Lexus IS gets a facelift – it’s just VERY tough to spot any changes

[nggallery id=2330 template=customlinks]

The Lexus IS has been given a makeover for 2017, with upgrades to the interior and exterior of the compact executive Lexus. Debuted at Beijing 2016.

Last week, Lexus sent us a tease photo of the Lexus IS facelift it was planning to debut at the Beijing Motor Show, so we figured if it was worth a tease there would be something new and interesting to see.

We’d pretty much discounted Lexus doing anything of any significance to either the IS 200t’s turbo engine or the hybrid setup in the IS 300h, but we figured we’d be in for at least new bumpers, new lights, new alloys and ‘higher quality materials’ – the usual facelift fodder – making the latest version of the IS stand out from the current model.

We did start to wonder just how little Lexus had changed the 2017 model IS when the opening line of the press release said “…because the original styling of the current IS has proved so popular, Lexus has kept the essence of car’s exterior appearance intact”, although our hopes rose again when we were told “…the entire front fascia of the new model has undergone a transformation”. Trouble is, we are struggling to see the changes.

Apparently, the headlights have changed a bit and the running lights are a bit more pronounced, the air intakes at the front are bigger and the spindle grill is updated, there are slightly different alloys and the tail lights have been tweaked too – we just can’t really tell.

On the inside, we could tell the infotainment screen is bigger, but we struggled to see the new stitching or ‘redesigned’ dash.

The ‘new’ Lexus IS won’t arrive in Lexus’s UK dealers until late 2016/ early 2017, presumably to give Lexus time to implement the overwhelming updates.