I wanted to drive the redesigned-for-2006 Lexus GS when it first arrived at dealers a couple of months ago. But my father owns a 2000 GS 400, and I really wanted his impressions. How much better is it than the car he currently drives? Also, this being Michigan, my local dealer had received only all-wheel-drive six-cylinder GS 300s so far. So I waited until there was an opportunity for us to drive the eight-cylinder GS 430 together.
This past weekend we were both in South Carolina, and the dealer had a 430 as well as a couple of 300s. We drove both models. We also drove a Mercedes-Benz CLS500 immediately afterwards. That car lists for about $18,000 more, but it targets the same style-oriented luxury sedan buyer as the GS 430. For instance, my father.
Recently I've also driven the Acura RL, Cadillac STS, and Infiniti M35. In this review I'll evaluate how the new Lexus GS stacks up in this highly talented field.
Styling
The new GS is the first example of Lexus' racier new design language. Compared to my father's car it is a much more fluid design, with a sweeping roofline and fuller bodysides. There's more than a little BMW 5-Series in the mix, especially in the kinked C-pillar. Thanks to the roofline (and resulting reduction in side glass area) the new car appears much longer than the old one, even though its length has increased less than an inch.
I would conclude that the new GS is the best-looking mid-priced luxury sedan (with the "mid-priced" qualifier excluding the breathtakingly beautiful CLS), but must toss out a caveat. Fitted with the 300's standard 17-inch wheels, the new GS looks bulbous. From an aesthetic standpoint, larger, sportier wheels are a must. The 18s standard on the GS 430 suit the car's styling very well. Less attractive 18s are available as dealer-installed accessories on the six-cylinder car--for $2,400. I'd suggest another source until Lexus comes to its senses and makes the Plus 1 option available for about $200--as it did through last year. Better yet, make the 18s standard to avoid giving the car a rep as "ugly." The wheels really do make a duckling-swan difference.
I must pick at an issue I have with the sheetmetal before moving on. To enhance the new GS' appearance from dead ahead the each front fender has a crease trailing back from the headlight. The fenders flare out beneath said crease. But the designers involved apparently couldn't decide how to resolve this crease, so it simply disappears into the fender two-thirds of the way back--but not before visually clashing with the pair of creases higher on the fender. In addition, the bulge beneath the offending crease peaks ahead of the front wheel rather than directly over it. All in all, this detail mars an otherwise excellent design. Frankly, I am shocked that such an amateurish mistake slipped through Toyota's development organization. It seems Toyota's stylists still have some distance to go before they are as thorough as Toyota's engineers.
Lexus has been a leader in interior design from the beginning, so the new GS is less of an advance here. The look remains clean yet stylish, with quality materials everywhere. The material quality inside the Mercedes is less consistent. This said, the new Acura RL has a nicer interior still, in terms of both design and materials.
Ergonomically, the GS extends the Lexus tradition of being more user-friendly than the competition despite offering a similarly broad array of features (auto-dimming mirrors, keyless access and ignition, etc.). Moving many minor controls to a concealed control panel to the left of the steering wheel further unclutters the dash. The GS 300 was equipped with the optional navigation system. It includes a voice command feature for the audio and climate control systems as well as the navigation system. This voice command works quite well, making the car even easier to operate.
Accommodations
In terms of accommodations the new GS is less of an improvement. In fact, it's not an improvement at all. The driving position is decent enough. While the more steeply raked A-pillars do cut into the forward view a bit, the much flatter C-pillars are not the visibility issue I expected them to be. In this area the competition does not differ substantially.
But then there are the front seats. Lexus vehicles usually have excellent seats. This one does not. To my rear they feel worst in class. My father, who strongly disliked the seats, thought the problem was excessive firmness. But I think it had more to do with the location of the underlying structure and/or seams. Whatever the reason, Lexus needs to fix this issue quickly.
Update October 2005: While at a Lexus dealer to test drive the new IS my father and I sat in a GS in the showroom. Neither of us could figure out why we found the seats so uncomfortable before. Either Lexus made a running change, the issue only emerges after some time in the seat, or we were both off our game that day. All I noted this time was that the bolsters are much firmer than the center section of the cushion, but I don't think this would have caused the earlier issue.
Lexus might also consider increasing the lateral support provided by the seats. As is, the bolsters are too widely spaced for adults of medium build. If they're concerned about comfort for a range of body sizes, I'd suggest adjustable side bolsters like those optional in many BMW and Mercedes sedans.
I similarly found the attractively curved door-mounted armrests uncomfortable. They are not located well for me. The upholstered sides of the center console similarly aren't comfortable to rest a leg against.
The front seats do have one nice feature. Seat coolers cost only $200, and on their highest setting they are much stronger than those in the Mercedes CLS we drove afterwards. If it gets hot where you live, you'll want this option.
The back seat is at best average for the class. Which means head room and leg room are just adequate, and the cushion is too low to provide good thigh support--common issues in $50,000 luxury sedans lately. I truly cannot fathom why a lowly Ford Focus has a more comfortable rear seat than nearly all of these cars. A couple of noteworthy exceptions: the BMW 5 and the new Infiniti M.
Reduced from 14.8 to 12.7 cubic feet, trunk volume is also at best average for the class. As with rear seat room, a good number of potential buyers will find it lacking. Worse, the stylish roofline restricts the size of the opening. At least a passthrough for skis and such has been added for 2006. If you actually want the seat to fold...well, then you'll be buying something cheaper or something German.
On the Road
We drove the eight-cylinder GS 430 first. From previous test drives and my father's car I knew what to expect from the powertrain: effortless thrust. The new car did not disappoint. I don't know how Lexus does it, but its V8s (like BMW's) feel significantly stronger and smoother in the midrange than those from Mercedes, Cadillac, and Infiniti. You can wind this eight out for maximum power, but it feels much more than adequate even at lower RPM.
This year the GS with either engine is fitted with a six-speed automatic. Compared to the seven-speed unit in the Mercedes, this transmission did a much better job of finding the correct gear and generally calling no attention to itself. Shifts are very smooth. A manual shift feature is available via the shift lever, but steering wheel buttons or paddles are no longer available. My father likes the buttons in his car, and would miss them.
The powertrain is not perfect. The electronic throttle is easily confused. A couple of times when I started to move away from a stop, then changed my mind and shifted my foot back to the brake, the engine received a blip of fuel anyway. Not dangerous, but unsettling.
Another nit: the exhaust is a touch boomy at light throttle. It's a nice-sounding exhaust, but some people won't want to hear it so frequently. You won't hear much from the engine compartment no matter what you do. Even at high RPM with the pedal to the floor only a very muffled, very refined sound escapes, and this from the headers rather than the engine itself. If you like to hear the mechanical bits of the engine, this isn't your V8.
The GS 300 is a much different animal. There's a healthy amount of power to be found up high, with 245 horses at 6,200 RPM, but the midrange is just adequate. Luckily the six-speed automatic makes those upper reaches easily accessible, and the engine sounds great once there. Unlike with the 430, the engine in the 300 has a sophisticated yet strongly mechanical note to it, like the best European sixes. Enthusiasts could well find it more to their liking for this reason. Driving the 430 is nearly effortless. You have to push the 300 harder, and it provides more, and more pleasing, feedback in return. All in all, although many competing sixes are stronger I found the GS 300 plenty powerful during typical driving and quite satisfying (if less quick than the 430) during aggressive driving. Much like a BMW 530i.
The 300 and 430 have different steering and suspension systems. While the 300's systems are largely conventional, the 430's steering has an electronically varied ratio (I think similar to BMW's active steering) and its suspension has adaptive shock absorbers. The 430 does corner a bit flatter, with the "sport" setting making a slight difference. But its steering, while higher in effort, lacks feedback.
And so here again I found the 300 more enjoyable to drive. Steering effort is light, especially at moderate speeds, yet the system provides excellent feedback. Lean in turns remains well within acceptable limits. The conventional shocks give the car a more "natural," more "tossable" feel. I'd expect the fancy shocks in the 430 to yield better numbers at a test track, but, for me at least, not a better driving experience.
In any form the GS has an almost BMW-like composure. It's very clear that Lexus benchmarked the 5 when developing this car, as the cars have a similar feel to them. Like the 5, the GS has such a balanced, well-sorted chassis that it covers up nasty driving practices. Dive too deep into a corner with a foot on the brake, and the car simply sails through without protest. The outside front tire doesn't scrub or squeal.
Even the 430 with the suspension set to "sport" does not ride harshly. The suspension in the new Infiniti M35 Sport is much firmer. This said, some undulations in the road, especially a quick series of them, slightly unnerve the car. BMW retains a slight edge here.
This being a Lexus, noise levels are low, and through skillful tuning sound even lower than they are. The major exception being the 430 exhaust mentioned earlier.
Lexus GS Price Comparisons and Pricing
The GS 300 I drove listed for about $51,000, the GS 430 for about $53,000. However, the former was more heavily equipped. The base prices are $8,200 apart. The 430 in addition to the extra two cylinders has the trick steering and suspension, which aren't available on the 300, and steering-linked headlights, which are. My website gives the 430 a credit of over $2,000 for these additional features, cutting the difference to about $6000, but, as my review points out, in practice they are of limited value.
To save space, the following comparisons will be among six-cylinder cars. For the GS 430, visit my site.
BMW 530i: $6,300 more than the GS
Cadillac STS: $2,000 less
Infiniti M35: $2,600 less
MB E350: $12,700 more (what are they thinking?)
Note that the above comparisons are MSRP to MSRP. Lexus provides its dealers with the fattest margins in the industry. Compare invoice to invoice (assuming you'll pay each dealer about the same amount of profit) and the position of the Lexus improves by about $2,000 in each of the above cases.
Even comparing sticker prices, but especially invoice to invoice, the new GS seems very competitively priced.
Prices change frequently, and differences will vary based on feature level. To quickly generate these and other comparisons with the specific features you want, visit my Web site, www.truedelta.com. (It's the only site that provides true "apples-to-apples" price comparisons.)
TrueDelta's page for the Lexus GS:
http://www.truedelta.com/models/GS.php
Last Words
The new GS has sharp styling and the usual Lexus refinement. However, it falls down in a few areas. The trick steering and suspension in the GS 430 tend to blunt driving enjoyment. And the front seats are not comfortable.
My father won't be considering the car until the seats are upgraded. And even then he'll be more likely to buy the 300 than the 430. Like me, he found the less powerful car more enjoyable to drive.
Lexus should consider making the 430's steering and suspension part of an optional "sport package," available with either engine, much like Infiniti and BMW do. Not everyone who wants the more powerful engine will want them, and vice-versa.
In the end, I see a three-star car. Bear in mind that this "average" rating is not necessarily a bad rating, as the average is quite high in this class. The new GS has many appealing features, most notably its styling, content level, and (with the 300) steering, but the lapses noted above drag it down.
A Note on Lexus GS 300 Reliability and Lexus GS 430 Reliability
I cannot practically cover reliability within the context of this review. However, many people are interested in such information, so I've started collecting my own data. Results, once they are available, will be posted to my site, www.truedelta.com, with updates every three months.
Unlike other sources, TrueDelta will clearly identify what difference it will make if you buy a Lexus GS rather than a Mercedes E-Class or other vehicle by providing "times in the shop" and "days in the shop" stats (among others). You will be able to specify the number of years, annual miles, and types of repairs to include in Lexus GS reliability comparisons.
Before I can report results, I need data on all cars--not just the GS--from people like you. To encourage participation, those who help provide the data will receive free access to the site's reliability information. Non-participants will have to pay an access fee.
For the details, and to sign up, visit www.truedelta.com.
A link to this website and alphabetized links to my other vehicle reviews can be found on my profile page.
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
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