lamikela1

Whatever the problem I really enjoy driving mine and so does my wife. She is good with normal mode but I stay in S+. I'll be keeping mine for a while.

13gs350

The GS is chasing a segment of the market which includes the Mercedes E-Class, BMW 5-Series, Audi A6, Infiniti Q70 Series and Cadillac CTS. Currently, Mercedes, BMW and Audi have long dominated this segment so Lexus, Infiniti and Cadillac are on the outside looking in. Even the Cadillac CTS, which received a lot of positive press, is also struggling to hit targets.

AMNss

IMO the ES and IS could be a contributor to this. If people are looking for sporty driving the IS is better in that and cheaper, and if they are looking for comfy ride and large interior space they would go with the ES for much cheaper.

dchar

But they both lack the refinement and quality of materials found in the GS. Not to mention, the packaging of features on the US-spec IS makes it difficult to get the car just right.

vtp86

Lexus GS has always taken a backseat to the other models in terms of sales, it's nothing new. Main reason for this is pure and simple: demand. Not that many people are looking to spend 50k+ on a car that doesn't have a ton of interior room, mediocre performance (at lease compared to the German brands like another poster stated), and has a polarizing exterior. There are tons more people out there that would rather spend just a little less than 50k to get a fully loaded BMW 3 series or fully loaded IS350 or save a little bit more and go with a Tesla Model S, Porsche Panamera, or Maserati Ghibli than opt for the GS.

P.S. - when I said mediocre performance, I meant what "performance" meant to the mass media. The average person doesn't have a clue what is considered excellent handling, but can read the statistics on a piece of paper that the car accelerates from 0-60 mph in 4 seconds. They most likely based the GS on their looks and stats on a piece of paper rather than actually have test drove it.

bclexus

Most all vehicle brands have models that are produced that lack demand and are not expected to have high sales numbers like their most popular run-of-the-mill models. You have two factors that influence the sales of the Lexus GS 350 - (a) lack of demand for an (b) uncommon model. It's not anything that should not be expected!

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'Demand' is an economic principle that describes a consumer's desire and willingness to pay a price for a specific good or service. Holding all other factors constant, an increase in the price of a good or service will decrease demand, and vice versa.

'Run-of-the-mill': common, lacking unusual or special aspects; ordinary, average, middle-of-the-road, commonplace, humdrum, mundane, standard, nondescript, characterless, conventional, unremarkable, unexceptional, uninteresting, dull, boring, routine, bland, lackluster, garden-variety, nothing to write home about, nothing special, a dime a dozen.

jdigga99

I see them everywhere here in Dallas

bclexus

Agree - I do too, relatively speaking...but nothing like the ES or Toyota's Camry.

AMNss

I agree the GS materials are much better, but money is also a big factor since you could get a fully loaded ES or IS for les than a standard GS350, except if there are good sales where the GS gets a decent price drop.

tknx

I'd say the interior isn't up to par with the new MB or Volvo interiors style wise. Quality wise, sure. But too cluttery - the new MB and Volvo interiors are just much nicer looking.

And frankly, it is underpowered compared to the competition. People won't compare apples to apples. So you get the GS-F getting compared to the M5 even though it is priced and competing against the M-sport mid-range. And the top of the model range has a huge halo effect on how the line is perceived. If the GS-F was a 700bhp monster that cost 500K but could do the 'ring in 7s or something ridiculous like that, the whole line would benefit.

Personally I love my '13 except for a couple of small things.