IT gets worse city than a 1999 LS400 with the V8 and its a small car, weight hundreds less with a V6.

Also why is the ES350 the only FWD car in Lexus' lineup.

Who can answer both! GO!
3 liters is not bigger than 4 liters, so the displacement is not bigger

And you did not answer my second question

First Q:
Lexus is meant for power not much in economy. Even though its 2 cylinders smaller, the displacement is more so it need to use more gas for the size of the motor.

Second Q:
Lexus is more with the sporty feel, so the are usually RWD giving it a fast push on a stand still.

1.
l think Lexus did not care much for fuel efficiency. The IS is a performance car geared to have more performance, not to be some gas saver. They could have designed it to get better gas mileage, but they didn't. It is a smaller car with a smaller engine, but it is much more of a performance sedan.

2.
Why not make it FWD? It is not sport sedan, it is just a car for people that want a simple luxury car. And the ES is not the only FWD car, the RX comes in FWD.

I've owned the IS300 & l know what u r talking about. My LS430 has more power & better gas milage. This is what l think:

1) It largely depends on how u drive it. l found myself driving it hard & the mileage suffered greatly. My guess the car was not designed for saving fuel (pre-2004, many cars did not have great mileage). What about ur tires. Did u replace them with high performance tires?. They do hav small air filters, u need to clean or replace them often.

2) l had owned the older ES300 & l did not know that it was FWD. l know that Acura has FWD. It is mainly about it is cheaper to made than the RWD. European cars r mostly RWD because it handles better & over all it drive is better on the RWD. There is also another major reason for manufactures to go with FWD. Because there is not a drive shaft through the bottom of the car, the designer car create a larger interior space.

l hope this helps.