2025 Lexus IS 500 Climax Edition Marks V8 Saloon’s End

Offered exclusively in the Japanese market, the Lexus IS 500 Climax Edition stands as a stylish and sporty final-run special.

The Lexus IS 500 sports saloon is set to see its production come to an end later this year. Ahead of which, said V8-engined range-topper has gained a final-run special, though its name will either impress or humour you.

Called the 'Climax Edition', this final-run special pictured sees the Lexus IS 500 bow with some style at least. Set for sale only in Japan, each unit feature a slew of special touches and additions that set them apart from the regular IS 500.

Key new additions to the Climax Edition are the exclusive Brembo braking hardware, and the 19-inch forged aluminium wheels from BBS Japan.

Key amongst which are the exclusive Brembo brakes the Lexus IS 500 Climax Edition is brimmed with. It consists of larger ventilated 380 MM rotors up front grabbed by six-piston calipers that feature the Italian braking specialists high-friction pads too.

Typically, said brakes see their calipers dressed in signature red paint, and they hide behind equally special rolling stock – 19-inch forged aluminium wheels finished in matte black supplied by BBS Japan that was also offered in the Mode Black series prior.

On board, the Climax Edition brings a special two-tone Black and Flare Red cabin colour motif to the Lexus IS 500.

On board, the IS 500 Climax Edition sees its cabin upholstered in a combination of Ultrasuede with dimpled leather for the steering wheel and gear shifter. Elsewhere, the cabin rocks a two-tone Black and Flare Red cabin colour scheme.

Said dual-tone motif is also applied to the dash’s analogue clock dial face. Whilst here, it’s worth mentioning Lexus even added special graphics for the IS 500 Climax Edition in the 8-inch LCD instrument display panel.

Also unique to this final-run special are a series of special graphics for its digital instrument panel, and a special model plaque.

What hasn’t changed is the IS 500’s V8 heart, its 5.0-litre displacement, 472 HP and 535 NM outputs, rear-wheel-drive (RWD) setup, and 8-speed automatic box pairing. As a refresher, this V8-engined Lexus IS variant despatches 0-100 KM/H in just 4.6 secs.

Take note, just 500 units of the Lexus IS 500 Climax Edition are planned, all offered exclusively to Japanese buyers with a starting price tag of ¥9,500,000 (approx. RM276,532) – a cool ¥1,000,000 (approx. RM29,109) more than the standard IS 500.

Just 500 units of the Lexus IS 500 Climax Edition will be offered to buyers across Japan.

Historically, the Lexus IS has been around since 1999 and spans three model generations. The current third-gen model first bowed in 2013 before being refreshed in 2017 and again in 2020.

To date, roughly 1.3 million units of the Lexus IS were sold since 1999 across 40 markets globally. Given the fact that Lexus has no plans for a successor to this nameplate, we reckon this final-run special detailed should sell out quick.