RC300h v. IS300h New Car Choice-Part Two

[Rabbers]

Earlier this week I ordered an RC300h F-Sport in Sonic Titanium/Dark Rose leather with only the ML audio (regrettably) and the Sunroof (less                                                    regrettably) absent from an otherwise full-optionals spec inclusive of the Safety Pack (= ACC & PCS), and I will be picking it up in ten days or so.                                                        As an alternative for similar quick delivery  I could have chosen Sonic Red/Grey leather, but although the red is a lovely colour and very suited to                                                        the car (not for nothing does Lexus push it in its advertising), I finally decided it is a bit raffish (and maybe too similar to Mazda's highly-touted                                                          Soul Red) and went for the comparatively tame but dignified Titanium, thus proving to the world that I require no higher dose of automotive                                                            Viagra than the RC already delivers regardless of its colour.

Before signing on the dotted line I took several of the posts in the original RC300h v. IS300h thread into account.  In order to see, for example,                                                          how much the RC's extra weight makes it less able than the IS to be "chuck[ed] around corners" (see rayaans, Oct 23) or how generally "sluggish"                                                        it might be (see doog442, Oct 23), I took an F-Sport for a test-drive of some two hours/120km on mixed roads.  And while the pointlessness of                                                comparing two cars with "the same hybrid system" (see Wallace, Oct 23) was broadly confirmed when it quickly became clear that differences                                                             in performance were indeed slight, I am glad to say that the RC nevertheless emerged as the all-round winner, thus relieving my doubts about                                                        buying a car almost entirely on the basis of its good looks, even though, admittedly, this remained by far the most important motivating factor.

As regards acceleration from a standstill, I detected no difference in respect of the IS, leading me to think  that the declared 0.3' separating the cars                                                       in the 0-100kmh comparison (8.6' for the RC v. 8.3' for the IS) is not perceptible to a "normal" driver (though it might be to ones more expert or speed-                                        oriented than me).  Mid-range acceleration was impressive, indeed startlingly so in Sport and Sport+ modes, causing me to think that they have been                                         tweaked in order to better exploit the adaptive dampers and considerably sharpen the throttle response while adding some desirable weight and feel                                              to the steering.  As regards higher speeds, at no time did I exceed the 130kmh motorway limit, not that this mattered since I doubt if the declared lower                                          maximum speed of 190kmh against the Is's 200kmh will bother me on any rare occasion when I might get close to it on an autobahn.  Of course, the                                               RC's actual performance does not live up to the expectations of dynamism and power aroused by its athletic appearance (and arguably over-hyped in                                               Lexus' advertising), and if the consequent risk of the driving experience being considered "underwhelming" (see Martin F, Oct 23) was already high for                                                       the IS in its guise of a "sports saloon", it can only be higher upon its evolution into a "sports coupé".  However, as long as you know what to expect from                                                          the hybrid system and CVT - and anyone familiar with the IS obviously does - the RC does not disappoint, and it delivers as much predictable power as                                                              needed in the vast majority of situations likely to be encountered outside a race-track and within the boundaries of the law - with some allowance, of                                                                course, for occasional flexibilities and rushes of blood.  As specifically regards stability and handling, I thought them improved as the result of a stiffer                                                            chassis and  the appreciably more direct and responsive steering resulting, I am told, from a redesigned platform borrowed, in part, from the GS.  Body                                                                roll was minimal at all speeds.  Frankly, I could not detect whether the 19" tyres provided more grip than 18" ones, which, in theory, they obviously must.                                                                             Their presence worried me a bit in terms of the prospectively firmer ride but, reassuringly, this was smooth and comfortable and gentle on the vertebrae                                                           even on several stretches of very nasty road.   Interestingly, the car was fitted with with Dunlop Sportmaxx tyres, as mine will also be, and this, not                                                                           displeasingly, will be my first new Lexus without OEM Bridgestones.  On the negative side, the 265/35 rear size, especially, brings the metal worryingly                                                         close to the ground, which does not bode well for the very attractive rims on bad stony surfaces, rough gravel etc.

While I always thought the seats in the IS provide good anatomical support, those in the RC hug you even better.  I quickly became a fan of the memory-                                       foam upholstery, which I had previously only experienced on short rides.  I am surprised that Lexus has not adopted it on all models.

Since I rarely carry passengers the cramped rear cabin space was not an issue.  Clearly, leg- and head-room are not abundant, though I have seen and                               experienced worse in other coupés and/or 2+2s.  Personally, I would expect long-trip claustrophobia to be as big a problem because of the tiny rear side-                                windows.  The electric seat sliding mechanism for rear access is effective but slow.  Or, rather, it is as fast as it needs to be except when it's raining.  But                                         then again, its slowness allows you to pause and admire the car while you are waiting.   For those of us who are not getting any younger (sometimes                                           referred to on this Forum as "old farts"), getting in and out of the front seats of the RC is maybe a bit easier than in the IS because of the wider opening.                                              Be this as it may, I have myself long regarded the bending and stretching necessary for access as a welcome form of exercise, and I have learned not to                                          grunt at the strain when other people are around.   My main grievance, and particularly my wife's for long trips, concerns the smaller boot space, which,                                           for us, represents a return to IS250 and 200 sizes after a happy period with the generous 430 litres of the 300h.   Forward cabin space is practically the                                                  same, which is to say that the main problem is insufficient storage for small loose objects.  Materials and build quality are in the best Lexus tradition, and                                                    I was especially happy to see the boot-hinges tucking away into their own housing as they did in the pre-300h ISs.  The overall quality impression is high,                                                  perhaps higher than that of the IS, though I would be hard put to define and list the reasons why.  Maybe it has something to do with longer and thicker                                                                  doors which close with a more resonant thunk.  The point that their size may be problematic in tight parking situations (see Deadlock and steveledzep,                                                                            Oct 25) was well taken, and I am not looking forward to the experience when it occurs.

Although I am told most people disagree, I liked the touchpad and found it as easy and instinctive to operate as the "mouse".  Because my hand fell                                           naturally on it, I did not need to consciously learn its position and keep glancing downwards as I feared.  It did occur to me, however, that right-handed                                        drivers in l-hd cars will always be favoured for longer tasks such as, for example, the entering of satnav data with it.

The time I spent with the RC confirmed my belief that it is as good-looking a car as any on the market today outside of the supercar segment and,                                           pending the arrival of the LC500, probably the best-looking one Lexus has ever marketed.  I have mixed feelings only about the fake extractor "combs"                                                 at the lower rear extremities.  They put me in mind of the side strakes of the Ferrari Testarossa of three decades ago and, as such, I find them a bit naff                                                  in a retro sort of way.  Presumably they are intended to decoy the eye away from the long rear overhang that results from a shorter wheelbase under a                                                        lengthened body.  As expected the RC attracted a lot of curiosity because of its looks and rarity.  However, I had not anticipated the possible danger                                                from gawking oncoming drivers or their counterparts who speed up from behind in order to take a closer look.

My conclusion was that Lexus have taken their well-proven proprietary technology and created a thing of beauty around it.

 

[Zotto]

Well done and said :)

[dutchie01]

Hi Rabbers, first of all congrats on your beautiful purchase.  Can we see some pics?

[Rabbers]

3 hours ago, dutchie01 said:

Hi Rabbers, first of all congrats on your beautiful purchase.  Can we see some pics?

It won't be delivered until the middle of the month - will post some pix then.

[DanD]

Excellent write up, thank you.

[tayaste]

Brilliant 

[Rabbers]

Following are some pictures of my RC300h, which I have had for nearly a week now.  I confirm my original impressions,

especially with regard to the precision of the handling and the marked differences between the individual drive modes.

I have not yet got a firm fix on the fuel consumption but, at the moment, this looks to be 10-11% higher than for the IS

whereas a comparison between Lexus' declared figures for the two cars on the combined cycle was leading me to

expect only 6-7%.  I suspect that recent cold weather could partly account for the disparity.

All in all, the RC has been a pleasure to own, except for a malfunction in the rear-access mechanism, unnoticed at the 

time of delivery, which cost me an 80km round-trip to the dealer for what was fortunately a quick repair.  It has been nice

to have up-to-date firmware (version VD12103A, which I presume is the most recent).  A source of annoyance that has

nothing to do with the car itself is Lexus' abandonment of a good old-fashioned printed owner's manual of the type that

has always provided me with instructive bed-time reading for the first few weeks after buying a new car.  I suspect the

claimed need to save paper is yet another instance of green credentials being exploited for financial gain.  Anyway, I

have been busy downloading such chapters as I think might be useful, thus creating a fair amount of pollution of my

own in the form of used ink-cartridges, wasted print-outs of warnings and waivers and manufacturers' specs etc.

During the week I came across a couple of snippets of information that were new to me though maybe not to

hoarders of Lexus trivia.  Having always thought, wrongly it appears, that the initials designating individual Lexus

models are meaningless, I was surprised to learn that "RC" actually stands for "Radical Coupé" or perhaps, if 

you trust other sources, "Responsive Coupé".  Frankly, both names are a bit hokey (as well as open to debate,

maybe more in the former than the latter case).  Equally trivial was the discovery that "Sonic Titanium" (i.e.

colour code 1J7) is known as "Atomic Silver" in the U.S. and, more surprisingly given the unfortunate

historical connotations, in Japan itself.  Lexus Australia, on the other hand, takes a no-nonsense approach

and favours plain "Titanium" without any adjective at all.  Anyway, whatever name it goes by, 1J7 was judged

Japanese Auto Colour of the Year for 2014 by a local research institute called JAFCA, which studies the

psychological and marketing aspects of colour.

To the gawking motorists mentioned in my OP, I can add numerous pedestrians who also gape at the RC

without a thought for their own safety as I sit there trying to banish visions of an activated pop-up hood from

my consciousness.  Having several times found nose-prints on the side-windows, I have once again taken

to carrying disinfectant wipes just as I used to do in my early days with the IS300h.  Sometimes the persons

attached to the noses are still present or sheepishly sidling away unless they feel encouraged to chat.  One

memorable encounter of the latter kind occurred only this morning with an individual who revealed himself

to be as much of a tactless wit in the Clarkson mould as a discerning student of car aesthetics.  After

confessing that he had not seen an RC before except in pictures, he proceeded to express his astonishment

at its "extreme elegance" before concluding that it was not, as he had previously expected, "the sort of car

Russian billionaires buy for their girlfriends".  My suspicion that he might not have been wholly unfamiliar

with the social milieu in question was confirmed a few minutes later when I spotted him driving away in a

sinister-looking purple Panamera Turbo with Monaco plates.

[rayaans]

Very nice!

I hated Sonic Titanium with a passion but the RC sure does wear it well, especially with the red seats and two tone wheels

[NemesisUK]

I have had my RC300h for just 2 weeks and am loving it 😎 many compliments 

Curiously the rear access function didn't work on the driver's side either, bit of a coincidence ! Only noticed it a couple of days in when getting the grandchildren loaded.  Dealer sorted it very quickly. Apparently it just needed initialising again.  

[Pablo43]

Looks fantastic !  

Thanks for the write up.

Oh and great choice with the colour .

 

 

[dutchie01]

Renato, just one word,   WOW

What a beauty

In my mind a coupe needs to be aesthetically pleasing, elegant, challenging and above all beautiful. Full marks here.

The RC could well be the most attractive coupe on the market today

 

 

 

 

[Martin F]

That is a very nice colour combination 

Congratulations and wish you many miles of happy motoring !

[olliesgrandad]

Lovely looking car. Congratulations 

[DanD]

Excellent writ up. Again.

Beautiful looking car. I too love the colour combination. Sonic-T looks much more exclusive than plain silver.