FirstDrive: Lexus LS 460 Attention to detail ensures the flagship Lexus LS 460 wins out in a luxury class, writes Michael McAleer, Motoring Editor
Mention the name Lexus to German luxury car engineers three years ago and they'd have given you the stock PR approved reply about how they were taking the challenge seriously. But there was always a tell-tale curl of the lip as they said it, for in truth they held the Japanese brand in the same esteem Jose Murinhino holds newly promoted teams to the English Premiership.
Yet in the last few years that curled lip has started to straighten. If ever there was a demonstration that Lexus has rightly earned its place among the leading players in the premium sector, it's the new LS. The Japanese brand has gone all out to create an ultra-refined luxury flagship and, in that regard, the new car scores strongly on all points.
Since its arrival in 1989, the Toyota-owned brand has been biting at the heels of the likes of BMW and Mercedes. While sales across Europe have been relatively small - with the exception of Ireland where it has always done well - it has built up a strong reputation.
Where it failed to score points was perhaps in developing a universal design image for the brand. That's rapidly changing, thanks to the new family styling - called L-finesse - first revealed in the IS and GS models.
Now comes the daddy of them all, the flagship LS; aimed at challenging the likes of BMW's 7-Series and, of course, the all-conquering Mercedes S-Class.
It's the latest in the range to get the L-finesse design makeover and arguably the most important. The first noticeable improvement is therefore in the styling: it's a vast improvement on its predecessors. While the current model bears a resemblance to the Mercedes S-Class of two generations ago, the new-look LS features styling that's far more modern and appealing.
However, there's much more to the new LS than its new look. The car boasts not only a treasure trove of new features - such as the world's first production version of an eight-speed automatic gearbox - but also a level of build quality that would do Rolls Royce proud.
While Toyota has always been highly regarded for its high-tech production processes, the level of human detailing for the LS includes hand polishing of each crankshaft and a noise and vibration inspection by technicians of every engine produced. Body panelling is checked against original LS panel designs in a special light tunnel and during the paint processes the initial foundation coat is water polished by hand before the top, clear coating is applied.
Once off the production line, every LS undergoes a test drive at the firm's Tahara plant, with evaluations at up to 200km/h for such things as noise and vibration and brake performance.
While competitors carry out similar tests, it's the level of detail that Lexus is prepared to put into the production process that shows its determination to be taken seriously in the luxury segment of the market.
For all the preparation work, the key to its success will be on the road. Despite measuring in at over 5m long and 1.9m wide, the LS manages to be remarkably stable when cornering. On tight and twisting Austrian mountain roads, the car tucked in nicely into the turns. It's never going to have sports car handling but for its size it kept a very impressive line and even on the tightest bends it never felt unwieldy.
On faster motorway runs the ride quality throughout our two-day test drive was sublime.
Lexus can never be faulted for its efforts in terms of build quality and refinement. However, the LS has previously failed to sparkle in terms of driver interaction and enjoyment. The new LS goes some way to rectify that, though it's still very much designed to waft the occupants to their desired destination. Even after two relatively long journeys behind the wheel of the new LS we never got out feeling tired or jaded. That's perhaps the greatest compliment that can be paid to a luxury saloon.
If there is any criticism of ride and handling, it's that at higher speeds the handling seemed too neutral for our taste, lacking the feedback you get from some competitors. That's a feature common with cars designed for the US market and given that it's the biggest sales arena for the LS, it's hardly surprising the development was honed to meet US tastes as much as European ones.
Power is from a new 4.6-litre V8 that manages 380bhp, pitting it up against the Mercedes S500 and ahead of the BMW 750i and Audi A8 4.2-litre. This is matched with a new eight-speed automatic gearbox. We initially approached this with some cynicism - considering it nothing more than a PR stunt - but it proved silky smooth in changes and did seem to get the most out of the engine, thereby justifying its inclusion.
Lexus engineers claim the new transmission has reduced gearchange times to just 350 milliseconds, 41 per cent faster than in the current LS430 and quicker than in BMW's 750. As for the new features, there are simply too many to mention here, but suffice to say they cater for virtually every need.
In terms of safety, Lexus is out to set new standards. The new LS features a system of radar and infrared cameras that scan the front and rear of the car. If they detect a potential collision - by calculating the speed of the LS compared to the obstacle in front - it first alerts the driver and then, if a collision is inevitable, primes the airbags and seatbelts, and starts to apply the brakes. A similar system operates at the rear of the car where if it detects a rear-end shunt, it moves the headrests into position to limit whiplash. There's also a small camera mounted on top of the steering column that monitors the movements of the driver's head. If the driver is looking away when an obstacle is detected in front it activates the pre-crash warning system. Along with these there are several driver aids such as a lane-keeping assistance system that, when activated, self-corrects the steering to keep the car in the centre of its lane.
For all the new safety gadgetry, Lexus has restrained its engineers from overloading the cabin with too many new features. In particular it has spurned the idea of moving towards iDrive-style control systems and has retained many of the button and touchscreen controls of the current model.
It does, however, have several impressive features, not all of them standard of course. Our test car featured an 18-speaker Mark Levinson sound system that offered cinema quality acoustics. Then there is the credit card-sized smart key card that allows you to access the car and drive away without ever taking it out of your wallet. There's also a new air-conditioning system with 20 different air outlets.
All this add up to the greatest threat yet to the German dominance of the luxury car market. Where once we regarded Lexus as an also-ran, the new LS signals a serious effort to turn it into one of the leader's in this class.
FACTFILE
Engine: 4,608cc V8 petrol engine; 380bhp @ 6,400rpm; 493Nm of torque @ 4,100rpm; eight-speed automatic transmission
Max speed: 250km/h
0-100km/h: 5.7 seconds
Fuel consumption: urban: 11.1 L/100km
ex-urban: 8.4 L/100km
combined: 14.9 L/100km
CO2 emissions: 261 g/km
Due in Ireland: December
Prices: No official prices yet but expect them to start at over €127,000