THERE is little doubt about it. The latest Lexus LS – the LS460 – beats the competition when you consider what you get and how much it costs. But we’ve all heard that before. Since 1990 in fact. Yet beyond the almost supernatural refinement, first-class service, as-long-as-your-arm specification list and clockwork reliability, there is a new type of large Lexus breaking out: one that might also deliver on the road as decisively as it has on paper for almost two decades now. It looks a whole lot better than ever too. Should the Europeans be worried? All we can say is drive one long and far before you settle on anything else.
Lexus LS430
Released: November 2000
Ended: April 2007
Family Tree: LSThe third-generation LS was only sold here as the LS430, powered by a muscular 4.3-litre quad-cam V8 with 207kW and 471Nm of torque to drive the rear wheels. From September 2003’s mild facelift, which also saw an increase in equipment levels, a six-speed automatic replaced the old five-speed unit. But while it sold steadily, the LS430 could not make inroads with the sort of younger and funkier buyers that the likes of the BMW 7 Series and Audi A8 were attracting – probably a corollary of the Toyota luxury brand’s obsession with looking like a bloated Mercedes S-class. It was, however, extremely quiet and refined for the time, and highly competitively priced to boot.
Road Test
Facebook Twitter Instagram