General quick early impressions

[FrzingNuts]

Hi all again.  I picked up my sonic red LC500 this week (just over 2k miles).  It is a Sport+ with the tan interior.  I had test driven this vehicle previously but now that I have a few hundred miles in the driving seat, I thought I'd post this up.

Looks - The sonic red colour is stunning and has real depth when seen in sunlight.  It does pick up surface scratches easily but I am going to detail it and have a ceramic coating applied mainly to make it easier to clean.  Up close, the car has some very interesting angles and it reminds me of various different cars (LFA, Nissan GT-R).  It looks a lot more impressive in person rather than in photos.

Interior - By far the best put together and highest quality interior compared to any car I have had (including high end Porsche vehicles).   I mentioned this in another post but at first glance on autotrader, I was put off the tan interior.  Having seen it up close, it is apparent you get nice subtle changes in shading and the contrast between alcantara and leather is lovely.  The entire thing feels way more expensive than it is (£150k+ territory of car).  No rattles/creaks at all but I recognise it is still fairly new.  I don't imagine it will age badly if kept well taken care of.   The dash is well laid out and I actually like the trackpad with haptic feedback.  You do have to get used to it prior to attempting changes while driving though.

Ride quality - Mine has the 21s with Bridgestone runflats.  In comfort mode it is quite supple on almost all types of road exept pot holes with sudden drop-offs.  There, it still feels a bit choppy and out of curiosity, I'd like to see what an LC500 with 20s (and non-runflats) rides like as I think this will transform the car considerably in terms of comfort.  When in Sport and Sport+, it stiffens up nicely but it isn't overdamped and I find that a huge bonus for normal road driving.  I would never take it on a track but I imagine it is a little softly damped even in Sport+ mode.  I haven't found a way to decouple the drive modes in terms of the individual settings yet and I'm not sure if you can do that - e.g. set it in Sport+ but with a comfort suspension setting?

Handling - Very pleasantly surprised at how capable it is dynamically.  When approaching the limit in sweeping bends and sharp cornering, you really do feel the rear wheel steering assist and LSD at work and it isn't off-putting.  It is always controllable and doesn't require lots of opposite lock unless you are really being silly.  Even then, I can feel the combination of TC/LSD working so I don't think it is ever fully off.  The steering is as direct as I'd expect suiting a luxury GT feel but precise and not vague.  I don't know if it is meant to weight differently in different modes but I don't find the steering weight very different between normal, sport and sport+.

Engine/exhaust/gearbox - Probably one of the best features of this car.  The 5L V8 is a masterpiece.  I can see it getting better over time as it gets broken in and it will become even more free-revving.  I love the requirement to rev it to the top of the rpm range to access the majority of power/torque.  It really suits the car and I think this is why it is so controllable.  The sound is phenomenal both inside and out of the cabin or with windows down.  I have had several people commenting already and I've only had the car 2 days!  I have owned many V8s (NA and forced induction variants) in the past and this feels the best engineered and the sound department at Lexus have done a stellar job with the cabin noise, exhaust downshift crackles/pops without it being ASBO ridiculous.  The 10-speed auto is great with fast shifts when needed and lots of comfort and smoothness when not.  A couple of times I have noticed it "thump" itself into a lower gear when pootling around town but I checked with the dealer and there are no gearbox software updates for it at this time.  Fuel economy on motorways is actually surprising at between 35-40mpg.

 

Overall, I think it is a great all-round GT/luxury sports coupe.  All the dynamic components feel well put together and don't intimidate or frustrate the driver.  I think it would be a great car to learn car handling in.  It feels so well made and makes one feel special when inside.  I know there are a ton of cars out there at similar price-points with much more performance.  I don't think many of them can match this car's interior quality, handling dynamics, engine feel and looks.  Reliability remains to be seen but I can't see any reason it won't be to similar Lexus standards.  I am very glad I didn't go for an AMG GTS in the end.  I think the latter would have bored me in 5 minutes.  With the LC500, I feel I can easily get a few years interesting usage from it and the fact that my kids fit in it (and they love it) is a bonus.

 

[Dixgas]

1 hour ago, FrzingNuts said:

Hi all again.  I picked up my sonic red LC500 this week (just over 2k miles).  It is a Sport+ with the tan interior.  I had test driven this vehicle previously but now that I have a few hundred miles in the driving seat, I thought I'd post this up.

Looks - The sonic red colour is stunning and has real depth when seen in sunlight.  It does pick up surface scratches easily but I am going to detail it and have a ceramic coating applied mainly to make it easier to clean.  Up close, the car has some very interesting angles and it reminds me of various different cars (LFA, Nissan GT-R).  It looks a lot more impressive in person rather than in photos.

Interior - By far the best put together and highest quality interior compared to any car I have had (including high end Porsche vehicles).   I mentioned this in another post but at first glance on autotrader, I was put off the tan interior.  Having seen it up close, it is apparent you get nice subtle changes in shading and the contrast between alcantara and leather is lovely.  The entire thing feels way more expensive than it is (£150k+ territory of car).  No rattles/creaks at all but I recognise it is still fairly new.  I don't imagine it will age badly if kept well taken care of.   The dash is well laid out and I actually like the trackpad with haptic feedback.  You do have to get used to it prior to attempting changes while driving though.

Ride quality - Mine has the 21s with Bridgestone runflats.  In comfort mode it is quite supple on almost all types of road exept pot holes with sudden drop-offs.  There, it still feels a bit choppy and out of curiosity, I'd like to see what an LC500 with 20s (and non-runflats) rides like as I think this will transform the car considerably in terms of comfort.  When in Sport and Sport+, it stiffens up nicely but it isn't overdamped and I find that a huge bonus for normal road driving.  I would never take it on a track but I imagine it is a little softly damped even in Sport+ mode.  I haven't found a way to decouple the drive modes in terms of the individual settings yet and I'm not sure if you can do that - e.g. set it in Sport+ but with a comfort suspension setting?

Handling - Very pleasantly surprised at how capable it is dynamically.  When approaching the limit in sweeping bends and sharp cornering, you really do feel the rear wheel steering assist and LSD at work and it isn't off-putting.  It is always controllable and doesn't require lots of opposite lock unless you are really being silly.  Even then, I can feel the combination of TC/LSD working so I don't think it is ever fully off.  The steering is as direct as I'd expect suiting a luxury GT feel but precise and not vague.  I don't know if it is meant to weight differently in different modes but I don't find the steering weight very different between normal, sport and sport+.

Engine/exhaust/gearbox - Probably one of the best features of this car.  The 5L V8 is a masterpiece.  I can see it getting better over time as it gets broken in and it will become even more free-revving.  I love the requirement to rev it to the top of the rpm range to access the majority of power/torque.  It really suits the car and I think this is why it is so controllable.  The sound is phenomenal both inside and out of the cabin or with windows down.  I have had several people commenting already and I've only had the car 2 days!  I have owned many V8s (NA and forced induction variants) in the past and this feels the best engineered and the sound department at Lexus have done a stellar job with the cabin noise, exhaust downshift crackles/pops without it being ASBO ridiculous.  The 10-speed auto is great with fast shifts when needed and lots of comfort and smoothness when not.  A couple of times I have noticed it "thump" itself into a lower gear when pootling around town but I checked with the dealer and there are no gearbox software updates for it at this time.  Fuel economy on motorways is actually surprising at between 35-40mpg.

 

Overall, I think it is a great all-round GT/luxury sports coupe.  All the dynamic components feel well put together and don't intimidate or frustrate the driver.  I think it would be a great car to learn car handling in.  It feels so well made and makes one feel special when inside.  I know there are a ton of cars out there at similar price-points with much more performance.  I don't think many of them can match this car's interior quality, handling dynamics, engine feel and looks.  Reliability remains to be seen but I can't see any reason it won't be to similar Lexus standards.  I am very glad I didn't go for an AMG GTS in the end.  I think the latter would have bored me in 5 minutes.  With the LC500, I feel I can easily get a few years interesting usage from it and the fact that my kids fit in it (and they love it) is a bonus.

 

You lucky lucky lucky b******d, I test drove the same model last week in the Scottish borders, it is a very special car.

Enjoy 

D

[leelacey17]

Lucky man hope you enjoy it. Sat in one a few weeks back and I agree on the interior, it just feels like it's made to a really high standard and will last for years

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