Feedback Please: IS-F vs CTS-V vs M56S vs?

So, next year/later this year i'm considering trading in/selling my WRX and obtaining a super sedan.

Thus far my options that i've explored consist of the following:

• 2010+ Lexus IS-F - (tiny backseat though?)
• 2010+ Infiniti M56S - Seems like the best value, but depreciation will be terrible, anyone own/driven one?
• 2010+ Caddy CTS-V - Seems like "the answer" to the super sedan question

The Caddy seems FAR worse on gas than the other two (not that it really matters), and I'm not a traditionally american car fan. (need to drive one still) I like that there's a 6sp option, but they're nearly un-findable :D

Thoughts? feedback? dirty pictures?

It seems like any discussion of those should also include the M3 and possibly M5. BMW does this super sedan stuff very well.

Well, the IS-F sounds amazing, so there's that... I'd probably choose that myself for the sound, interior fit and finish and (hopefully) Lexus reliability. You're into the turbo M3/M5 in that same year range I believe, I'd worry about the long term durability of those. Even though they may be the better drivers car.

bmwbav wrote: You're into the turbo M3/M5 in that same year range I believe, I'd worry about the long term durability of those. Even though they may be the better drivers car.

Hit the nail on the head, BMW/Mercedes aren't on the list intentionally

The ctsv makes the best noises and I'd argue looks the best. That's where my money is. Especially wagon.

I would review this if you are really thinking about the Infiniti

http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/2011-infiniti-m56s-long-term-road-test-review

Seems that C&D had a lot of little (German-like) issues.

Japanese V8 attached to a Lexus sounds like a heckuva combination. It also sounds like the 2011 updates are worth holding out for. http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/2011-lexus-is-f-road-test-review

CTS-V

I don't think the other two cars are in the same league. They are more BMW M5/M3 pretenders. CTS-V is the real thing.

You know the right answer, it's in your name. You could change it to "8 speed autolex"

Not really a sedan but what is the consensus on the GTR?

CTS-V is the answer if you are looking for the ultimate sedan. My boss has a wagon, its awesome. The Lexus is a nice car but its not the monster the caddy is. I know nothing about the infiniti, nor do I want to (personal opinion)

Here's a good way to think of it- when's the last time a CTS-V was brought up in a sedan conversation here vs when was the last time an IS-F was? Other possible option depending on just how much cashmoleans you're talking here..... Hellcat Charger?

Kind of in it's own class.

I vote Lexus.

In reply to bmwbav: My comment on the Lexus interior was due to a friend having a 2014 IS350, it is a very nice place to spend time. Looking at photos of the earlier models, it's not nearly as compelling. Still think it's the best sounding super sedan out there, it's got the 32V high-strung sound going on. The CTS-V sounds good as well, but not special like the Lexus.

I vote anything BUT CTS-V...but only because I want moar CTS-V's for MEEEEEEE.

I'm 1 year and 30,000 miles into my V1 and still loving it. SO glad I didn't buy an M3, as that was the other top contender.

Saving my pennies for the perfect V2 wagon, and hoping the prices drop when the V3's start selling.

As far as "special sound" goes, pick your poison on aftermarket bits that make the V sound nastier than it already sounds.

My $.02 YMMV.

I was in the same boat and ended up with an IS-F.

The CTS-V is undoubtedly faster, but the Lexus wins in fit & finish, reliability, resale value, MPG, etc, etc. They also respond shockingly well to bolt-ons. But hey, I'm biased.

I vote CTS-V

I have been in one of these and they are much better in person. This would be my choice. The down side is the cost.

dean1484 wrote: I have been in one of these and they are much better in person. This would be my choice. The down side is the cost.

I too have driven one for a track day. The gearing is... Long. The awd is awesome, but you'll likely never use it, since you won't be rallying a 100k car. The one I was in was only a year old and the bucket leather was starting to rip.

Keep in mind, this was a childhood dream coming to fruition. And here I am bagging on the only car from Japan that keeps pace on the Ring with the likes of Audi and bmw and Porsche.

So, I was thinking about this today. I know i've put entirely too much input into this thread already, but I want to talk more so here goes.

This is kind of like a discussion about steaks. We all like steaks. (If you don't you're a communist). There's the MERICA bigass slab of prime rib, bloody, terrible for you, all over the plate, about a billion calories, a mess. BUT- it's delicious. It's amazing every time. It's a refined version of a very primal thing, but it retains its rowdy RAWR MEAT heritage. Very CTS-V. On the outside, it's a Caddy. It's a really nice car. It's got a great interior, it looks amazing, though brutal. It's refined yet....stabby? The epitome of 'MERICA.

Then there's the Wagyu steak. It's spent decades being refined. It was born to be focused on being one thing, a wonderful steak. It's been massaged and refined and worked and primped and fed steak beer and prepared to be the most refined, well marbled steak it can be, and it shows. It's precise. It's beautiful, sublime. Even in its most base state (raw) you can appreciate the work that's gone into it. you sit and look at it. You look at the marbling. You appreciate the graining in the meat. There isn't an overt abundance of it (Like there is with the prime rib) but there doesn't need to be. The experience is meant to be appreciated for the precision of it. It's not meant to be brutal and in your face. It's meant to be singular, all encompassing. It's not to say it's any less engrossing than a slab of nearly raw prime rib, but it is a wholly different experience.

This is the IS-F. It's the subject of YEARS of Lexus being Lexus, and trying their hand at steak. They're a sushi market. Expert preparation is king. You won't get the brutality and primal offering that the CTS-V is, but you're not there for that. You're there for the refinement. You want the precision. You want the Japanese level of execution. You don't need a HUGE amount of power/steak, you need just enough to occupy your senses. You want to focus them as much as possible on each experience, and that's what the IS-F is the expert at.

I've never seen the interior of the ISF, but I seem to remember another car mag and/or top gear saying it wasn't anything to write home about(?)

I say M56 only because I am a Nissan guy, and I think it's probably the most sleeper of them all, unless you make your CTS v look like a base model. Most people don't know they offered the 5.6 in the M, and they are darn quick. More luxury than sport, though, whereas the Lexus and CTS are lux and sporty. I would love to see an M56 worked over though. A GTR is in a completely different realm than these, not even in the same discussion. Plus it's not a 4 door or a wagon, which the others are.

mndsm wrote: This is the IS-F. It's the subject of YEARS of Lexus being Lexus, and trying their hand at steak. They're a sushi market. Expert preparation is king. You won't get the brutality and primal offering that the CTS-V is, but you're not there for that. You're there for the refinement. You want the precision. You want the Japanese level of execution. You don't need a HUGE amount of power/steak, you need just enough to occupy your senses. You want to focus them as much as possible on each experience, and that's what the IS-F is the expert at.

Kind of...except Lexus berkeleyed up the '08 & '09 models. The '12+ IS-Fs are exactly what you describe, but the car-by-committee mentality really shows in the first two model years.

I wasn't impressed with the CTS-V. It felt lazy and heavy to me, but that was just street driving. It does have tons of power.

My experience was coming from an e60 BMW M5 with a V-10. It was a phenomenal car, just kept breaking and that wasn't going to cut it. I went shopping for a replacement. I looked at some of the same cars.

I landed on the IS-F. It is smaller than the infinity and Cadillac but it drives much better in my opinion. Not as small as the c class Mercedes, but still not a lot of leg room. My 4 year old and car seat fit.