Hitting the Track in the Lexus LC 500 & LS 500 at Texas Auto Roundup

Club Lexus puts both models to the test at Eagles Canyon Raceway during Texas Auto Writers Association’s annual spring event.

On a cool mid-April morning in Decatur, Texas, I walked out of the Eagles Canyon Raceway clubhouse to pit lane. Dozens of cars in a variety of sizes and a rainbow of colors were lined up and ready to compete in the Texas Auto Writers Association‘s Texas Auto Roundup. German, Japanese, Korean, Italian, and American manufacturers delivered a total of 46 vehicles to the facility.

For the next day and a half, my fellow 48 automotive journalists and I would drive them around a shortened version of the 2.55-mile track that had been divided into sections to showcase each vehicle’s acceleration, braking, steering, and ride quality. Then we would vote to determine the winners of several categories, including the top Activity Vehicle and best Performance Compact. Every manufacturer and PR agency rep at the event wanted to bring home one of those prizes, but the main reason they flew in from all over the country was to go back to their respective offices with the top title: Car of Texas.

The manufacturers clearly had no intentions of making things easy on their competitors or me and my fellow writers. It was going to be tough to pick winners. Alfa Romeo trucked down the 505-horsepower Quadrifoglio models of its Giulia sedan and Stelvio SUV. Dodge brought a Challenger SRT Hellcat Widebody; Jeep showed up with the Challenger’s cousin, the Grand Cherokee Trackhawk. Mercedes-AMG entered its 577-horsepower GT R. Honda rolled in with a Civic Type R. The Lexus roster had three 2018 models on it: the RC F, LC 500, and LS 500 F Sport.

As the previous night’s lingering coolness burned off, other writers warmed up the tires of their test vehicles on the raceway. I had driven some of the more powerful cars before and wanted to drive them again, especially since I was at a track and cops weren’t. I needed to drive the Lexus LC and LS, though. My curiosity about them was that strong. I had to see how much better the LC could be with eight cylinders. I spent a week in the LC 500h earlier this year and fell in love with the way its major components all seemed to harmonize and palpably work with each other. It wasn’t just a machine with a battery and a gas tank to me. It had a life force that I could feel in every turn, every suspension rebound, every brake application. While my colleagues buzzed and roared their ways up and down the course’s 70 feet of elevation change, I approached the LC 500, hoping its V8 wouldn’t ruin everything I loved about its hybrid sibling.

With the exception of a limited-slip differential and a carbon roof, Lexus did nothing to heighten the LC’s abilities. My $102,890 test vehicle didn’t have the available Performance Package’s variable steering and rear steering setup. I would soon discover the LC didn’t need those upgrades to stun me.

Derek Shiekhi

Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.

After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.

While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.

Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.

In addition to writing for a variety of Internet Brands sites, including JK Forum and Ford Truck Enthusiasts, Derek also contributes to other outlets. He started There Will Be Cars on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube to get even more automotive content out to fellow enthusiasts.

He can be reached at autoeditors@internetbrands.com.

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