Laps around California's Mazda Laguna Seca Raceway in the stupendous new Lexus IS F sedan and, at the other end of the range, a relaxed week behind the wheel of the more sensible (but still engaging) IS250 (pictured above), has me contemplating the IS we don't get — Europe's diesel-powered IS220d. The first and only diesel-powered Lexus model (and one of only a handful of Toyota products with a diesel engine), the IS220d has nonetheless found favor among even the most persnickety of Europe's automotive journalists, even when compared directly with the car's very established rivals, the BMW 320d and the Audi A4 2.0TDI. It's even fared well against the beloved diesel-powered version of the European Honda Accord (which is essentially the U.S.-market Acura TSX). And with plans to launch Honda's i-DTEC clean diesel engine in the next generation of the Euro-spec Accord/U.S.-spec TSX — not to mention the imminent Stateside arrival of new diesels from BMW, Audi, Mercedes-Benz, and Volkswagen — doesn't it make sense that Toyota, despite its heretofore singular focus on gasoline-electric hybrid powertrains, might use the IS220d to establish a foothold in the diesel market? The 2.2-liter turbodiesel four (pictured above right) produces 175 horsepower and a very impressive 295 pound-feet of torque — 110 more than the 2.5-liter gasoline V-6 in my IS250 test car and 18 more than the 3.5-liter V-6 in the IS350 — so the IS220d would hardly arrive here as an embarrassment in the performance department. But certainly more notable about the diesel-fed IS than its willingness to play is its modest thirst: The car returns 30 mpg (U.S. gallons) in town and 44 mpg on the highway (compared with 21/29 mpg for the rear-wheel-drive IS250 and 18/25 mpg for the IS350). Still unconvinced? Consider then that with the exception of the Prius (48/45 mpg city/highway), the IS220d consumes less fuel per mile than any Lexus, Toyota, or Scion vehicle on sale in America — hybrids included. So let's have it, Lexus. I think America is ready.
Photos courtesy of Lexus.
