I may have found it a week late, but the time allowed this Lexus LS 600hL review by Jonny Lieberman to fill up with some of the best comments I’ve read regarding the hybrid limo’s appeal. Here’s a quote from the article itself:

I disagree with every review of the Lexus LS600hL ever written. Categorically. To a man, my colleagues misinterpret the most expensive Lexus as a misguided planet-saver that doesn’t deliver enough mpg to justify its sky-high price tag. I view the ultimate hybrid as better driving through science. In fact, despite the dorky “hybrid” badges uglifying the LS600hL’s flanks, Lexus didn’t build this beast to sip fuel. They built it to go toe-to-toe with 12-cylinder Germans.

The LS600hL is no design statement, like the 760Li. It doesn’t announce, “I have a huge wallet” like a Mercedes S600. The LS design is much more Audi A8 W12, only without the goatee. The restrained yet handsome lines strike the same chord as VW’s Phaeton. Only this time they’re brand correct.

This marks the second time Lieberman has reviewed the LS 600hL (the first time was for Jalopnik), and this second go-round is just as enjoyable as the first. In fact, it speaks volumes that the writer would think to revisit the car, convinced as he is that the flagship sedan is getting an unfair reputation.

This was a review I agreed with 100%, and it seemed to echo with the TTAC readership, as the article piled up pages of comments with almost no negativity.

Great read.

This 1990 segment of Motorweek comparing the Lexus ES 250 and the Infiniti M30 just goes to show how far entry-level luxury cars have come over the last 18 years:

It’s so rare to find anything about the ES 250, and this is the first video review I’ve seen. What’s more, comparing it the M30 doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. As the presenter notes, these cars are only similar in that they were the alternative offerings of the new Japanese luxury brands.

Mother Proof, a site that reviews cars from a mother’s point of view, has posted a review of the Lexus LX 570:

The sheer number of buttons that greeted me on that first drive was also a bit overwhelming; I thought I might need pilot training just to get it home. I was sorely disappointed to find that not one of the switches inside was capable of brewing my morning latte.

Once the initial aesthetic command and control shock wore off, I came to enjoy almost everything about the Lexus LX 570. Things I’ll miss most are the climate-controlled seats, front and side-view cameras and the automatic-folding third-row seats. The heated and cooled seats came in handy when we had 80-degree weather one day and a spring snowstorm the next. The front-mounted camera took a little getting used to, but it made me feel quite spy-like when I was able to easily park this rig in a tiny spot at the mall.

I enjoy these functional kinds of reviews, with very little to no focus on engine-size/0-60 times, they’re a nice foil to the more technical breakdowns. The slice-of-life perspective is refreshing.

I am, it must be said, a very big fan of Top Gear, so it was with great interest to find a review of the Lexus IS-F by Richard Hammond, one of the show’s presenters.

Like his Fifth Gear counterpart Tom Ford, Hammond was more than impressed:

And, like a penguin reincarnated as a lion with a machine gun, at times it gets giddy with the sheer joy it and cannot contain itself any longer, screaming with euphoria Needless to say, it was an engine I fell in love with. It lurks under the huge bonnet power-bulge that is only the start of the scattering of sporty tinsel and glamour that mean the hard-edged version of the otherwise pretty boring IS is yelling at you before you’ve even fired up the V8.

Slot the gear-lever into drive and take off. Flipping heck. Letting the V8 off the leash is like, well, doing exactly that - letting it off the leash to have a run around the park.

Seldom do I get the chance to really sit back in the driving seat and give in to genuine surprise. But here, at the wheel of a car from a manufacturer known best for durability and discreet reliability, I was flabbergasted as the IS-F took off and headed for the horizon.

Hammond does add some criticism of the ride quality, but compares the IS-F very favorably to the BMW M3 and Audi RS4.

It’s strange, the most favorable reviews of the IS-F so far have come from Britain, and I wonder if it’s due to how rare the car will be, with only 150 earmarked for sale in the UK. Next up, I hope, is a review from Jeremy Clarkson…

Four Wheeler magazine recently tested the Lexus LX 570, and it’s an interesting read for anyone thinking about the LX as more than just a giant on-road cruiser:

The really big news, however, can be found beneath the framerails, where an all-new independent A-arm front/four-link rear suspension system utilizes Lexus-exclusive computer-managed hydraulics to lift and lower the vehicle as much as 3 inches on demand…and to re-tune spring rates and shock damping on the fly…The new system is said to reduce body lean by as much as 30 percent at road speeds via diagonally linked shock chambers…the new suspension struck us as far more responsive, and much quicker to react, to undulating terrain at trail speeds than the older (and still quite good) electromechanical Kinetic Dynamic system it replaces.

Despite our best efforts to cross up the new LX on some steep and deep-rutted two-tracks, it was much more difficult for us to lift a tire off the ground than we would’ve guessed for a vehicle of this type.

Seems like the latest version of the LX is more than capable of keeping its established off-road prowess. There was one thing that really stood out in the review, and it was in regards to the noise of the new Crawl-Control feature:

As with the Land Cruiser, the Crawl Control ultra-low speed-holding system is loud and rattly, and it’ll shake the seat of your pants (but thankfully not the well-isolated steering). It also, however, indisputably works, so just think of it as the automotive equivalent of one of those Magic Finger thingies you used to find in many of America’s finest motels, and enjoy the occasional lower-back massage while you’re crawling.

James Martin, an automobile reviewer for the Daily Mail, has an aversion to car technology, and was pretty sure he was going to despise the Lexus LS 600hL, but then something strange happened:

I’m not even into technology on cars. Four wheels and an engine is complex enough – after all these years, it still fascinates me how cars with all the same components can be so different to drive.

By contrast, when I get into a new car and have to get to grips with its “iDrive” or “Command” or “MMI” menu system, I’m not fascinated. I’m annoyed.

So guess what I’ve got on my driveway this week? Yep, it’s the most hi-tech car in the world. But the only annoying thing about the Lexus LS600hL is that I love it.

The review touches on what I would consider one of Lexus’ strongest points, no matter how complex the technology, they’re incredibly adept at making it easy to use, especially when compared to the competition. (Though I’m sure the opportunity to lounge in the backseat with a bottle of champagne and the telly didn’t hurt the review either.)

[Source: The Daily Mail]