Lexus IS430

Bad Ass ISWhen Lexus first put the IS300 up for sale in North America it was an immediate sensation. But as time has gone on, it sort of faded in the market. How can Lexus re-ignite the public's interest in the car? How about by shoving a big engine into it?

Caught while testing on Germany's Nurburgring is this IS (or is it a Toyota Altezza - like there's a difference) that apparently has had the 4.3-liter, dohc, 32-valve V8 from the GS430 shoved under its rather puny nose. The intent here, obviously, is to fortify the IS for battle against European thoroughbreds like the BMW M3, Audi S4 and maybe even the upcoming Volvo S60R. But while the competition might be European, the formula is pure American muscle machine-small car, big engine.

All those vents and scoops indicate that this monster features all that's expected in this class of car: big engine, big brakes, big wheels, big tires and the ability to curdle blood from 60 yards away. In the GS430 the 4.3-liter V8 is rated at 300 hp, which just won't be enough against the M3's 333 horses. However, it's not hard to imagine some twisting of the VVTL-i variable valve-timing, a more aggressive intake and freer-flowing exhaust to boost power to 350 hp, if not more. We expect the engine would be backed by a six-speed manual transmission of some sort.

Is the IS430 a done deal? That it's gotten so far along that they're driving it in Germany is encouraging. But there are no guarantees. Don't expect this most rabid of Altezza-based machines to make here any earlier than 2004.