We’re fans of oddball cars, so we’ve always had a soft spot for the Lexus IS 500. But we may soon have to love it in our memories. Lexus today revealed a limited-run special edition, the 2025 Lexus IS Ultimate Edition.
In the past, an “ultimate edition” from Lexus has meant a final salute to a canceled model.
Lexus hasn’t revealed pricing for this limited edition. It uses most of the elements of the top-of-the-line IS 500 F Sport Performance grade, which starts at $65,095, including the mandatory $1,175 delivery fee. Their rarity will likely raise that price.
The Weirdest of its Kind
The IS has always been unlikely.
It’s a performance sedan from the luxury automaker you probably least associate with performance. Its extra-hot-sauce IS 500 F Sport variants are the only compact sedans available with V8 engines, which is cartoonish fun.
It looks just a bit brash, though it’s grown easier to accept its proportions now that the giant Lexus spindle grille is common on other Lexii.
We can never shake the sense that when the BMW M3 and the Mercedes-AMG C-Class plan a get-together, they agree to invite the Audi RS 5, text the Cadillac CT5 V-Series Blackwing that they miss it, and make sure they’ve all blocked the IS 500 F Sport’s number.
Some of us love a party crasher.
A (Likely) Final Salute
Lexus will build just 500 copies of the 2025 IS Ultimate Edition for sale in North America.
They get that 472-horsepower V8 that somehow fits into a compact sedan. It’s tied to an 8-speed shiftable automatic transmission and sends power to the rear wheels.
Lexus didn’t get too creative with the exterior. They’ll come in a color Lexus calls “Wind” and everyone not in marketing for a living calls white.
Brembo 6-piston aluminum front brake calipers painted dark red hint at the car being something more than another white Lexus. They peek out from behind custom matte black 19-inch wheels.
Designers used a Circuit Red and Black theme inside the cabin, with seats swathed in NuLuxe (faux leather) and Ultrasuede (faux suede). We’ve always found the synthetic materials Lexus uses to be as luxurious as the real thing, but easier to clean and maintain.
To further the performance theme, red traces appear throughout the cabin, including red seatbelts and even red elements on the analog clock in the dashboard. A serialized badge tells you which of the 500 copies you bought. The 2025 Lexus IS Ultimate Edition is set to go on sale later this year.
