I see more BMW loaner/courtesy cars in my neighborhood than Lexus.

If that means anything.

 

OP Checkout Bimmerfest and Audiforums for the Car that you consider equivalent to a GS. Sort the view by view count. nearly all the top ones for audi and bmw are regarding known issues and help on fixes. on this site... mostly people just sharing pics of their cars.

 

I have had a 700. 500 and most recently a 335 convertible. Terrible reliability on all 3. The 335 left me stranded between the run flats blowing out on the DC beltway (and having to be towed!) to the fuel pump, which was replaced 3X in 3 years. Just terrible!

Had had 6 Lexus and never had all the problems combined that I had with the 4335 alone!

Have a 2012 GS350 fully loaded and my wife thaw the CT200. Had each for two years and zero problems!

 

Nothing wrong with my BMW as long as you know what you're doing and don't wait til stuff blows up. lol

 

I'm glad you clarified that. That one issue struck me a curious when the dealer guy insisted "no difference" between the models. I would think Lexus engineers would give you more in Sport + for drivetrain and chassis. After all, its just software (no big hardware cost) and if the BMW 5 was their target car, then this feature is a must have, IMHO.
Now that you've clarified it, its removed one more hurdle from me going with Lexus.
I'm just on the fence about a '14 or just wait for a '15. Lexus is so silent about changes, if any, on the new model. Guess I may wait and see.
THANKS for your info!

 

The RWD also has bigger brakes up front and staggered wheels...

 

You'll miss the power, even if you don't always use it. I cross-shopped both before settling for the GS. Part of the reason was familiarity with the brand, my previous vehicle was an IS. The other was how the cars drove. I felt the GS handled better and drove more like it's smaller sibling (IS) than the larger car than it is, while the BMW drives like the hefty car it is, feeling more like a 7 series than a 3 series. Which was eye opening for me since this is an area where BMW has historically been untouchable in years past. I also preferred the interior of the GS

 

If you want the best handling GS possible, be sure to specify the DRS (rear steering ) option.

DRS in action :

 

Natnut is right about that.

On that note does anybody know why there are no DRS equipped cars sent to California? Meanwhile if you search inventory for a state like Texas, DRS is practically standard equipment?!?!

 

I think it has to do with Lexus backwards idea of allocation and who wants what. I'd love to have gotten that as an option out here. Not to mention DRCC and LKA, but I think the latter just aren't common in general.

 

I had three BMW's over 14 years before buying my '13 GS F. They were all 3 series.

I loved the performance - especially the '95 M3 I had - and they were all great drivers cars. They never stranded me, but I saw the quality drop from my '95 M3 to '01 330i to '06 330i. The '06 had stuff like go wrong like: peeling of the steering wheel, oil leaks at 50K miles (I treated it much better than the '95), the rubber seal at the top of the windshield flaked off (and to fix you have to replace the entire windshield), weird spotting on the crome trims around windows I could never get off, overflow tank needing to be replaced at 60K miles.... and this was on top of paying $3K for tires and brakes every two years just doing normal driving in traffic.

While the Lexus is a fast car, and the GS is as close as Lexus has ever gotten to BMW chassis wise, it's not the pure experience of BMW. However, it's close, and the build quality (17K miles and NO RATTLES AT ALL!), feel of the car (comfort but dial it up on command) and reliability (basing this mostly on my wifes RX which has 100K miles and zero issues) are far superior.

I will add I never had any issues with BMW service at dealership, but the same is true for Lexus. I had a very good indy BMW shop that always did me right too. The funny thing about repair shops (in the south SF Bay at least) is there are several really good BMW/German make indy shops but NONE for Lexus. Kinda says it all doesn't it?

 

BMWs are getting softened up and more bloated, hence why 3 series and 5 series lost to IS and GS in recent tests

 

It is not the same between FSport and Luxury. The computer is much more aggressive on the FSport versions of the car; I would have purchased the hybrid if it were not! Though I hear in 2015 the hybrid versions do get the FSport package.

Start watching at 9m 30s for the details.

 

I agree with that. And a comparable 535 is a solid $10,000 more than. GS350.

 

Based on my test drives, I'd agree in the sense where "close" meaning the GS has actually surpassed the 5 series chassis, echoing what I've been hearing in recent reviews. The engine though is a huge deficit for the GS. Really doesn't do the rest of the car justice.