The Fast Lane's Roman Mica and Tommy Mica are back with another interesting drag race. On this occasion, they pitted a Lexus IS 500 against a nearly 10-year-old Mustang GT on a Colorado runway.
That's a mile above sea level, which isn't exactly great for naturally-aspirated engines. Both of these vehicles pack 5.0-liter V8s, albeit rather different ones. In the Lexus, we're dealing with a DOHC affair that makes 395 pound-feet (536 Nm) of torque.
Rated at 472 horsepower, said lump is connected to an eight-speed automatic transmission. By comparison, the first-gen Coyote in that S197 makes do with 420 horsepower and 390 pound-feet (529 Nm) at 4,250 revolutions per minute as opposed to 4,800 for the more advanced Japanese contender.
The 2014 model year 'Stang further sweetens the deal with a six-speed automatic. Back in January 2017 for model year 2018, the Ford Motor Company's pony car upgraded to a 10-speed transmission developed by FoMoCo as part of a partnership with GM.
Not equipped with the GT Track Package, the Mustang weighs in the ballpark of 3,600 pounds (1,633 kilograms). Last but not least, it flaunts a MagnaFlow exhaust and Goodyear Eagle rubber boots at every corner. The more expensive sedan? Make that around 3,900 pounds (1,769 kilograms) and Bridgestone Potenzas for the Lexus IS 500.
The Japan versus America showdown is over in 14 seconds. After no fewer than three dig races, the best ETs were 14.31 seconds at 104 miles per hour (167 kilometers per hour) and 14.55 seconds at 103 miles per hour (166 kilometers per hour). How about a rolling start? As expected, the Lexus asserted dominance over the S197 Mustang once again.
Roman and Tommy also performed an emergency braking test from 60 miles per hour (97 kilometers per hour). Although the pony car is lighter, its old tires didn't help in this particular scenario. From 60 to zero miles per hour, the S197 required 120 feet and change as opposed to 115 for the Lexus IS 500.
Slightly punchier in Japan (481 ps or 475 hp), the IS 500 is the most powerful V8-engined Japanese production car on sale today. More powerful than the Century ultra-luxury sedan, the compact executive sedan carries a starting price of $59,420 in the United States. According to Tommy, the red example in the video below costs approximately 66 big ones.
The S197 was purchased used for $24k, which is good value for a mechanically sound Mustang GT from that era. The 2024 model year Mustang GT is quite a bit more, namely $42,495 (excluding destination charge).
It can get a helluva lot more expensive if you upgrade to the Mustang GT Premium, or – better still – to the Mustang Dark Horse. Unfortunately for owners and prospective customers, the most powerful 'Stang for 2024 isn't exactly great in terms of paint quality.
The GT isn't without its faults either. Speaking of which, can you believe that a GT was recently shipped with mismatched seats to the dealer? Said dealer performed the pre-delivery inspection as if nothing was wrong, which goes to show that Ford and US dealership network should do better going forward.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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