jasone36

Ran across an interesting article from mid-2014 about the LS460...

As a "new" 2013 owner (purchased pre-owned), I'm very interested in reading everything I can about the car.

Personally, I went with the 2013 model year because the exterior looks and interior electronics are up-to-date, while the engine retains it's long-standing reliability due to relative simplicity compared to all these "turbo charged" and "supercharged" modern engines which may not stand the test of time...

(I'm planning to keep the car 10 - 15 years... unlike most ultra-luxury car owners which lease for 3 years and then throw it away for the "next new thing").

Anyway, here's the excellent read:

http://www.autoblog.com/2014/07/04/l.../#slide-endcap

I found the "comments" section to be most interesting.

dlbuckls10

Lexus isn't worries and its parent company Toyota is doing well. Lexus flagship LS isn't in the same class with the new S550 and MB went to a whole new level with the S-class. MB have always been a leader in innovations and the one to follow. The majority of new S-class will be leased and after a few years the electronic gremlins and reliability issues will come into play as in the past. Yes, Lexus is taking note and I believe the next generation LS will be on a whole new level and reliability want be an issue.

Rhambler

I'm sure we'll see a sales uptick with the 2017 just because it is "brand new."

Wasn't the last Mercedes S Class introduced in 2005 with the recent model introduced in 2014? That would make them on a nine-year cycle without much of a refresh in between. I mean, I think they looked pretty much the same throughout that generation as well.

This gen LS is going on nine years as well and had a major refresh in 2013.

No idea why they are making a big fuss out of "old" when Mercedes S and Lexus LS are pretty much on the same generation cycle and the Lexus had a major overhaul midway through that cycle to boot.

SW17LS

The previous W221 S Class debuted as a 2007 model, same as the LS460. That vehicle was replaced for 2014, the LS comparatively is quite old. I would imagine that the 2017 LS will be the same as the current LS, and the all new car wont be out until 2018...by that time the current S Class will already be a year into its mid model refresh.

jainla

Hopefully they aren't worried because they are about to perpetrate a big whammy with the upcoming refresh

I think also the LS represented about 2% of Lexus US sales for Jan 2016; down from 3% in 2014. So even a sizable drop probably doesn't represent a huge revenue loss.

That being said the large executive sedan market isn't growing nearly as fast as the luxury SUV/Crossover market; and with a larger RX or new 3 row crossover hopefully they have that covered.

R Z

Didn't the LS400 shock the world and force automakers like MB and BMW to actually work for a living back in 90?

While the LS series has been the same since 2013, it's still a pretty handsome car. I haven't looked at a MB in a while, but the last time I did, they had those big round honkin' air vents. That just doesn't work for me. A BMW . . . . no way. Not when I see a loaner car every other week at my neighbors house. But, I do like the Audi! ;-)

litesoarer

To be fair, the first year I owned my Cruze Diesel, 1 out of every 6 weeks were spent in a loaner car.