kymbakitty

Please excuse my ignorance. But I am perplexed as to why Lexus would add yet another model to their RC lineup.

I totally understand the RF 467 hp....more is better....varoom, varoom. If this was my husband's "turn" we would have that instead of our RC 350.

I even get the 200t (well, kind of....doesn't mean I would ever buy it, but I get it). 4 cylinders, but turbo.

But I do not understand the RC 300. WHY?????????????

Although, I vaguely recall someone saying that Lexus is doing away with the 350 (306 hp) ..so maybe they want to introduce the RC 300 (255 hp) that will ultimately replace the 350?

The cost is virtually the same. And I'm not addressing the F Sport models because I am just looking at these with the Luxury packages (if one were to build).

What am I missing?

AtomicRC

The RC300 provides an "entry level" RC for people looking for AWD, since the 200t is only offered in RWD and the AWD RC350's are typically special order and carry a higher price. Lexus also claims that the 3.5 used in the 300 is "tuned" specifically for the AWD system.

kymbakitty

But you can get the RC 350 in AWD so that doesn't make any sense. It is not entry level...one could argue that the entry level would be the 4 banger, but not the 300. It is virtually the same price as the 350 so how could it be considered an entry level vehicle when you can get the RC 350 AWD (unless the RC 350 AWD is thousands more for that feature).

AtomicRC

As I stated, the RC300 would be "entry level" for someone that specifically wanted AWD and didn't want to spend the extra money to get the 350, as the 200t ONLY comes in RWD. The AWD 350 carries about a $2500 premium over the 300, but typically it ends up being more than that because they come with more than just the "base" features.

AtomicRC

I understand your argument, though. But some people just wanna save a bit of money in sacrifice for a bit of performance, and with a $2500 price difference you'd save about $50 a month if you're financing. Also, from what I've seen AWD 350's typically have to be ordered, and some people just don't want to wait. Personally, I prefer a RWD car over AWD when it comes to a sports car, and I would never drive a car like this in the snow, so the 300 was never a consideration.

lexual_rc

I agree with you in purchasing a 350 but the cost is what makes people decide on the 300. A few thousand is still a few thousand...for the bad negotiator/haggler the difference between these two models is over 6 thousand. Thats quite significant....also remember that the 300 has the exact same motor but a different tune. Some people may argue they could flash the ECU so its the same power as the 350 and save even more money....not too sure if thats possible just yet though.

Ahhadanny

I have tried both 300 and 350. I really can't tell which one got extra 50 hp, specially in Sport mode. It's much easier to tell which one is AWD though...