Eight months after dropping the 2019 Lexus IS F 300 Sport Black Line Edition, Toyota’s premium brand is dipping its toes back in that pool with the arrival of the 2020 Lexus IS F Sport Black Line Edition.

In case you’re confused, Lexus is bringing two different Black Line Edition models to the market in the same calendar year. You can’t fault Lexus for being enterprising, especially if the 2019 IS F 300 Sport Black Line Edition sold as well as we think it did. This time, the IS F Sport receives the Black Line Edition treatment, and in keeping with tradition, this new SE benefits from a host of exterior and interior upgrades to go along with its limited availability. Only 900 units of the 2020 Lexus IS F 300 Sport Black Line Edition will be available in the U.S. market at a starting price of $46,225.

2020 Lexus IS F Sport Blackline Edition

Specifications
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  • Model: 2020 Lexus IS F Sport Blackline Edition
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What Makes the 2020 Lexus IS F Sport Black Line Edition special?

When something isn’t broken, there’s no need to fix it, right? It’s a saying that goes back to the dawn of time, but like all timeless quotes, it applies today as it did back then. Lexus seems to think that it does. That’s the only reason I can think of why the automaker decided that dropping a second Black Line Edition model in the same year as the first one counts as a good idea. Maybe Lexus got a tad too excited. Maybe it was milking the special edition for all it’s worth. Either way, more special edition models means more chances for Lexus fans to cop one. Everybody wins.

Before we take a look at the 2020 Lexus IS F Sport Black Line Edition, let’s do a brief recap of the one that came before it: the 2019 Lexus IS F 300 Sport Black Line Edition. Introduced in February 2019, the IS F 300 Sport Black Line Edition was offered with a choice of three exterior colors: Ultra White, Obsidian Black, and Atomic Silver. It also sat on a set of 18-inch, split-spoke wheels that featured a Black Vapor Chrome finish and a heavily dressed up interior. It didn’t come with any engine upgrades, but nobody was expecting any of that in the first place.

Knowing what the 2019 IS F 300 Sport Black Line Edition came with will give you an understanding of what the new 2020 IS F Sport Black Line Edition is all about. In a nutshell, it’s the same thing. The only exclusive color that’s available to the 2020 IS F Sport Black Line Edition — if you can even call it that — is Ultrasonic Blue Mica 2.0. It’s not much of a change, but at least it still counts as one. The well-received Black Vapour Chrome finish also makes a return to the 2020 Black Line Edition. It’s the same finish that Lexus used on the new SE’s set of 18-inch, split-spoke wheels, but the carmaker also applied it on the front grille surround and mirror caps. Minor progress, but progress nevertheless.

Inside, the 2020 Lexus IS F Sport Black Line Edition gets dressed in NuLuxe faux leather, creating a black and gray vibe in the interior of the four-door sports sedan. Indigo Blue stitching provides the splashy contrast — you can also see the stitching on the door panels and glove box — while a heated wood steering wheel serves as the cherry on top of this special edition sundae. It’s not often that you’ll a steering wheel with wood trim on it — that used to be a big thing back in the 1990s — but Lexus found a way to make it work without being too blatantly retro about it.

Tech features are also part of the 2020 Lexus IS F Sport Black Edition. The special edition IS F also comes with Lexus’ SmartAccess card key, allowing access to the sports sedan despite being small enough to fit inside a wallet.

As expected, there are no powertrain changes available to the 2020 Lexus IS F Sport Black Line Edition. The good news is that the new SE is available in several trim options so you can choose the type of engine you want to get for your special edition model. There’s a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine that produces 241 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque that’s available when you buy the rear-wheel drive IS 300 Black Line Edition. If you want more power on tap, you can buy the all-wheel drive IS 300 and reap the rewards of the sedan’s 3.5-liter V-6 engine and its 255-horsepower and 236-pound-feet-of-torque output. In the event that you want the best version of the 2020 Lexus IS F Sport Black Line Edition, go for the all-wheel drive IS 350. It carries the same 3.5-liter V-6 unit as the all-wheel drive IS 300, but this specific trim carries an engine that’s been tuned to produce 311 horsepower and 276 pound-feet of torque. These are the three options that are available to you. The prices vary depending on the trim, but at least you get the option of choosing which version suits you best.



The all-wheel drive IS 300 sits in the middle with a price of $48,675 while the all-wheel drive IS 350 counts as the most expensive version with a price of $52,010. We know that Lexus is allocating 900 units of the 2020 IS F Sport Black Line Edition for the U.S. market.

We also know that the special edition model arrives in dealerships across the country sometime in November of this year. That should give those who are interested in buying one enough time to weigh their options. Don’t take too much time, though, because the 2020 Lexus IS F Sport Black Edition is capped at just 900 units for the U.S. market. That’s the same volume Lexus allocated for the 2019 special edition model earlier this year. It’s unclear how many units Lexus allocated for each of the trim models, though don’t be surprised if there’s no specific number for each trim. What’s important, at least in the case of Lexus, is that all 900 units are accounted for with owners who are ready, willing, and able to take home one of these special-edition IF Sport Black Edition units

Further reading

Read our full review on the 2019 Lexus IS300 F Sport.

Read our full review on the 2019 Lexus IS.