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Nearly Perfect Luxury


By Joseph B. White Published: January 10, 2007

BEFORE TOYOTA LAUNCHED its first Lexus LS in 1990, American luxury car buyers had to choose between the German Way and the Detroit Way.

The Germans defined a luxury car as technologically leading edge, with understated styling and a firm ride tuned for high-speed autobahns. American luxury cars, by contrast, were built for comfort. They had floaty rides, plush seats and slow-spinning V-8 engines perfect for cruising.

The Lexus LS sought to bridge this gap, with a car that looked something like a big Mercedes on the outside, but was supremely quiet and comfortable on the inside. Best of all, the LS hardly ever broke. Year after year, the big Lexus outscored rivals on surveys of quality and reliability. Still, the LS struggled to get respect from the automotive-enthusiast press and drivers who considered the car derivative, soulless and inferior to German sedans when it came to handling and performance.

Now there's a new Lexus LS that aims to put an end to the sneering from the pro-German camp. You want technology? How about an eight-speed automatic transmission (compared with just seven speeds in the new Mercedes S class) and an optional system that enables the car to park itself. You want more-distinctive styling? The new LS has a side profile that would look right at home on an autobahn. You want performance? Its new high-tech V-8 can boost the car to 60 mph in less than six seconds.

The new LS for the first time comes in two sizes, regular, with a 116.9-inch wheelbase, and L, as in long, with a 121.7-inch wheelbase and an extra 4.8 inches of leg room that kids or owners who employ chauffeurs will appreciate.

I tested an LS 460 L, the extra-long version, that bristled with technology, including satellite radio and radar cruise control.

On the road, the new LS remains true to the values that made its predecessors so popular. It smoothly and very quietly seeks the middle ground between BMW sporty and Cadillac plush. The LS has a pleasant engine note that sounds during acceleration, but it's gentler than the trademark BMW growl. The LS leans into corners more softly than the big German cars, and it's more forgiving when there are bumps in the road. The transmission does its job with no discernible hunting or busyness.

2007 Lexus LS 460
Base Price: $61,715 (incl. destination charge)

MPG: 19 city, 27 highway

Standard Features: 4.6-liter, 380-hp V-8 engine; eight-speed automatic transmission; power moonroof; curtain-shield airbags; side and knee airbags for driver and front passenger; wood- and leather-trimmed steering wheel

The automatic parallel-parking system, highlighted in Lexus ads, is impressive in concept. But like many new tech gadgets, the Lexus parking butler is fussy and disappointing in real life. In several attempts to parallel park, I struggled to get the car into just the right position for the rear-facing cameras and rangefinders (which feed images to the navigation screen) to lock in on the proper space. Once, the system misjudged the location of the curb, and I had to abort to stay on the street.

Overall, the 2007 LS narrows the gap with the leading German makes dramatically. For some, the LS still will fall short of the S class and the big BMW 7 in on-road excitement. But at a starting price of $61,715, with destination charge, for the regular version and $71,715 for the stretch, the Lexus remains a relative bargain compared with its German rivals. (A more expensive, performance-oriented hybrid version is due out later in 2007.) Many people define luxury as freedom from hassle. For these, the 2007 Lexus LS may just be the perfect car.

January 23, 2007

By Denis Droppa

The fact that there are almost as many gadgets in the back seat as the front tells you the Lexus LS460 was made for the chauffeur-driven segment of our society.

A control panel offering the incumbent a host of comfort-enhancing options is set into the leather-clad centre armrest of the individual rear seats; jab a button and privacy shades glide up to cover the side and rear windows - no photographs or autographs, please.

Press another button to recline the rear-seat backrest to a more comfy position - should the fat cat wish to catch 40 winks between multi-million buck business deals
Rear passenger(s) have personal controls for the 19-speaker sound system
. And there's a drinks chiller plus cupholders so he (or she) can toast them.

The air-conditioning can be set individually and all the seats in the car can be heated or cooled, while the rear passenger(s) have personal controls for the 19-speaker sound system.

Rear legroom can be increased by moving the chauffeur's seat forwards - again, from the back seat and at the press of a button. Not that there's a shortage of limb space to begin with.

The car's doors automatically pull themselves closed and lock or unlock merely by touching their release because the electronic key stays in your pocket.

Several functions, including audio, air-con and satnav, are controlled by a touch screen interface on the fascia. Having all these features in one unit makes matters simple; they're mostly easy and intuitive to use
A tour of the LS460's features feels like James Bond being briefed on his latest missionmobile.

The satnav is an exception; its more complicated than it needs to be and has lots of apparently useless features.

A tour of the LS460's features feels like James Bond being briefed on his latest missionmobile; there are many we just haven't mentioned but the latest top-of-the range Lexus is a true limousine with the space, grace and comfort expected of the genre, its cabin decked out in really classy leather and polished wood.

It has replaced the LS430 as the Lexus. Engine capacity has been increased to 4.6 litres and the refined V8 now supplies a claimed 280kW and 493Nm.

That's a fair amount of velocity just a jab of the throttle away but it's always cloaked in a sheath of soft-spoken refinement. The power's delivered with brisk pace but there's no roughness or violence - it's the Lexus way.

There's a muted thrum from the exhausts to let you know it's a V8 doing the work but otherwise silence and tranquillity prevail.

Somewhat less effective tranquillity-wise is the automatic transmission, the world's first with eight ratios. It's not that it doesn't do what Lexus claims, which is offer a wider spread of gears for brisker pull-off and more economical cruising.

No slouch

Indeed, the LS460 is no slouch off the line - 0-100km/h in 7.2sec on the Reef and a claimed 5.5 at sea level - and in top gear is revving at just over 1500rpm at 120km/h to return 10.6 litres/100km on a long cruise.

That's remarkable for such a big and powerful limo though the average with city driving rose to around 13.

The real trouble with eight speeds is that the car is almost constantly changing gear and, once you're on the move, the slightest tickle of the accelerator will induce one, two, or even three downchanges.

This over-zealous cog-swopping creates a busy and jerky driving experience; there is a manual sequential auto transmission mode but it doesn't hold the selected gear.

Graceful glide

Where the LS460 truly excels is ride quality. It has regular coil springs instead of the air suspension of the rival Mercedes S-Class but you'd never tell.

The car glides gracefully over all types of surfaces, filtering out ripples and other road imperfections and limiting the chances of the boss in the back seat spilling his Chivas.

The car's quite low, however, and prone to scraping its belly on driveway entrances.

The handling is what you'd expect of a modern luxury car; the LS460's size and weight preclude any hairpin heroics but it's capable of taking medium and long sweeps at a pretty fast lick without feeling soggy.

The tyres have plenty of grip and there's electronic stability control. The brakes are particularly good, not only stopping the car in a hurry but with great pedal feel.

Striking statement


HANDSOME SHAPE: The LS460 has strong lines with lots of presence.

Wrapping the flagship Lexus is a handsome shape that makes a sportier, more striking statement than past models. It has strong lines with lots of presence, with a pair of large, rectangular exhausts visually denoting decent firepower.

Lexus has until now largely flown underneath the radar in South Africa, but is now on something of a conquest trail.

It aims to entice more buyers out of their Mercs and Beemers and the three model ranges it launched here last year - the LS460, IS250 and GS300 - which will be available in larger volumes than their predecessors.

A major selling point for the brand is its continued success in customer satisfaction poll; it has topped the JD Power car quality survey in the US for six consecutive years.

SUMMARY

For pure snob factor you're still going to choose something with a star on its bonnet but Lexus presents itself as the thinking man's limo.

It's less obviously ostentatious but does all that a powerful luxury sedan should, with a lot of spec at a competitive price.

Home, James...

When it comes to high-end technology, MotorWeek’s Best Luxury Sedan pick, the Lexus LS, sits at the head of its class. From radar cruise control to self-park, the new LS is a teckie’s dream. But the best part is that the gee-wiz features do not detract from the LS being a very fine handling, enjoyable drive. Even the long wheelbase edition has prowess its German rivals can appreciate. Throw in an upcoming V8 hybrid, and the new LS moves the luxury-car benchmark more than a notch higher.

IT'S tempting to get swept away by the idea that luxury is a concept from a bygone age.

A luxurious chair is an old leather one stuffed with horsehair, a luxurious club is one filled with old gentlemen and antique tables...

So when it comes to cars, real luxury must exist only in motors from an era when uniformed chauffeurs perched up front on a plank whilst the toffs lounged in the back.

Mass-produced modern cars, with their computers, traction control and alloy wheels can never really replicate proper luxury, can they? Well, the LS460 is the new Lexus flagship and would like to persuade us otherwise.

It certainly looks luxurious - by modern standards anyway. It's big, but it manages not to look bulky or bulbous. From some angles, it even looks a little sporty.

Power comes from a new 4.6-litre V8 engine, the most technologically advanced motor Lexus has ever built. And that's quite a claim. It produces 375bhp and uses a new cooling technique, new variable valve timing technology and new exhaust system to do so. But can it do so luxuriously?

Slipping into the LS, the leather is soft and creamy, the seats thick enough to hide a body in and it just feels, well, posh.

There are glimpses of wood dotted about the place, but it's real wood veneer - ash burr, maple and walnut.

But one of the biggest luxuries, surely, is space. And the LS has loads of that.

From the back seat, which is perhaps the most important place from which to judge such a car, it's exactly what you would expect. The seats cushion and cuddle and the carpet is satisfyingly thick. In the front, every single surface bristles with discreetly-badged buttons to operate a feast of gizmos so extensive, you could be hours before you get round to actually setting off.

But I just hit the starter button, slipped the gearlever into go mode and headed off. The power from that engine makes itself known immediately, albeit discreetly.

The noise is far from intrusive, having been specially tuned to suggest power without drowning the stereo. But you can feel the limitless reserves of shove hovering in the background, waiting to be called into action like a butler with a baseball bat.

It can take this big car to 60mph in just 5.7 seconds. The gearbox is a new 8-speed automatic, the first of its type. I forgot about it almost immediately, it's so smooth.

So there's wood, there's leather and there's a big engine.. what more could be needed for a luxury car? Quite a lot actually - the 19-speaker stereo, DVD screens, four-zone climate control and heated, air-conditioned and electrically reclined front and rear seats all help.

If the driver feels things could do with calming still further, there is a 'comfort' button which relaxes the already pillowy suspension still further.

If the driver feels a bit saucy, there is also a 'sport' setting which stiffens the suspension and sharpens the car's responses.

You can get surprisingly frisky with the big Lexus which won't make rear passengers happy, but I had a ball in the front.

The LS features a mind-boggling array of safety features. The Advanced Obstacle Detection System uses radar and an infra red camera to monitor everything in the path of the car.

If it detects a possible crash, the suspension is stiffened ready for evasive action and the brakes made ready to respond quickly.

If the driver is unaware of the potential obstacle, a buzzer sounds and a 'Brake!' sign lights up.

If that doesn't provoke a response it applies the brakes briefly to make sure no one is asleep who shouldn't be - and if there is still no response it goes into full precrash mode and gets ready for big trouble.

And that's another luxury - peace of mind.

This might be a very, very modern car, but the LS clings to the traditional ideas of luxury. And it's magnificent.

THE FACTS

Price: £57,000 - £71,000

Engine: 4.6-litre V8, 375bhp

Fuel consumption: 25.4mpg

0-60mph: 5.8sec

Top Speed: 155mph


THE RIVALS

Mercedes Benz S500
Many of LS460's standard toys are expensive options. Not as refined as the Lexus, but more imposing. £69,815

BMW 750i
The driver's choice. Dynamically excellent but not as comfortable as the big Lexus. £61,045

Audi A8 4.2
Handsome Audi has advanced aluminium construction and huge options list. More design flair than the Lexus. £59,815

Could there be a smoother, quieter, altogether more comfortable sedan than Lexus' new flagship? Maybe, but I haven't driven it. I can't even imagine it.

Gliding softly over the tarmac, the LS 460 is more magic carpet than car. At 80 mph, it's the sound of silence inside the cozy cabin, except for a hint of wind noise around the front pillars. It seems inconceivable that thousands of explosions are occurring each minute in eight cylinders just inches ahead of the dash.

Goose the pedal, and there's a distant rumble of exhaust as the big sedan shifts into warp speed, leaving just about anything else on the road in the dust while it blasts up Highway 18 into the San Bernardino mountains. The car's official acceleration time, says Lexus: 5.4 seconds from zero to 60 mph -- quicker than a Porsche Cayman. All this performance and highway fuel economy in the mid-twenties, too.

The LS' suspension is unflappable, even over potholes and pronounced expansion joints. Mind you, the 2-ton car isn't as agile as a Porsche on the twisty bits. But dive into a corner, hold the thick wood-and-leather steering wheel steady, and the large 18-inch tires take a set as they carry the car cleanly around the bend.

Funny thing, though. Despite the brilliant performance of this Lexus, I bet it'll be the gizmos that grab all the attention. The LS 460 has more electronic gadgetry than any car this side of a German luxury sedan. But unlike the gadgets in the German cars, the ones in the Lexus probably won't break as often. ("A five-year-old LS had fewer problems than some European competitors in their first year," says Consumer Reports in a recent issue.)

On TV, you may have already seen the most amazing doohickey, Advanced Parking Guidance. The spot shows the car quickly slotting itself between two stacks of champagne glasses without breaking a single one.

Only on TV. Sans champagne glasses, I tried the system out with my test car. Rather, I attempted to try it, as I never succeeded in getting the car parked with it.

Performing brain surgery probably isn't much more difficult. The thing requires a number of precisely executed steps by the driver before it'll work. Anybody waiting in a car behind while you try to get the Lexus to parallel-park itself would drag you out of the driver's seat and park the car himself, the old-fashioned way.

But never mind. Parking isn't really the point. What matters is what the system portends for the very near future: a car that will drive itself.

Besides Advanced Parking Guidance, other gadgets available in the new LS include a navigation system with real-time traffic information showing congested areas and accidents, and radar-guided cruise control that automatically applies the brakes should the car get too close to the vehicle ahead.

With these three systems, nearly everything's in place for the car to drive itself. Once an automaker ties these systems together (and maybe makes them a little more intuitive to use than they are now), the steering wheel will become as outmoded as an "aooga" horn.

Think about it. Get into the car, start the engine, punch up your destination on the navi, and let the electronic guidance and cruise-control systems take you there, avoiding traffic jams along the way. And once you arrive, they'd park the car for you. All without you ever touching the wheel.

But back to the here and now. The 2007 LS 460 has an astoundingly long list of other fancy features, some of which can boost the car's price from an exceedingly reasonable $61,715 to a not unreasonable price of around $80,000. Enough features in fact, that the set of owner's manuals explaining their operation is more than 2 ½ inches thick -- I measured it.

Press a button and a sunshade silently rises across the rear window. Pull down the rear seat armrest and find a "Cool Box" that holds canned drinks. Not only do the rear seats recline, but the lucky passenger in the right rear seat can avail him- or herself of a shiatsu massage from the "Rear Seat Relaxation System."

The front and rear seats are heated, of course, but they're also cooled with internal air conditioning. A heated steering wheel warms the hands on those chilly mornings.

Press the key fob and the trunk lid not only pops open, but raises itself to full extension. A Mark Levinson Reference Surround Sound Audio System with 19 speakers provides the tunes.

The adaptive front headlights turn with the steering wheel to better illuminate corners of the road. The height of the high-intensity discharge headlights automatically adjusts according to the number of passengers in the car. And as you might expect, the LS 460 has possibly every safety feature yet invented, from brake assist to knee airbags.

But as they say on late-night TV ads ... that's not all! The LS 460 comes in both standard and extended-length versions, though the cabin of my standard-length test vehicle was plenty roomy. Moreover, you can have your LS 460 powered by a 380-horsepower V-8 engine mated to an eight-speed transmission (yes, eight forward speeds) as in my test car, or coming soon, a hybrid gasoline/electric power train. Lexus claims more than 430 horsepower for the hybrid version, with even better acceleration times and fuel economy than the standard V-8 version.

The LS 460 might be the most sophisticated car in mass production. Like other Lexus vehicles, the LS 460's styling, though pleasant, isn't head-turning. If Lexus should ever learn to style its cars as well as say, Mercedes, the rest of the world's automakers can fold their cards and go home.

Contact Peter Bohr at pbohr@PE.com

This new one, though, is AFB.

Lexus LS460L -- a model of understated elegance
Pick a driving mode for a sound ride in absolute silence

Royal Ford, Boston Globe

Friday, February 16, 2007


First, the question asked by most people who recognized the 2007 Lexus LS460L when I pulled into a parking space: "Will that thing really park itself?"

The answer: yes and no.

In fact, after doing all the electronic adjustments that must be made from inside the car, I decided that if you can learn to operate the system, you should be able to learn to parallel park on your own. The car's automatic parking feature involved stopping ahead of the car I wanted to park behind, picking a parking mode, setting arrows to determine parking position, and letting the car back up and steer while I was on top of the brake. Nifty idea that ought to die a quick death.

But the car itself? Superb, as are all things Lexus.

In fact, the company's luxury cars often are priced $10,000 to $30,000 below what some competitors charge, and with equal appointments and luxury.

With the long version of the LS460 we tested, we're talking about as much as you can spend on a Lexus -- about $10,000 above the $71,000 base price. Not chump change, but some other makers price similar-quality cars at more than $100,000.

The Lexus has a 4.6-liter, 380-horsepower, V8 engine. Power is transferred through a speed sequential automatic transmission that whispers, "Leave the shifting to me, you'll never know I am here." And it's true.

You can set the car to drive in an aggressive power mode, or in a safe snow mode. And you ride in absolute quiet -- no engine whine, no wind whistling -- surrounded by air bags that would make the Michelin man look underinflated: front, front side, driver and passenger front knee, front and rear side curtain.

Add standard electronic braking, brake assist, traction control and stability control, and it adds up to a vehicle that is far less likely to let you crash. And if you do, you probably won't die.

At some point when driving uber-luxury cars such as this, the package can overwhelm. So just go back to "basics," such as they are.

Standard fare here includes leather seating with memory for seats, steering wheel and outside mirrors. The front seats can send cool air to hot bottoms. Heated seats are a given, fore and aft.

The steering wheel is heated, the 10-speaker sound system offers high fidelity, a voice-activated navigation system (backup camera included) features details down to the dead-end roads on the New Hampshire peninsula where I live, and Bluetooth technology connects my phone to the Internet.

The test car featured a luxury package that adds a cold-air option to the rear seats, extra leather appointments, rear seat side airbags (why these aren't in the standard package, I can't guess), four-zone air-conditioning with air purifier, an upgraded Mark Levinson DVD/CD changer and 19 speakers (sure beats having only 10), and the parallel-parking package.

Granted, we are a long way from the Chevrolet Aveo I tested and liked a few weeks back.

Performance-wise, even with 380 horsepower, the Lexus provides a basically stable, solid ride. In contrast to the Mercedes-Benz S550 I've been in since, the LS460L will not blow off anyone's socks.

Consider its roots, though. Toyota builds Lexus, and Toyota appeals to consumers who want to get from here to there reliably and economically. With the LS460L, those basic needs are met.

But sometimes it's nice to spend money on subtle luxury, too