The Japanese do everything a little better. Let them run the processes and, more often than not, the results are spectacular. Cars, bikes, consumer electronics, fashion, chocolates, even whisky — they can take almost anything, work hard at it and make it better.
And the luxury car?
When Toyota decided to enter the luxury car market in the US in the ’80s, its chief engineer, Ichiro Suzuki, was clear about what he wanted — to take on the German brands and beat them at everything they did. It took upwards of 1,400 engineers and six years, but once they were done and that incredible V8 had gone in the nose, it was Toyota who was laughing all the way to the bank.
The silky-smooth LS 400 was so good, it actually managed to ‘out-tech’ the tech Gods: the effortless slug of torque, the complete hush inside the cabin and no vibrations at all. The car had the requisite interior quality, it had the stance and a regal air, and then because it sat in between the Mercedes S-Class and E-Class on the price list, it set the cash registers ringing. Lexus sold nearly 45,000 cars that year, causing panic among the German luxury carmakers. The next three generations followed the same German template, adding hybrid technology and some much-needed individuality when it came to styling.
Fifth-generation Lexus
There’s nothing remotely German or understated about this new car’s style sheet. Its volumes and proportions are more Maserati than Merc, and even the stance is un-limo like. The huge spindle-shaped grille and maws are impossibly aggressive. Built using 5,000 individual surfaces, the grille is a piece of three-dimensional modern art. Even crazier is the open-mouthed look of the vents on each side. The ‘Z’-shaped headlights look like lightning streaks and the massive 20-inch chrome wheels are like nothing else seen on a car in this class.
Inside the Lexus
Around the side, the long barge-like body is supported by a huge 3,125mm wheelbase, and even the arching roofline and strong shoulder line are different; they look like large, confident strokes drawn by a Japanese calligraphy artist rather than an automotive designer. The rear is more conventional, but the ‘dripping-with-chrome’ tail-lights look neat.
From behind the wheel
The roads that loop around the Delhi airport are devoid of traffic at this time in the morning, and as I accelerate hard out from the slip road and change lanes, the LS immediately feels disturbingly agile and athletic. It’s no BMW 3-Series, but no car in this class, not the Audi A8 or even the BMW 7-Series, feels as compact. It seems to have an innate sense of agility, the confidence it delivers is fantastic, and despite the size and weight, no way does it feel 5.2m long.
Maybe the low-slung batteries help here. We’re headed out of Delhi on a series of elevated roads with some long corners, and here too, the LS just impresses so much, I’m much harder on the throttle than I expect to be. And with the air suspension and drivetrain in S+ mode, it feels like its driving manners have been honed on a track. There’s a bit of an artificial-sounding snarl from the exhaust, and this big car does roll when you get to tighter turns, but it feels so planted in corners and there’s just so much usable grip. The steering is a bit light, but it is beautifully judged and accurate too.
Inside the Lexus
It’s also quick when you plant your foot on the throttle and keep it there. Low-end torque comes from the 60hp electric drive on this hybrid, but most of the performance at high speeds comes from the V6 engine that spins all the way to 7,000rpm and delivers a maximum of 299hp. A naturally aspirated unit with a nice crisp top end, this engine, along with the 10-speed automatic gearbox, delivers a strong performance too; 0-100 takes just 5.4sec, and as I keep my foot in on some open highways, it even crests 200kph easily.
In the rear seat
Not where most owners will spend a lot of time, but the rear seats look like individual thrones with a bulky arm rest in the centre. You can flip the armrest up and seat three across the rear bench. And then there’s the rear seat itself. Dial up the touch controls on the armrest and you can flip the seat back and recline it to 48 degrees — the best in class.
The front seats slide away and fold down, and if you really want to relax, you can cool the seats and dial up a massage. Lexus apparently worked with Shiatsu massage experts from Japan to get the degree of thumb-like pressure right in the right places, something you can even adjust the intensity of. You can have targeted heat on your shoulder or your back to enhance the experience, and choose from five different massage functions. The LS lifts up on its air suspension to allow for more comfortable ingress and egress; the climate control system uses a matrix of infra-red sensors to measure your body temperature; and the Mark Levinson Reference series audio system has a 16-channel amplifier that delivers such brute force and delicacy, it opens up just about any high-quality audio source and makes you hear bits in a song you’ve never heard before.
- Price: ₹1.77-1.93 crore (Ex-showroom, Delhi)
- Fuel Type/Propulsion: Petrol-hybrid
- Engine Type: V6
- Cubic Capacity (cc): 3456cc
- Max Power (hp @ rpm): 359hp (combined)
- Max Torque (Nm @ rpm): 350Nm at 5100rpm
- Drive Layout: Rear-wheel drive
- Gearbox Type: Automatic
- No of Gears: 10
- Tank size (lts): 84 litres
Wrong side
No doubt, the ride quality is excellent and extremely pliant, but it’s not really as supple as that of an S-Class. The Lexus doesn’t quite have the hush in the cabin as the Merc and the engine bay isn’t as well insulated either. In the stodgy world of high-end luxury cars, Lexus’ new LS comes as a breath of fresh air, delivering something rarely seen here: a different take on luxury. It may not be as technically proficient as some of its predecessors, and it chases objectives that differ from the crowd, but after years of continental fare, shouldn’t you try some sushi?
