Against all signs and odds, Lexus is giving its well-aged IS sedan yet another lease on life with the heavily updated 2026 model. There’s a new front end, a revamped interior, new wheels, revised dampers and steering, and it’s now only available as an IS 350—yes, pour one out for the V8 IS 500. But I’d like to take some time to mourn an aspect of the old IS that’s a little less loud: the sliding tachometer.
First seen in the now-legendary LFA supercar in 2009, it was a circular tach screen that appeared to slide to the side at the press of a button, revealing a secondary menu. Throughout the 2010s, it trickled down to the brand’s more pedestrian cars, starting with F Sport versions of the 2014 IS. It was a unique, theatrical UI touch that most owners and reviewers found a little superfluous but ultimately delightful—I used to own a 2016 IS 350 with this, and it was, as silly as it sounds, one of my favorite parts of the car.
Here’s a video of it in action:
F Sport versions of the 2025 IS still had this, but with the big 2026 rework, it’s been replaced by a plain, bezel-less instrument screen that looks like this:
And since the RC is no longer being made, the only Lexus, by my count, that still has the sliding tach is the LC 500. A fantastic vehicle by all accounts, but also one that starts at $100,000 and almost nobody buys. This means that among the brand’s cars that most normal people actually get, the sliding tach is donezo.
Perhaps now, then, would be a good time to let you in on a little-known fact about how this thing actually works. The mechanically inclined (or Lexus techs) among you will probably have already suspected this, but it’s mostly smoke and mirrors. It may look like a separate tach screen sliding on top of another screen behind it, but in reality, it’s all just one screen—the only thing that slides is the circular silver bezel, and the tach graphic behind it simply follows along. The easiest way to understand what’s happening here is to see it when it has malfunctioned:
I’ve admittedly been sitting on this fact for years now, but opted against blowing up Lexus’ spot until now, basically for the same reason I don’t go around in public yelling about how Santa isn’t real. Now that Santa has mostly retired, though, I thought it was time we all knew.
So, there you have it. One of Lexus’ coolest party tricks really was just a trick all along. But it’s one I’m still sad to see officially, finally go away in all but its most expensive car.
Topshot: Author
Don’t get me started on Adrenochrome.
Say what about Santa????????
Mind blowing the first week I had my IS. Untouched the final 6+ years of my ownership, except to reset the maintenance light.
I thought it was a real analog tach that moved. Boo! Hiss!
As cool as it was to see for the first few times, it’s a really old design in terms of the screen technology and you rarely interact with the secondary menu. Not to mention that 99% of Lexus owners don’t even know they can change the drive mode in their car.
Yeah go ahead and pop the Santa balloon, but I’m warning you, don’t mess with the tooth fairy. The tooth fairies (actually there there is a franchise system with territories because the TFs don’t do that faster than light stuff, Santa has a year to recover but tooth recovery is a 24/7 racket ) don’t suffer meddlers.
Why are they so serious about any interference? Find out what they are doing with all those baby teeth and you’ll understand. You have been warned!
Are you sure about outing this information? Doesn’t this put you into danger with Big Tooth Fairy (BTF)? Is there a Tooth Fairy Witness Protection Program (TFWPP)? Tooth Fairy whistleblowers have a need-to-know these things.
I did not know about this, not having sat in a Lexus in quite a few years now. Despite my hitherto ignorance, I’m sorry to see this feature go. It’s kind of charming.
Where is chronometric ?
Well, while we wait, I really don’t like looking at a picture of a mechanical instrument. Either design an attractive and non distracting UI that is better than a real mechanical gauge, or use a real gauge.
Mechanical instruments look the way they do because the designer had to work within the limits of a mechanical instrument with a clock hand on a pivot. Take away all the limitations and the best they can come up with is a picture of a clock hand on a pivot?
Generally speaking, the bottleneck for gauges isn’t the physical mechanics; it is the person who is viewing the gauge. The biggest issue I have seen with screens replacing gauges is that they all try to “improve” something that works perfectly as it was. A circular RPM gauge, for example, provides the driver with a vast amount of information using just one moving part. The needle shows the RPM at any given moment relative to a number, and the angular position is easy to judge in your peripheral vision. Also, the speed at which the needle moves provides the rate of change. The graphic backdrop of the dial is almost meaningless. A simple light that warns of readline or shift points is about the only addition that is helpful.
The only capability digital adds is that it can be changed on a whim. The problem is that a changing interface is the worst possible thing for a user interface of critical information. Modern digital interfaces in cars are universally worse than non-digital interfaces because they are the wrong tool for the job.
I’m pretty much in agreement, swinging needles work pretty well well even with limited vision.
I’ve seen several variations on the drum gauge. Mercedes did it well with a stripe that changed color and pattern as well as length for their speedometers. The problem was that it was easy to read , and may have been accurate, but it wasn’t precut. The Oldsmobile Toranado had the worst speedometer ever, with the numbers moving past a window. Those ribbon speedometers are ok, but not as fast a read.
My point is that given the total freedom of design, the designers come up with a picture of a mechanical gauge, wasting the drivers cognitive resources on a picture of the bezel . Do they take advantage of being able to easily control the ballistics of the indicator? Even fancy chronometric mechanical gauges can do that. Do they use changing color or size?
A picture of a mechanical instrument that reproduces the distracting stuff the mechanical version but doesn’t add anything is a failure other than being cheaper to build.
At least it’s not a fake seven segment digit display.
Agreed. As somebody who has spent a lot of time in the design industry, I imagine the primary thing the designers have been tasked with is creating designs that are distinctive to their respective brands. Real functionality isn’t much of a consideration. They just need to be fashionable and make it obvious that there is “new tech” being used because that is what the average consumer wants.
FFS this industry is finding EVERY possible way to suck the fun out of cars.
Holy shit, I know that enthusiasts might only represent a small percent of buyers, but I think these pin head executives forget that it is the enthusiast community that still recommends and guides a rather large percent of purchases either directly or indirectly.
This is like Subaru getting rid of it’s glorious boxer rumble for fractions of a percent in efficiency. Or removing real physical buttons in interiors. Or bringing back an iconic name and giving it to a generic crossover. Or getting rid of the V8 in the Ram and Dodge’s lineup.
It is these silly little touches that really get enthusiasts going, and some graphics on a digital screen will never be the same. Save $2 worth of motors, but hurt your brand identity immensely.
I get the feeling that Akio Toyoda would never have allowed this to happen.
I will never settle for cars being just computers on wheels. Cars are SUPPOSED to be fun, and it is these little design touches and easter eggs and expressions of creativity that made cars entertaining. For me at least, it was never tons of horsepower or ungodly performance. These little details are the things that gave a car personality. These car executives are sanitizing the personality and fun out of cars these days.
Well, scratch the 2026 Lexus IS350 off the list of cars I would consider buying in 2045.
Yeah, that’s when it will finally be affordable!
Was always a delightful touch. Being a Lexus I’m not worried about the failure rate. If BMW did it I’d hate it.
Astonishingly dumb, and one more thing to break.
I HATE LCD screen fake analog instruments, they just look cheap (because they are cheap).
I hate the whole “one more thing to break” logic. Everything breaks! Why can’t we have something fun? Life is short, let’s enjoy silly details and moving parts when we can.
It’s not fun, it’s just dumb. But my idea of the perfect instrument panel begins and ends with that of an 80s BMW or Saab. Simple, logical, white lettering on matt black analog gauges in a matt black panel.
Ah yes, 80s BMW and Saab, the paragons of reliable, non-quirky cars. I guess having a reliable instrument panel is really necessary to diagnose all the other things that break. No, I’m with Citrus, cars should have a balance of fun and functional features. Cars designed for maximum reliability above all else are BORING.
Mine rarely broke. And I bought them with some age and miles on them. <shrug>
If you like frippery, you do you.
Proven, mature, simple, cheap designs don’t break as often, and have the owner cursing as much or opening their wallet as much. The benefits are clear.
Wait.
Santa’s retired?
They take the V8, the cool gauge, AND we find out about Santa in one post?
I take back my kind words from earlier. Y’all are heathens. Heathens!
Not so much retired but considering taking the CEO job at Stellantis. Apparently he is the only man old enough to remember how everything operates in their old yet current design s, the elves have been downsized and replaced with AI.
But he’s already the CEO of Coca-Cola and Hess! How could he possibly manage another company at the same time?
Santa doesn’t sleep. And unlike Leon Smuk, Santa Claus doesn’t need to take hallucinogenic drugs to go without sleep.
Are you kidding? How do you think he delivers presents to every good boy and girl over the entire planet in 24 hours? That North Pole doesn’t have the same kind of “SNOW” as the rest of the planet. Why do you think he incorporated up there?
Magic?
Santa retired a long time ago. He volunteers to do the rounds once a year, but spends the rest of the time around the house playing with a database project and writing letters.
“Database projects” are always more time-consuming than you think they’ll be.
Seems like a weird thing to remove after making it so long. Cost cutting?
Testing to see how many people complain. Niche features are niche, and might not be worth it. Now they can use the same display across their model lines.