Lexus LS460 - Very little Presence
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Hey Doug, lower your expectations, and your eyes. For now, the LS can be identified from the back by the exhaust. I have come to think of it as a not very good design with the chrome surround but it helps tell the LS from the others. Otherwise, like everyone else, I can't tell the difference in these designs until the distance is close enough to read the badges. S class and 7 owners don't have this problem. A8 can sometimes be a tough spot but it is just the size that stands out. L finesse is great at making size differences fade, if that is what you are looking for.
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I agree with the OP... The new LS looks too much like a Camry and VERY much like an ES350. One look at the interior and you know it isn't either one of those, but on the outside I too feel that it does need more presense.
Last edited by Ramon; Jan 6, 2007 at 02:33 PM.
IMO, the non-exotic car with the most road presense is the CLS...bar none. Regardless of which direction it comes from, what angle, either color...it catches and HOLDS my eye. It dominates the scene.
As for the LS460, I think it has road presense. I've seen several. I watch it until it goes out of view. I think I understand why I like it so much. One of my criteria for my personal car choice is sleekness. That's why I love coupes. The new LS is the sleekest luxo-barge I have ever seen. When someone puts some nice wheels on it, the presese will magnify. Big Benzo's and and 7 series come with big wheels stock. Lexus has those teeny wheels on the car. Just wait until you all see one with 20's. For me, I like it already...the presense is there.
As for the LS460, I think it has road presense. I've seen several. I watch it until it goes out of view. I think I understand why I like it so much. One of my criteria for my personal car choice is sleekness. That's why I love coupes. The new LS is the sleekest luxo-barge I have ever seen. When someone puts some nice wheels on it, the presese will magnify. Big Benzo's and and 7 series come with big wheels stock. Lexus has those teeny wheels on the car. Just wait until you all see one with 20's. For me, I like it already...the presense is there.
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LOL... coming from BMW fan, what can I say.
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I spent 3 weeks with my folks at Sarasota, FL. In that time, I came across 5 new LS460s. Here's the thing, each time I saw one, I barely recognised it as an LS460. I actually had to use my brain to figure out if I was looking at a Camry, ES350 or some other Lexus. The car has very little to zero presence.
When it first came out, I loved the design (minus the rear which I thought was too BMWish) and I constantly defended the design on other auto forums even as others bashed it. I felt that the car would look more commanding in person due to it's large size. However, that wasn't the case at all. For a top of the line luxury car, I barely noticed it and even had a hard time distinguising it (as a Lexus fan) from Toyotas!
On the other hand, I also saw a few Bentleys and a Mercedes CLS. BAM! My eyes were arrested to the cars and I had to fight to keep myself from staring. The same goes for the new Mercedes S550. I didn't like the new design initially but now I see how effective it is. Overall all, the Lexus probably still is the best car in it's class but it's design is way too bland.
When it first came out, I loved the design (minus the rear which I thought was too BMWish) and I constantly defended the design on other auto forums even as others bashed it. I felt that the car would look more commanding in person due to it's large size. However, that wasn't the case at all. For a top of the line luxury car, I barely noticed it and even had a hard time distinguising it (as a Lexus fan) from Toyotas!
On the other hand, I also saw a few Bentleys and a Mercedes CLS. BAM! My eyes were arrested to the cars and I had to fight to keep myself from staring. The same goes for the new Mercedes S550. I didn't like the new design initially but now I see how effective it is. Overall all, the Lexus probably still is the best car in it's class but it's design is way too bland.
When I saw commercial for it, I thought it was Yaris Sedan!!!!!!!!!
:-)
This is just like the comparison between the so called bland Acura RL and Honda Accord that people make. Sure, there are a lot of similarities as well as tons of differences. Some people can quickly make them out while others can't. I really don't mind that cars of the same manufacturer look a little similar stock. It is kind of a brand identity too me. Either way, I myself sometimes get mixed up between the two. I don't even have to by driving. My work is next to Lexus and often I'm just walking by their holding lot and I have to do a double take to confirm if I'm looking at an ES350 or LS460. First glance they can be confused, but by the second glance it usually is clear.
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Well, seeing that I'm a Club Lexus member, spotting a Lexus is like second nature to me. My problem was that almost every time, I had to take a few seconds to recognise and confirm that the car that I was looking at was a Lexus LS460 and not some other Toyota/Lexus.
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You could say he's right. I have the same problem telling the Lexus models apart. Funny thing is several years ago when bimmer was accused of having small, medium, and large instead of 3, 5, and 7, I didn't have as much trouble telling their models apart as I do with the Lexus models now. Try not to read more into it than that. A great rush to defend all things Lexus or Bimmer or conversely to condemn all things Lexus or Bimmer shouldn't hijack a thread that is simply about road presence of the new LS.
well, what can i say, if someone is not really into cars and good in observations, i am not surprised they can't tell the difference (not that i think it's a problem). to me, i have no problem seeing difference between the cars. i would have to be blind to mix up the es350 and the ls460. and even the new accord and the RL i have no problem distinguishing them from each other.
and go deeper, i don't see the problem too. they are under the same family, so have some similarities is perfectly fine. like andrew said, my wife can never tell the difference between the c, e, and s class, and that's after me doing whatever i can to teach her the difference.
in my eyes (no offending anyone), people who can't tell the difference, that means they don't really care about cars and cars are just transportations to them. people who care about cars, they can tell. just like me, i can never tell a damn difference between different lv bags
and go deeper, i don't see the problem too. they are under the same family, so have some similarities is perfectly fine. like andrew said, my wife can never tell the difference between the c, e, and s class, and that's after me doing whatever i can to teach her the difference.
in my eyes (no offending anyone), people who can't tell the difference, that means they don't really care about cars and cars are just transportations to them. people who care about cars, they can tell. just like me, i can never tell a damn difference between different lv bags
I like cars in general. But don't ask me to tell you what model a sedan is without looking at the badging with a very few exceptions. Sedans just don't get my attention no matter who made them.
I think the LS460 is styled for the intended audience. Very conservative. Very low key. It will take someone with a penchant for mods to make the LS460 stand out. Otherwise, it blends into the automotive scene like so many other sedans. And I think that's the target market. Not the big bling crowd. They'll come later after first and second year depreciation sets in.
I think the LS460 is styled for the intended audience. Very conservative. Very low key. It will take someone with a penchant for mods to make the LS460 stand out. Otherwise, it blends into the automotive scene like so many other sedans. And I think that's the target market. Not the big bling crowd. They'll come later after first and second year depreciation sets in.
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This is just like the comparison between the so called bland Acura RL and Honda Accord that people make. Sure, there are a lot of similarities as well as tons of differences. Some people can quickly make them out while others can't. I really don't mind that cars of the same manufacturer look a little similar stock. It is kind of a brand identity too me. Either way, I myself sometimes get mixed up between the two. I don't even have to by driving. My work is next to Lexus and often I'm just walking by their holding lot and I have to do a double take to confirm if I'm looking at an ES350 or LS460. First glance they can be confused, but by the second glance it usually is clear.
I have personally known a few people who can't distinguish among C-class, E-class & S-class(W220) Mercedes until they get very close, close enough to read the model designation batch, but I guess it doesn't matter if it's a Benz 
A C-class Benz is still a Benz right ? 
I personally have zero problem distinguishing the GS from the ES & LS even from a far distance. The side profile of the GS is very distinguish, but yes, I wish they've made the LS nose more aggressive to distinguish it more from the bland ES nose. It's not bad looking at all, it just doesn't shout look-at-me .
A C-class Benz is still a Benz right ? I personally have zero problem distinguishing the GS from the ES & LS even from a far distance. The side profile of the GS is very distinguish, but yes, I wish they've made the LS nose more aggressive to distinguish it more from the bland ES nose. It's not bad looking at all, it just doesn't shout look-at-me .
LOL, a little, b/c the previous LS cars were very non-styled and "bland" and this new one is clearly, the most styled of any LS and to some, it is still "boring".
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I actually like under-stated and subtle styling. I think the LS does that very well. It seems to be "flashy" designs age much too quickly, it's the subtle, graceful, elegant designs that stand the test of time. To me that's presence.
One man's definision of bland is different from another. Same as one man's definision of road presence is different from another. There are those that think the Accord and RL look the same, and those that also think the ES350 and LS460 look the same. I definitely think the LS460 has more road presence (By my definision) than the RL, but the comparison to their younger sibling brother's are the same. What I'm saying is if one can understand why people think the RL looks similar to the Accord, one can easily understand why people think the LS460 looks similar to the ES350.
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One man's definision of bland is different from another. Same as one man's definision of road presence is different from another. There are those that think the Accord and RL look the same, and those that also think the ES350 and LS460 look the same. I definitely think the LS460 has more road presence (By my definision) than the RL, but the comparison to their younger sibling brother's are the same. What I'm saying is if one can understand why people think the RL looks similar to the Accord, one can easily understand why people think the LS460 looks similar to the ES350.
Your Logic is saying;
RL looks like Accord
Then it should be
LS looks like Camry (though RL And LS are not in the same class, Accord and Camry are)
Saying;
LS looks like an ES
RL looks like an Accord
Is not an apples to apples comparison b/c both are Lexus while RL looking like an Accord is Acura and Honda.
LS and ES should share similar styling cues.
Now true the RL is a Honda Legend everywhere but here, so that is why it "may" look like the Honda Accord so much (besides being on the same platform).
There are people who think the LS looks like the Camry anyway
Since you brought it up though we can say LS looks like ES which looks like Camry