Think Lexus and you'll probably end up with the mental image of something that's quieter than a snooker commentator after a hard night's karaoke, that's supremely comfortable, and probably rather anonymous. These are words you'd never use to describe the snarling IS F sports saloon, a car that seemed to blow many of Lexus' previous brand touchstones clean out of the water. As a drivers' car, it stood comparison with the best that BMW's M, Audi's RS and Mercedes-Benz's AMG divisions could produce but it never built a big following. All of which means that if you want a used bargain that's not going to let you down and might just be the most exciting steer of the lot, the IS F could be just the ticket.

About the Lexus IS F

As a first stab at creating a state of the art sports saloon, the Lexus IS F is a solid effort. You probably wouldn't expect a Japanese car to emerge as the most charismatic choice in its sector but put it back to back with its German rivals and the Lexus emerges as the slightly unhinged one. It's maybe not quite so polished at the very outer limits of dynamics but it's got the bigger personality and serves up a huge helping of fun. As a used buy it's an excellent choice. As long as you're comfortable with its fuel thirst and other associated running costs, it's hard not to love it. Prices have softened to a degree where it now looks very good value against a BMW M3 saloon and reliability is second to none. It might not have been a standout seller as a new car, but as a used proposition, we reckon the IS F's day has just about come.

Representative finance example

If your borrow amount is £7,000 with a deposit of £1,000, a selected term of 48 months, at a representative APR of 17.9% (fixed) and an annual fixed interest rate of 17.9%, you would pay £171.83 per month. Total charge for credit would be £2,247.84 and total amount repayable is £8,247.84.

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