We bought a 2007 GS 350 AWD in September. We absolutely love it. We did not really consider the IS 350 at all. There were several "have to haves" that the IS 350 didn't come with.....
Specifically, AWD. We were in the same boat about the RX 350. My wife has been driving a SUV for 14 yrs. Since most SUVs today are all wheel drive (the days of pushing the button for 4X4 operation are gone), it opened up the sedan market for us.
We have two 9 yr olds. My wife liked the idea of air bags/side curtains in the front and rear. I believe the IS doesn't have rear airbags.
The 303 Hp engine is pretty sweet. I haven't "driven" it yet, as we are still in somewhat of a break-in period. But what I've seen so far is very impressive. I know that the Car & Driver crowd prefer the IS 350, because it is a bit more "sporty and speedy". But, how much of that kind of driving do you really do anymore? Yes, it's nice to have, but.....
You sacrifice a bit of mileage with the AWD GS 350, but if you live in an area that sees snow, it'll be worth it.
I really like the ventilated front seats. Most guys do. The girls don't seem to like the cool breeze as much, if at all, LOL. Everyone likes the heated seats.
If you still want to "run it", you can switch to Shift Mode on the transmission. Then you shift from the gear selector on the console as opposed to on the steering wheel on the IS.
I'm not sure if the IS has it, but the electronic "key" on the GS is AMAZING. I got very used to that very quickly. Having to reach for keys in my other cars is a real pain in the a$$.
Bottom line, we opted for more of the luxury features of the GS as a sacrifice to some of the performance of the IS. That's what was important to us.
Hope this helps.
Jaybeaux
