10 Times Lexus Broke The Automotive Mold

Intro

When people think of Lexus, they think of a car company that makes safe, quiet, and reliable luxury cars. That is probably because Lexus does make safe, quiet, and reliable luxury cars. But that is not all they make. There have been times over the years where Lexus has stepped out of the traditional Lexus mold and gave us something unexpected. We have gathered a list of ten Lexus vehicles from over the years that best represent the delivery of something unexpected from the brand.

10. 2024 GX 550 Overtrail Grades

For the first time ever, Lexus is offering the GX SUV in Overtrail and Overtrail+ trim. With these trim levels they seem to have their sights set firmly on Jeep and Land Rover. 33-inch tires, and aluminum skid plates are a couple of the features that set these Overtrail models apart. Most don’t think of Lexus when they are thinking about mud-crawling SUVs, but the new GX 550 is set to change that.

9. 2023 IS 500 F Sport Performannce Molten Pearl

A bright orange Lexus sedan that's only availabe with a 472 horsepower 5.0L V8!?! Yup! In 2023 Lexus gave the IS 500 F Sport Performance a rare paint color called Molten Pearl. Only 150 of these were made and the orange paint was paired with a set of matte-black BBS wheels for a surprisingly aggressive look. This was a bold move for Lexus, and it certainly helps the car stand out from the sea of silver and black vehicles out there.

Image Credit: Michael S. Palmer

8. 2020 - 2023 RC F Track Edition

Lexus gave us another surprise in 2020 and that was the RC F Track Edition. The Track Edition tacked on over $30,000 to the price of a regular RC F but it also packed some special carbon fiber goodies. The hood, roof and fixed rear wing were all carbon fiber. The car also got a small 5 horsepower power bump. The Track Edition was also over 100 pounds lighter than the standard RC F. Was the small performance advantage worth the massive price hike? That is up to you to decide, but regardless it is a vehicle we didn’t expect from Lexus.

7. 2018 - Current LC 500

Ask people on the street to name the best sounding cross-plane V-8-powered car and most will answer with Corvette, or Mustang, or similar. Almost no one will even think of a Lexus. But those people likely never heard an LC 500 at full chat. It sounds incredible. And even going into model year number seven, the LC 500 looks like a show car. Comfortable, powerful, fast, and a glorious exhaust note defines the LC 500. It is not the typical Lexus.  

Image Credit: Michael S. Palmer

6. 2016 – 2020 GS F

In 2016 Lexus decided to go to battle with the BMW M5. It did so by taking the comfy GS model and dropping a 467 horsepower 5.0L V-8 under the hood. The car could bolt to 60 mph in less than four and a half seconds. And thanks to a design that looked very much like the standard GS the GS F would surprise a lot of people on the street. This was a hot-rod sedan sleeper from the folks at Lexus.

5. 2005 RX 400h

The RX 400h might seem a little boring compared to the other vehicles on the list so far. But that doesn’t mean it wasn’t a mold breaker. The 2005 RX 400h was the first luxury car with a gasoline and electric motor hybrid setup. In 2023 the luxury hybrid vehicle is commonplace. But nearly twenty years ago Lexus was the first to market.

4. 1990 LS 400

The LS line of Lexus vehicles is about as traditional as it gets for the car maker. A quiet, and comfortable luxury sedan. But remember that, in 1990, this Lexus was brand new. The fact that they released the LS 400 which would go toe to toe with the big Mercedes-Benz and BMW sedans of the day seemed insane. How could Toyota compete? Because it was a Lexus. The LS 400 put the automotive world on its ear and introduced a new brand to the world in a big way.

3. 2002 – 2010 SC 430

The second-generation SC was a design departure for Lexus. It looked like nothing else the company had made before. It packed a smooth V-8 engine and a retractable hard-top. The car was more of a luxury cruiser than sports car. And that fact, combined with the design that some viewed as unusual, made the SC 430 a tough sell. However, today the SC 430 is gaining recognition for what it was and is becoming more popular.

2. 2008 IS F

After nearly 20 years in the market, Lexus had built quite a reputation for selling high-quality luxury cars. They also had a reputation for building cars that were on the boring side. That changed in 2008 with the IS F. Lexus decided that they could build a car that could compete with the likes of the vaunted BMW M3. So, a 5.0L V-8 with 416 horsepower went into the small Lexus sedan and the world had a Lexus that was actually sporty. It was not perfect, but it was a hell of a first effort, and it was a recipe that Lexus would follow and hone with future models.

1. 2010 – 2012 LFA

The Lexus LFA didn’t just break the mold. It broke the mold and then obliterated any remnants of the mold. A V-10 powered super car. From Lexus? Lexus? Yes, Lexus. 500 of these flagship machines were built and they become more and more valuable each year. The car was such a stunner that when it was new, Lexus had a tough time selling them. $375,000 for a Lexus? People with that much money to spend on a car buy something from Europe, not Japan. But the LFA was a carbon fiber wonder with one of the best sounding engines ever produced by man. It is about as far outside the typical Lexus mold as possible and the world loves it for that.

Images: Lexus