This is what you'd expect from a high performance sedan made by Lexus. It's very fast, and very smooth. My old man's final choice.

First, the fast part. you feel every one of those 300 horses. While similarly powerful eights in the BMW 740i and Audi A6 4.2 took their time building up momentum, this one gives you a kick you can feel in your lower back. It sounds better, too, at least to my ears. It's more musical somehow.

Less weight is part of the reason, but the transmission helps. It is much more responsive than those in the BMW and Audi. The gearing is also better for the lower speeds common on American roads. I couldn't get the hang of the manumatic shift buttons on the steering wheel. Maybe I would with practice. During the time I had with the car they simply took too much thought. Also, as I've written elsewhere, none of these manumatics captures the mechanical feel that makes shifting a manual so satisfying to me. Put another way, none of them makes me feel more part of the car.

Handling is responsive and lively. This car is much more entertaining to drive than the LS400. On the other hand, it is softer than the Germans. The rear end in particular seems a tad too soft. You can feel it squat a little in hard turns in a way the German competition does not. The pay-off of this slight compromise in handling feel and stability is that the ride is quite good, though not as good as that of an LS400.

What makes this car a Lexus is the way it combines this level of performance with a smoothness not found in any other brand of car. This is not smooth as in pillowy, like in traditional American luxury cars. Instead, it’s both smooth and controlled. “Fluid” is the best word I can think of to describe how just about everything you operate in this car feels, whether it’s the steering or the cupholders. German cars have a much more direct, more mechanical feel. Usually I prefer this mechanical feel in a car. Still, there’s something magical about the way a Lexus feels, especially when it combines this feeling with such responsiveness.

The front seat is roomy and comfortable. It could use a little more side bolstering, but then so could most of the competition. I can see how most of this market would like them just how they are. Maybe Lexus can offer a sports seat option, like BMW and Audi?

The rear seat is just big enough for a person of my size, 5ֽ”. It is comparable to those in the BMW 540i and Jaguar S-series. If you need a larger rear seat in this class of car, I suggest you look at the Audi A6 2.7T.

Lexus is the master of packaging. There's a CD changer in the glovebox, and space for more than a pair of gloves in there, too. Lincoln and Jag should take some notes here. The double deck center console also has a useful amount of space. Lincoln and Jag, are you listening? The trunk is moderate in size, but very usefully shaped. It's not overly shallow as in, well, you know. It would be nice, though, if the hinges were not the traditional type that plunge down into the trunk as it is closed.

For me the most questionable part of this car is its aesthetics. The interior is mostly up to the usual high Lexus standards. I don’t care for how the dash-colored material separates the three equally-sized gauges around the wheel, but that’s a matter of personal taste. Ditto the higher position of the speedometer, and how the shifter is placed down the left side of the console and the twin cupholders down the right. I’ll grant these are quibbles, but feel that these and other details combine to leave the impression that more thought could have gone into the aesthetics of the interior.

More of a problem is the exterior towards the rear. This looks like a case where the engineers wanted one line along the trailing edge of the rear side windows, perhaps for structural reasons, and the designers wanted another. Instead of finding a solution that truly worked for both, they shaped the metal like the engineers wanted then faked a larger rear side window using black paint. It reminds me of women with small eyes who use lots of eyeliner to try to compensate. Make that overcompensate. I disliked this on the old Ford EXP, which had a 3" band of the black stuff along the bottom of its tiny door windows. It borders on inexcusable on a $50k luxury sedan.

Why the designers wanted this line in the first place I don’t know. Continuing the chrome window surround over the rear wheel gives the car a hunchbacked look. Frankly, I think the car would look quite nice if the body color paint and chrome window trim simply followed the window. Alas, it does not.

The rest of the exterior is unique and refreshing. This is a short, tall car for this class. These proportions, especially up front, suggest that this is a powerful car with a secure grip on the road. One byproduct of the tall body is that there’s a lot of metal over the rear wheel. The Jag S-Series is similar is this respect. The result is that even 16” wheels look small. Spend the extra $215 for the 17s. The ride’s still good. The only problem is that dealers tend to order the spoiler when they order the 17s. And they tend to order the 17s in chrome, a finish which reminds me of cheap hubcaps. Not only that, but chrome is heavy, and the original point of alloys was to reduce unsprung weight. In other words, to make this car look and perform best it may have to be special ordered. Is my taste really so unique? I hope not, but maybe so.

Sum: This is the car for you if you want a car to be both smooth and responsive. Just be sure the styling appeals to you as well.

Update: My father often wishes he'd gotten the LS again instead of the GS. This is largely the fault of the tires that come with the 17" wheels. On some surfaces, especially concrete highways, they are quite noisy, far noisier than the tires on the LS. These tires also make a fairly loud "bump-thump" over bumps in the road, much like many German luxury cars but again unlike the tires on the LS. Finally, these tires also lend a slightly jittery quality to the ride sometimes, though this bothers my father far less than the extra noise does. I have not driven the car with the base tires, so I cannot say how much quieter and smoother they are. I suspect the difference is considerable. If you are interested in this car, drive it with both. The 17s certainly look a lot better, but the cost in noise, smoothness, and tread wear may not be worth it to you.

One other thing my father has found he doesn't like about the car is the design of the door panel. The armrest is not long enough to comfortably rest your arm there. Your hand comes to rest on the power window buttons, which are located on a beveled panel just forward of this armrest. The bevel of this panel functions to slide your hand off of it. My father's solution has been to rest a couple of his fingers along the top edge of the window buttons, such that they keep his hand (and attached arm) from sliding. Something to think about if, unlike me but like my father, you drive with your right hand and tend to rest your left arm on the armrest.

Reliability

People often email me asking about the reliability of the cars and trucks they are considering. Existing sources of reliability information just aren't helpful enough.

In response, my website, truedelta.com, will more clearly identify what difference it will make if you buy a 7-Series rather than something else by providing "times in the shop" and "days in the shop" stats (among others). Those who help provide the data--which will require just a few minutes a year--will earn free access to the site's reliability information. To encourage participation, this access will otherwise cost $24.95.

For the details, and to sign up, visit www.truedelta.com.

As for my father's car, it has been very reliable during the five years he has owned it.