beginners question

The BMW328 _AUTO_ and IS300 are comparable in 0-60 performance.

Maybe you are looking at numbers for the manual 328?

Wait until next year and compare the manual 330i to the manual trans IS300...

the other thing is engineering....say the IS gets a manual next year and goes 0-60 in 6.5...i think that is pretty fair. the m3 has and additional 15 hp but it gets there in like a second faster almost...why? engineering.

Thanks. How about my suspension question? Is the everyday driving in the IS that bad?

well....i dunno i've been drving a 15 year old car for the last year so its basically all the same to me. anyhow i think most cars today in teh luxury segment have a kind of floatier feeling than a sports car that has a "rough" ride....i'd prefer the rough ride where i feel like i have control compared to some floaty car where i feel like i'm driving a boat. i've never driven an IS but i HAVE sat in an m3 and people say taht thing has a rough suspension but i loved it.

There may be some consensus that the e36 M3 is quicker than expected because it actually makes a bit more than 240hp but BMW was very conservative with their published numbers.

i can agree with taht because i've heard of 250bhp instead of 240 in the later ones....but either way 35hp isn't oging to make a second of a differnece on the IS

1. Unsprung weight might be higher in the IS300 (heavy alloy wheels?), torque is measured at the crank, not wheels.
2. The M3 is lighter, and torque is greater by probably 30 lb-ft. The M3 has a broader torque curve as well, and gearing could be shorter, but I have no idea.
3. The Lexus doesn't behave like it's got 215hp, when's that damn Car and Driver gonna test it? I want a real 0-60 time.

measured at the crank? what does that mean..hehe sorry, im kinda new to all this. thanx