When mid-life panic sets in, some people feel compelled to end their careers, change partners or start a vineyard
(no kidding, there's a Midlife Crisis Winery in California), among other leaps of faith.

Auto manufacturers sometimes go through similar crises of identity, which help to explain rolling blunders like the
AMC Pacer and Pontiac Aztek.

You'd think a got-it-together company like Lexus would know its mission statement intimately, but even a carefully
focused firm can sometimes stray off course.

How else to explain the youthful and exuberant Lexus IS 300?

With its phat taillights, cannon exhaust pipe and 17-inch sub-dubs, uh, wheels, the IS 300 projects a decidedly athletic,
aggressive stance – just the kind of car the Friday-night crowd loves to race in abandoned industrial parks.

Clearly, the IS 300 is not your orthodontist's Lexus.

 CONFIGURATION

 Until recently, Toyota was not resonating with consumers under the age of 30 in Japan. So product planners came up with the
Altezza, a rear-drive four-door sports sedan that traced the previous-generation BMW 3 Series in almost every dimension.

Marketed in 1999 as an entry-level Lexus for Europe, the IS 200 featured a Yamaha-tuned 16-valve 2.0-litre four-cylinder that
made an impressive 207 hp, hooked up to a six-speed manual transmission.

To groom the rollicking IS 200 for North American consumption, and give Lexus a youth-oriented product to sell, engineers
yanked the peaky four and slipped in the 2JZ-GE engine – the same silky inline six that powered the GS 300 sedan
and Toyota's late, much-lamented Supra.

Switching to the 3.0-litre six prompted the name change to IS 300, which hit our shores in 2001.

Sadly, the 215-hp motor made too much torque for the six-speed stick shift, so North Americans got the GS 300's five-speed
automatic, complete with a manu-matic feature both on the floor and on the steering wheel.
(a five-speed manual arrived for 2002).

With enormous vented discs up front and even bigger solid rotors in back, the IS 300 exhibited reassuring braking power.
The suspension was independent all round, with a multilink setup in back, again borrowed from the GS 300.
Optional was a limited-slip differential.

Inside, the IS 300 featured a driver-oriented cockpit with distinctive chronograph-inspired instrumentation.
The front buckets were decent – contoured with grippy materials to keep bodies from sliding – while the back seat was
roundly criticized for being too small, along with the trunk.

For 2002, Lexus addressed complaints about the sedan's limited space by unveiling the IS 300 SportCross mini-wagon.

With its hatchback and split-folding seats (even the front passenger chair folded to accept long cargo), the SportCross
provided some utility without compromising the car's sporting intentions.

Also for 2002, all models got curtain side airbags in addition to the front side airbags.
Most significantly, Lexus added a centre armrest – a sore point that 2001-model owners had griped about relentlessly.

There were no significant changes for the remainder of the model run, which ended when the IS 250/350 bowed for 2006.

 ON THE ROAD

 "My favorite feature? The gas pedal!" blogged the owner of a 2002 model enthusiastically.

No question Lexus was trying to emulate the BMW 3 Series – the benchmark of compact sports sedans.
The IS 300 came close in published comparative tests, but could never unseat the Bavarian sedan from its throne.

Zero to 96 km/h came up in 7.6 seconds with the automatic, 7.2 with the manual transmission.
Road grip was good – up to 0.82 g, depending on the tires – and braking was superb at just 50 metres to a
standstill from a speed of 70 mph.

Drivers found the littlest Lexus to be an eager playmate, with intuitive reflexes and taut handling.
Surprisingly, the ride was quite compliant, despite the low-profile tires.

Some owners did note a lag in the automatic transmission's response times, however:
"Transmission is slow to respond, jerky and is often slow to shift when starting from a stop," reported one.

Owners also weren't happy with the IS 300's fuel consumption, which seemed excessive for such a small,
but weighty, sedan.

 WHAT OWNERS REPORTED

 While the emphasis on sport may have been something new from Lexus, owners took comfort in the knowledge that
the marque's legendary reliability was probably intact. And they were right.

"Easily the most reliable car I've ever owned – in four years the only thing that needed replacing was the battery (three times!),
everything else was untouched after 75,000 km," reader David Lowe reported of his 2002 model.

The only recurring problems we found in our Internet scan were a plastic underbody panel that would sometimes hang
loose (a recall item), numerous stone chips on the hood and prematurely worn tires.

Speaking of tires, the IS 300 is a poor performer in slippery conditions, so four snow tires are a must in winter,
owners advised. Its low-profile tires are also susceptible to blowouts and damaged wheels.

All in all, the IS 300 represents a great way to get your kicks on the street without a lot of down time in the service bay.
Although crafted for Gen-Y drivers, mid-lifers are welcome to squeeze in.