-powered performance sedan available for a price that most working folks can be comfortable with: the Lexus IS 500. This is not only the most affordable V8-powered performance sedan on the market today, but perhaps the only affordable V8 sports sedan left.

A Look At The Most Affordable V8-Powered Performance Sedan

While Lexus may be a luxury car brand, they've always stood firmly in the entry-level luxury segment. The 2024 Lexus IS 500 F Sport Performance follows that tradition with a starting MSRP of $60,020. For comparison, the next least expensive V8 sports sedan available today is a 2024 Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing, which starts at more than $90,000. Not that long ago, you could find a whole market of V8 sports sedans between those two price points. Today, the MSRP jumps thirty thousand bucks in a single model, a clear sign of a shrinking market for this particular type of vehicle.

To be clear, entry-level doesn't exactly mean budget, especially not these days when all the thirty- and forty-dollar V8 sedans have completely disappeared from the marketplace. At a mid-market price point, the F Sport Performance model delivers a big-budget driving experience, inside and out. It looks, feels, drives, and even sounds like a very expensive vehicle.

The F Sport Performance model packs a naturally aspirated 5.0-liter V8. No turbochargers, no electric motors, just a good old-fashioned 8-cylinder powerhouse engine built around an all-alloy engine block. The car averages 17 miles to the gallon in the city and 25 MPG on the highway for 20 MPG combined. These numbers don't exactly put it in direct competition with new plug-in hybrids. Still, the car's modest 3,891-pound curb weight contributes to a fuel economy that's not bad for an 8-cylinder luxury ride, especially considering that so many cars in this segment lean into supercar territory, burning fuel like they know they're going home on a trailer.

With a 4.4-second 0-60 sprint, the F Sport Performance is decidedly highway-oriented, not track-oriented. It's powerful enough to merge and pass confidently in traffic, but it's going to trail behind its pricier neighbors in the sports sedan segment. No turbocharger may mean slower takeoff, but it also makes for a more durable, long-lasting engine. In a segment where resale values are low, and maintenance costs are high, a Lexus sedan's tendency to retain around 65% of its initial value after five years puts it well ahead of most of the competition.

Transmission options in the Lexus IS 500 F Sport Performance are limited to a single 8-speed automatic with paddle shifters. In our review, we noted that the downshifts could feel a bit slow in comparison to some of the more refined transmissions on the market, and the lack of a manual transmission is a shame, no matter how you look at it. Maybe Lexus will consider a manual transmission at some point, but we're not holding our breath. In fact, we wouldn't expect the V8 to stick around for much longer, either.

When you're buying a luxury sports sedan, the luxury part is just as important as the sports part, and the Lexus does not disappoint in that regard. Inside, you'll find high-end trim quality, an 8-inch touchscreen, and some sleek color options, including black, circuit red, and a neat two-tone black and white trim. If you want to upgrade from there, the IS 500 F Sport Premium sells for around $63,370, and it adds a high-end Mark Levinson sound system, a 10.3-inch touchscreen, a power rear sunshade, and triple-beam LED headlights.

Of course, the cabin quality is secondary to the ride quality when it comes to getting a luxury experience out of a luxury car. The IS 500's absorbent suspension system could be described as leisurely, sedate, and relaxed. It might not provide the snappy feedback you want from a sports sedan, but it does live up to the luxury part of the deal. You may feel yourself leaning a bit more than you'd like around hairpin turns at high speeds, but that's not really what the IS 500 is built to do.

It's easy to nitpick the 2024 Lexus IS 500 F Sport Performance, but the bottom line is that this car is in a category of one. It's a V8-powered sports sedan that you can drive off the lot without taking on a six-figure car loan. Could the suspension be a bit firmer? Would we prefer a manual transmission? Would a turbocharger help to get those 0-60s down? Sure, yes, and absolutely. But that's criticizing the car for what it isn't, rather than evaluating it for what it is: a comfortable, sporty daily driver with a powerful 8-cylinder engine under the hood and a price tag most drivers can live with.

Who's Still Making V8 Sports Sedans?

Last we checked, there were about a dozen V8-powered production sedans still available in the US, and they're pretty much all sports sedans because the only reason to put a V8 in a sedan in 2024 is to improve the performance specs.

As you might have guessed, the list is dominated by BMW, Mercedes, and Audi. The Lexus IS 500 isn't the last of its kind, but it's the last in its unique market position as an affordable V8 sports sedan. After the IS 500, the price shoots up to around $90,000 for a Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing and on to the low six-figures and quarter-million range for cars like the Bentley Flying Spur. The V8 is even disappearing from the pickup truck segment, which is something we never thought would happen.

In short, they still make V8 sports sedans, but they're increasingly becoming niche luxury items where they used to be more common daily drivers.

How Long Will They Keep Making V8 Sedans, Anyway?

At the end of the day, if someone's willing to buy it, someone will be willing to sell it. There are still a few V10s out there on the market in 2024, like the one Judd Power makes for the McLaren Solus GT. Does a V10 really make sense when you can achieve the same power output with any number of hybrid or electric powertrains? Not really. But there's a niche market for 10-cylinder supercars, so you can still find 10-cylinder supercars.

V8s may be becoming more niche, but as long as combustion-powered engines are an option, we'll likely see the beloved 8-cylinder stick around. The Porsche Panamera E-Turbo pairs a V8 with an electric motor to achieve a 3-second 0-60 sprint with the Sport Chrono Package and a top speed of 196 mph, so hybrids might not replace the V8 so much as keep it relevant into the foreseeable future. The same is true of the all-new BMW M5.

The Lexus IS series as a whole is, itself, a kind of niche. Lexus sold 22,521 units in total in 2023. We don't have the numbers to tell us how many of those were IS 500 F Sport Performance models, but the IS 300's position as a more accessible, everyday Lexus, starting at an MSRP of $40,085, likely has it taking the lion's share of sales. In other words, if you've always wanted a V8-powered luxury sports sedan, the IS 500 isn't just your best option in 2024; it might be your last chance to get one for under a hundred grand. If you want to buy a brand new one, that is.

2024-07-22T01:53:35Z dg43tfdfdgfd