2012 Lexus IS 350C Overview Change Vehicle

This 2012 Lexus IS 350C review explains changes for the model year, provides a summary of the 2012 IS 350C, and includes Lexus IS 350C safety, reliability, and fuel economy ratings.

The 2012 Lexus IS 350C is a four-passenger, rear-wheel-drive convertible fitted with a retractable hard top that stows in the car’s trunk. A 250C is also available, but is equipped with a less powerful engine. Competitors include the Infiniti G Convertible, the BMW 335i Convertible, the Audi A5 Cabriolet, and the Volvo C70.

Unlike its less powerful sibling, the IS 250C, the 2012 Lexus IS 350C arrives with a slight loss in efficiency. By slight, we mean the EPA’s rating for city driving has dropped by one mile-per-gallon. Otherwise, the only change is the addition of Nebula Gray Pearl to the list of available exterior paint colors.

Lexus offers the 2012 IS 350C in one well-equipped trim that’s fitted with a power retractable hard top as well as 17-inch alloy wheels, leather, genuine wood trim, dual-zone climate control, and a power-adjustable tilt and telescoping steering wheel. The list goes on to include Bluetooth hands-free calling capability, satellite radio, heated mirrors with built-in turn signals, a Homelink universal garage door opener, and a front passenger seat that easily slides forward at the touch of a button.

Buyers who crave a bit more will want to check out the variety of options available for the IS 350C, such as heated and ventilated front seats, HID headlights, intelligent cruise control, and safety technology that tightens the seatbelts and prepares the brakes to offer full braking power the moment the pedal is touched when a collision is likely unavoidable. A Luxury Package is also available, and adds premium leather upholstery, illuminated interior rocker panels, memory settings for the driver, and more. Finally, the drop-top IS 350C can be equipped with a navigation system boasting real-time weather and traffic information, voice recognition capabilities and a rearview camera. A booming Mark Levinson audio system can be bundled with the navigation unit.

Bolted under the rear-wheel-drive 2012 Lexus IS 350C’s sculpted hood is a 3.5-liter V6 that puts 306 horsepower and 277 pound-feet of torque at the driver’s disposal. The standard – and only – transmission is a six-speed automatic with paddle shifters, which works with the engine to earn EPA ratings of 19 mpg in the city and 27 mpg on the highway.

Call us boring or overly practical, but we tend to view reliability as a priority when considering the purchase of a new vehicle. Based on data gathered by Consumer Reports, the Lexus IS 350C (and its stable mate, the IS 250C) doesn’t exactly shine in this area, though the IS Sedan has earned the publication’s highly regarded Recommended status. That leads us to suspect that the power retractable hardtop may have a few kinks that need working out.

At the time of this writing, J.D. Power and Associates had not provided a dependability rating for the 2012 IS Convertible. Last year, however, J.D. Power predicted that reliability would be much better than average.

As we compile the data for this report, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) have not performed crash tests on the IS Convertible. However, we can tell you that the 2012 Lexus IS 350C is equipped with the company’s Vehicle Dynamics Integrated Management (VDIM) system, which controls a number of safety features in an effort to keep the car traveling on the straight and narrow when things get gnarly.

Standard safety components include four-wheel-disc antilock brakes, stability control, front-side airbags with head protection, and Safety Connect technology that alerts emergency personnel in the event of an accident or collision. The IS 350C can also be equipped with a reversing camera, intelligent cruise control, and a pre-collision system that senses when an accident may be about to occur and automatically cinches the seatbelts tight while readying the braking system to provide maximum braking power when the pedal is depressed.

To offset extra noise and the bothersome body shake that is inherent of any sedan-turned-convertible, Lexus engineers equip the 2012 IS 350C with structural reinforcements and a generous helping of sound-deadening materials. None of that has had a big impact on performance, as the IS 350 Convertible’s 5.8-second 0-60 mph time is only 0.2 seconds slower than the IS 350 Sedan. Cargo space is a different story entirely; the four-door IS offers 13 cubic-feet, whereas the IS 350C promises only 10.8 cu-ft with the roof raised and a barely-there 2.4 cu-ft when the top is lowered.

They may look identical, but hop behind the wheel of an IS 350C after driving a few miles in the IS 250C and you’ll surely notice this model’s extra 102 horsepower and 92 pound-feet of torque. For buyers drawn to the style and refinement of the IS Convertible and crave a modicum of performance, the IS 350C is clearly the better choice. If you’re in the market for a premium drop top, and you don’t plan on carrying anything in the trunk, this model belongs on your test-drive list.

By Thom Blackett