Lexus has teased the all-new IS ahead of its scheduled debut on 9 June. The Japanese brand’s BMW 3 Series rival will land in showrooms in 2021, but the company has confirmed that it will not go on sale in the UK.
Based on this teaser image, the upcoming IS will feature a sporty diffuser beneath the rear bumper and a full-width LED rear light bar, which is similar in design to the unit found on the the Lexus UX compact crossover.
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We’re yet to get a glimpse of the front end, but we expect it will be subject to a heavy styling update. Revisions should mirror the design of the Lexus ES executive saloon, with a pair of narrow LED headlamps and a broad hourglass-shaped radiator grille.
Inside, the new IS should feature Lexus’s latest dashboard design, with a minimalist centre console, a circular digital instrument binnacle and a high-mounted 10.25-inch infotainment system – all of which have already been introduced on the UX, ES and LS.
Mechanical updates are still under wraps but, like the rest of the Lexus line-up, we expect the new IS will be available with 2.0-litre or 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engines, which will be mated to an electric motor and a CVT automatic transmission.
The fourth-generation IS will offer fresh competition for the Mercedes C-Class, Audi A4, and BMW 3 Series when it goes on sale in the US next year. However, a Lexus spokesperson has confirmed that the IS won’t make it to Britain. “Due to the growth of the SUV market in Europe and the strong sales of the ES saloon, the IS will not be coming to the UK,” a statement read.
“Roughly 80 per cent of all Lexus models sold in Europe are SUVs and the larger ES is outselling the current IS at a rate of around two-to-one – so we made the decision to not introduce this new model to the UK market.”
What do you make of Lexus’s decision to not bring the new IS to the UK? Let us know in the comments section below…