
1474-1. Before driving
4
Driving
IS350/250_U (OM53C50U)
■When starting off on an uphill
The hill-start assist control will activate. (→P. 2 4 0 )
■Driving in the rain
●Drive carefully when it is ra ining, because visibility will be reduced, the windows may
become fogged-up, and the road will be slippery.
●Drive carefully when it starts to rain, because the road surface will be especially slip-
pery.
●Refrain from high speeds when driving on an expressway in the rain, because there may
be a layer of water between the tires and the road surface, preventing the steering and
brakes from operating properly.
■Engine speed while driving
In the following conditions, the engine speed may become high while driving. This is due
to automatic up-shifting control or down-shi fting implementation to meet driving condi-
tions. It does not indicate sudden acceleration.
●The vehicle is judged to be driving uphill or downhill
●When the accelerator pedal is released
●When the brake pedal is depressed while sport mode is selected
■Breaking in your new Lexus
To extend the life of the vehicle, observin g the following precautions is recommended:
●For the first 186 miles (300 km):
Avoid sudden stops.
●For the first 621 miles (1000 km):
• Do not drive at extremely high speeds.
• Avoid sudden acceleration.
• Do not drive continuously in low gears.
• Do not drive at a constant speed for extended periods.
■Drum-in-disc type parking brake system
Your vehicle has a drum-in-disc type parking brake system. This type of brake system
needs bedding-down of the brake shoes periodically or whenever the parking brake
shoes and/or drum are replaced. Have your Lexus dealer perform the bedding down
operation.
■Operating your vehicle in a foreign country
Comply with the relevant vehicle registration laws and confirm the availability of the cor-
rect fuel. ( →P. 5 2 2 )

1484-1. Before driving
IS350/250_U (OM53C50U)
CAUTION
Observe the following precautions.
Failure to do so may result in death or serious injury.
■When starting the vehicle
Always keep your foot on the brake pedal while stopped with the engine running. This
prevents the vehicle from creeping.
■When driving the vehicle
●Do not drive if you are unfamiliar with th e location of the brake and accelerator ped-
als to avoid depressing the wrong pedal.
• Accidentally depressing the accelerator pedal instead of the brake pedal will result in sudden acceleration that may lead to an accident.
• When backing up, you may twist your body around, leading to a difficulty in oper- ating the pedals. Make sure to operate the pedals properly.
• Make sure to keep a correct driving posture even when moving the vehicle only slightly. This allows you to depress the brake and accelerator pedals properly.
• Depress the brake pedal using your right foot. Depressing the brake pedal using
your left foot may delay response in an emergency, resulting in an accident.
●Do not drive the vehicle over or stop the vehicle near flammable materials.
The exhaust system and exhaust gases can be extremely hot. These hot parts may
cause a fire if there is any flammable material nearby.
●During normal driving, do not turn off the engine. Turning the engine off while driving
will not cause loss of steering or braking control, but the power assist to these systems
will be lost. This will make it more difficult to steer and brake, so you should pull over
and stop the vehicle as soon as it is safe to do so.
However, in the event of an emergency, such as if it becomes impossible to stop the
vehicle in the normal way: →P. 4 5 7
●Use engine braking (downshift) to maintain a safe speed when driving down a steep
hill.
Using the brakes continuously may cause the brakes to overheat and lose effective-
ness. ( →P. 1 6 4 )
●Do not adjust the positions of the steering wheel, the seat, or the inside or outside rear
view mirrors while driving.
Doing so may result in a loss of vehicle control.
●Always check that all passengers’ arms, heads or other parts of their body are not
outside the vehicle.
●Do not drive in excess of the speed limit. Even if the legal speed limit permits it, do not
drive over 85 mph (140 km/h) unless your vehicle has high-speed capability tires.
Driving over 85 mph (140 km/h) may result in tire failure, loss of control and possible
injury. Be sure to consult a tire dealer to determine whether the tires on your vehicle
are high-speed capability tires or not before driving at such speeds.

1514-1. Before driving
4
Driving
IS350/250_U (OM53C50U)
CAUTION
Observe the following precautions.
Failure to do so may result in death or serious injury.
■When taking a nap in the vehicle
Always turn the engine off. Otherwise, if you accidentally move the shift lever or
depress the accelerator pedal, this could cause an accident or fire due to engine over-
heating. Additionally, if the vehicle is park ed in a poorly ventilated area, exhaust gases
may collect and enter the vehicle, leadin g to death or a serious health hazard.
■When braking
●When the brakes are wet, drive more cautiously.
Braking distance increases when the brakes are wet, and this may cause one side of
the vehicle to brake differently than the other side. Also, the parking brake may not
securely hold the vehicle.
●If the power brake assist function does not operate, do not follow other vehicles
closely and avoid hills or sharp turns that require braking.
In this case, braking is still possible, but the brake pedal should be depressed more
firmly than usual. Also, the braking distance will increase. Have your brakes fixed
immediately.
●Do not pump the brake pedal if the engine stalls.
Each push on the brake pedal uses up the reserve for the power-assisted brakes.
●The brake system consists of 2 individual hydraulic systems; if one of the systems fails,
the other will still operate. In this case, the brake pedal should be depressed more
firmly than usual and the br aking distance will increase.
Have your brakes fixed immediately.
■If the vehicle becomes stuck
Do not spin the wheels excessively when any of the tires is up in the air, or the vehicle is
stuck in sand, mud, etc. This may damage the driveline components or propel the vehi-
cle forward or backward, causing an accident.

2144-5. Using the driving support systems
IS350/250_U (OM53C50U)
■Ty p e s o f s e n s o r s
■Intuitive parking assist switch
Turns the intuitive parking assist on/
off
When on, the indicator light comes
on to inform the driver that the sys-
tem is operational.
Intuitive parking assist∗
∗: If equipped
The distance from your vehicle to nearby obstacles when parallel parking or
maneuvering into a garage is measured by the sensors and communicated via
the multi-information display, Lexus Display Audio screen (if equipped) and a
buzzer. Always check the surrounding area when using this system.
Front center sensors
Front corner sensors Rear corner sensors
Rear center sensors1
2
3
4

2184-5. Using the driving support systems
IS350/250_U (OM53C50U)
You can change the warning beep volume and Lexus Display Audio screen
operating conditions. Press the “MENU” button on the Lexus Display Audio controller. ( →P. 2 6 8 )
Select “SETUP” on the “Menu” screen.
Select “Vehicle” on the “Setup” screen.
Select “LEXUS Park Assist” on the “Vehicle Settings” screen.
Select the desired button.
The alert volume can be adjusted.
On or off can be selected for intu-
itive parking assist display.
Front or rear center sensors dis-
play and tone indication can be
set.
■The intuitive parking assist can be operated when
●Front center sensors:
• The engine switch is in IGNITION ON mode.
• The shift lever is in a position other than P or R.
• The vehicle speed is less than about 6 mph (10 km/h).
●Front corner sensors:
• The engine switch is in IGNITION ON mode.
• The shift lever is in a position other than P.
• The vehicle speed is less than about 6 mph (10 km/h).
(At any speed when the shift lever is in R)
●Rear corner and rear center sensors:
• The engine switch is in IGNITION ON mode.
• The shift lever is in R.
Setting up intuitive parking assist
1
2
3
4
5
1
2
3

2194-5. Using the driving support systems
4
Driving
IS350/250_U (OM53C50U)
■Sensor detection information
●The sensor’s detection areas are limited to the areas around the vehicle’s front corner
and rear bumpers.
●Certain vehicle conditions and the surrounding environment may affect the ability of
the sensor to correctly detect obstacles. Particular instances where this may occur are
listed below.
• There is dirt, snow or ice on the sensor . (Wiping the sensors will resolve this prob-
lem.)
• The sensor is frozen. (Thawing th e area will resolve this problem.)
In especially cold weather, if a sensor is frozen the screen may show an abnormal
display, or obstacles may not be detected.
• The sensor is covered in any way.
• The vehicle is leaning co nsiderably to one side.
• On an extremely bumpy road, on an incline, on gravel, or on grass.
• The vicinity of the vehicle is noisy due to vehicle horns, motorcycle engines, air
brakes of large vehicles, or other loud noises producing ultrasonic waves.
• There is another vehicle equipped with parking assist sensors in the vicinity.
• The sensor is coated with a sheet of spray or heavy rain.
• The vehicle is equipped with a fender pole or wireless antenna.
• Towing eyelets are installed.
• The bumper or sensor receives a strong impact.
• The vehicle is approaching a tall or curved curb.
• In harsh sunlight or intense cold weather.
• The area directly under the bumpers is not detected.
• If obstacles draw too close to the sensor.
• A non-genuine Lexus suspension (lowered suspension etc.) is installed.
• People may not be detected if they are wearing certain types of clothing.
In addition to the examples above, there are instances in which, because of their shape,
signs and other objects may be judged by the sensor to be closer than they are.
●The shape of the obstacle may prevent the sensor from detecting it. Pay particular
attention to the following obstacles:
• Wires, fences, ropes, etc.
• Cotton, snow and other materials that absorb sound waves
• Sharply-angled objects
• Low obstacles
• Tall obstacles with upper sections projecting outwards in the direction of your vehi-
cle
●The following situations may occur during use.
• Depending on the shape of the obstacle and other factors, the detection distance may shorten, or detect ion may be impossible.
• Obstacles may not be detected if they are too close to the sensor.
• There will be a short delay between obst acle detection and display. Even at slow
speeds, there is a possibility that the obstacl e will come within the sensor’s detection
areas before the display is shown and the warning beep sounds.
• Thin posts or objects lower than the sensor may not be detected when approached, even if they have been detected once.
• It might be difficult to hear beeps due to the volume of the audio system or air flow noise of the air conditioning system.