Lexus swims valiantly upstream to join the Europeans. NEIL DOWLING tests the latest GS350 saloon
NUMBERS won’t tell the story of how hard Lexus fights for a slice of Australia’s perennially stable prestige car market.
This year, to the end of July, only 301 Lexus have found Australian homes. Though up by almost 20 per cent on 2011, it pales against Audis 517, BMW’s 840 and Mercedes sales of 960. By the numbers, Lexus has sold 20 less cars than Peugeot and six more than Ssangyong.
Yet, the numbers don’t tell the story. The latest GS range represents big gains in technology, safety and comfort while increasing value for money. In the evolution of the Toyota-owned, but singular entity, that is Lexus, it’s also prepared to lose a lot of its Japanese-ness to take on the Europeans.
VALUE: The GS350 is priced to compete, taking on all comers with lots of features, a long warranty, renown customer service and consistent world-beating quality awards. The $109,400 GS350 Sports Luxury gets pretty much everything you’d want in a car but do you need it? The Luxury model is $20,000 less and is more than sufficient. So while the most expensive version frustrates the rivals as much as it does your wallet, it may not be the best value. But, just to whet your appetite, it has exotic features such as “nano-e” airconditioning that claims to be gentler on occupants’ skin and hair by adding moisture to ions sent into the cabin. That got my wife in. It won me with the 835-watt Mark Levinson with digital radio and 17 speakers, heated and ventilated front and rear seats and a 300mm split-screen monitor that can handle sat-nav and other functions at the same time. All this before pressing the start button.
DESIGN: It’s basically the same size as its predecessor and even looks similar. But the newbie has more cabin room and a bigger boot, sits 25mm high to make contortion-free entry and egress, and has a new “spindle” grille to distinguish it from competitors. It competes in size with the mid-prestige segment, up against the Audi A6, Mercedes E-Class, BMW 5-Series and Jaguar XF. That’s tough and the purposeful design of the Lexus helps give it a nudge. Like its contemporaries, the style is conservative – at least on the outside. The cabin treatment is Audi class yet has lots of things to play with. The 300mm screen, controlled by a left-hand mouse, is brilliant. There’s also room for five adults, though the scalloped rear seats – perforated leather to allow for air to cool the occupants – are designed for two.
TECHNOLOGY: Looks a bit like the old one but the new body shell is 14 per cent more rigid, there’s new suspension with a variable adaptive system, the brakes are bigger, and there’s a driving mode that allows four selections of ride, handling and engine response. The variable suspension acts electronically on the dampers to balance ride comfort and handling and also produce a flatter ride regardless of cornering speed. The new dual-injection 3.5-litre V6 is 27 per cent more powerful than its predecessor, with 233kW and 378Nm of torque. It drives a six-speed sequential auto with paddle shifters. Lexus claims 9.7 L/100km on 95 RON fuel as an average. To make all this sound better, the GS350 has a sound amplifying resonator.
SAFETY: Pay $110,000 and you’d expect the best. Lexus delivers with 10 airbags, five-star crash rating, head-up-display, blind-spot monitoring, emergency brake lights, a rear camera and park sensors front and rear, bi-xenon headlights with cornering function, automatically dipping mirrors for safer reversing and a tyre pressure system. Then there’s an advanced pre-collision safety system which includes driver-fatigue monitor, collision warning and a  pre-collision package of braking, brake assist and seat belt tensioning.
Add a first aid kit and comprehensive breakdown kit (triangle, gloves, etc) and you could almost be itching for a prang or a puncture just to try the stuff out.
DRIVING: No surprise that the Lexus cabin could come from Europe but one press of the engine’s starter button tells you it’s too muted to be German, Italian or English. That very slight rawness in European engines, in the sound and even the feel as it idles through the steering wheel, is missing. Instead, the Lexus is very smooth, very quiet. The 3.5-litre engine is no powerhouse, even with 233kW on tap. That’s because these chickens all come home to roost around 6500rpm and very few, if any, Lexus owners are going to go there. But because I can’t afford a Lexus, I did. Life at 6500rpm is more like what you’d expect from Europe. The sound amplifying resonator on the engine’s air intake and the removal of a sound deadening baffle in the exhaust combine to produce a roar at the top end. On the road the car is silky smooth and quiet but the engine’s benign temperament can be switched by turning a console switch to the “sport” mode. The engine is more responsive and the steering firmer, removing the hesitancy and any acceleration lag. Lexus’ active suspension is damn good – right up there with the standard suspension of a BMW – and though complex, offers one of the best balances of ride compliance and a flat cornering stance. The head-up-display places a digital speedo and a tacho graph on the windscreen ahead of the driver to greatly reduce distractions. Best of all, the driving position and the actual driver’s seat is superb.
VERDICT: One very surprising car and now a long drive from its predecessors.
LEXUS GS350 SPORTS LUXURY
STARS 4
Price: $109,400
Warranty: 4 years/100,000km, roadside assist
Resale: 56%
Service interval: 10,000km, 6 months
Safety rating: 5-star
Spare: Space-saver
Engine: 3.5-litre V6 petrol; 233kW/378Nm
Transmission: 6-spd auto, rear drive
Body: 4.9m (L); 1.8m (w); 1.5m (h)
Weight: 1740kg
Thirst: 9.7 1/100km; 95RON; 225g/km Co2
Three Others to consider.

AUDI A6 2.8FSI
Star: 3.5
PRICE: $93,400
ENGINE: 2.8-litre, V6 petrol, 150kW/280Nm
TRANS: 7-spd dual-clutch auto, AWD
BODY: 4-door sedan
THIRST: 8.0L/100km; 95RON; CO2 187g/km
“In-between Audi has all the quality but a bit less of the urge. Nice drive but 3-litre model ($121,000) is more satisfying”ql

BMW 535i
Star: 4
PRICE: $115,600
ENGINE: 3-litre, 6-cyl turbo-petrol, 225kW/400Nm
TRANS: 8-spd auto, rear drive
BODY: 4-door sedan
THIRST: 8.4L/100km; 95RON; CO2 194g/km
“Wonderful drive and coolly elegant cabin. Price is high and so value not quite in the league of rivals”ql

INFINITI M37 “S”
Star: 3.5
PRICE: $97,900
ENGINE: 3.7-litre, V6 petrol, 235kW/360Nm
TRANS: 7-spd auto, rear drive
BODY: 4-door sedan
THIRST: 10.2L/100km; 95RON; CO2 235g/km
“Maserati goes to Tokyo and has a child. Nissan’s luxo-brand is new to Oz but its drivetrain has been here for ages. Love it-hate it looks”