155mph comes and goes. bye-bye bmw m3, au revoir audi RS4…

What do the following have in common? The BMW M3, Mercedes C63 AMG, Audi RS4 and, come to think of it, the Audi RS6, BMW M5 and Mercedes E63? Yep, they’re all German supersaloons. And they’re all restricted to 155mph. The Lexus IS-F isn’t – neither German, nor restricted.

Which gives me an idea. Take the IS-F to Germany and do something none of the locals can – venture beyond 155mph, and perhaps match the Lexus’s 168mph claimed maximum. And if in the process I can claim a couple of notable scalps, perhaps sweep imperiously past a flat-out M3, that will be a bonus.

The 1200-mile round trip (which will also take in the launch of the Insignia VXR, featured last month) should be a perfect test for the IS-F. I’m amazed when I realise this is its first excursion to the continent, the previous 24,000 miles having been racked up without crossing Blighty’s borders. Preparation involves two things I haven’t done for too long: checking the oil and tyres. With the Lexus having been serviced just a couple of months ago its oil still looks pristine and sits high on the dipstick, which means the only thing the car needs more of is air in its Michelin Pilot Sport tyres – must keep rolling resistance to a minimum.

Getting to Germany is not exciting. Whichever way you go, if you’re in a hurry you have to pass through Belgium, all of which is boring and badly surfaced. The IS-F copes manfully. Yes, it does jiggle about, but the seats are awesome, little noise penetrates the cabin and the engine is distinctly parsimonious when cruising in eighth (26.5mpg on the trip computer). This means I only have to stop when staff photographer Chris Rutter’s fag urge kicks in so much he starts twitching.

Maybe he’s just nervous – looking not unlike a closely packed regiment of Zeppelins, dark clouds line the German border and are soon delivering their watery payload. I hadn’t counted on this level of defence against the Japanese blitzkrieg. But the IS-F isn’t to be denied. We swing south onto the dead-end A1 and almost straightaway we glimpse the (rising?) sun through the clouds. Ten kilometres later downward droplets have been replaced by evaporating moisture. Our chosen section is bone dry, bright and mercifully light on traffic. Time to let the 5-litre V8 strut its stuff.

What follows is the longest sustained exposure I’ve had to that fantastic bellowing induction note as the IS-F hungrily chomps its way through gears three, four, five and, from 140mph, six. This all happens rather rapidly, the acceleration meaningful, the speedo sweeping inexorably upwards. I reckon that above 100mph the IS-F may even accelerate faster than its rivals simply because its 0.27Cd drag factor allows it to cut through the air so cleanly.

155mph comes and goes. Bye-bye BMW, au revoir Audi, it’s a shame you’re not here to witness your defeat. The Lexus plunges on. I can feel the forces building up, the air pushing the car into the road, the ride getting very firm but stability unwavering. As 168mph flashes up on my faithful Garmin Edge GPS there’s a beep from the IS-F, and I momentarily wonder if it’s telling me it’s all done. Nope. It’s just the rev-counter telling me it’s time for seventh. I pull the right-hand paddle and off we go again.

Past a true 170mph (180mph on the speedo) progress begins to tail off, the IS-F having proved its point. We do the stretch three more times and on each run happily top 170, maxing out at 173.2mph and slurping through the best part of half a tank of super in 45 miles. Worth it, so worth it.