Whew...after 2 weeks registered I can finally post! I just wanted to introduce myself and say hi. I currently DO NOT have a 450h...but I am debating between the 450h and the GS 350 so I hope my questions are tolerated ;-)
Am I incorrect in noticing there are only 50 or so 450H members on this forum?
airlaird

 

welcome to clublexus. i don't have exact count but 450h is definitely a smaller group here

if you can swing the money, 450h is definitely the way to go. same or better gas mileage and noticeably better performance. especially if you get 450h with apsss, that's one option to die for imho

 

hey, welcome to the forum, i just got my 450H and love it, im sure u wont be disapointed.

 

welcome to CL! as rominl mentioned, get the 450h if you can.

 

Thanks guys...well said. I have a feeling the "h" is the way to go. I'm just hoping for a tiny bit more h.p. to come out in the 450H...maybe in 2011? Heck as we all know..new car models come in every 7-8 months...so I can wait. I'm glad to be here!!
airlaird
Dallas, Texas

 

Did you drive the car? Unless you're used to 500 hp sports cars, it's really hard to imagine anyone wanting more power out of the 450h.

 

Well..no I have not...so your'e right...it certainly not a fair assessment. I was just wanting a vehicle in the 4's...like the ISF.. only that seats 4.
airlaird

 

you want a car that can do 0-60 in the 4 sec range? you are looking at the wrong car! if performance is what you want, you should be looking at the IS-F or perhaps mercedes with AMG or bmw with M. the fastest the GS450h can do is 0-60 in 5.2 sec.

 

indeed, the 450h is powerful and fast but in order to get into that 4s league, it will take a bigger step

 

airlaird, good luck in your search. The GS is great. I had tons of fun driving them at the Lexus events. They certainly don't lack for power.

 

What may people fail to understand is that 0-60 mph time is not the most important engine characteristic. It's like the people who buy cars based on horse power instead of torque. What you would find if you actually drove the 450h is that the real life performance of this vehicle is unbelievable. I'm talking about its ability to overtake other vehicles. Lexus does not report 30-60 mph or 50-70 mph acceleration numbers, but I would bet these would blow all naturally-aspirated V8s and plenty of super / turbocharged vehicles as well.

It's like with the BMW 535i -- the car is a freaking turtle when it comes to real-life driving, taking inordinate amount of time to accelerate from 30 to 60 or 50 to 70. But most people who buy it only look at the 0-60 number or horsepower, and think it's just as fast as 550i.

Bottom line: do yourself a favor and drive the car before making any decisions.

 

All of your comments are true...I will certainly drive a 450h before any decision is made. I think I am hoping for a bit more of "rakish" or edgy line to the vehicle...perhaps a refresh than simply a new grill for 2010. I am certain they will certainly bump the h.p/torque up on the next gen. And..well..yes I think a bump in the power of the 450H will get it into the upper 4's. Time will tell..
airlaird

 

or that's more like the job of gsf

 

if you're lookin for a good 4 sec car, the F, AMG, M....those would all suffice. but i like the style of the 450h. its in between high performance of the F yet still proves to be ultra luxurious and environmentally friendly. its true that there arent too many 450h's on the road but that makes them all the more unique too!

 

You know, when I was buying my 2007 450h I am positive the 0-60 number that was quoted everywhere was 4.9 seconds, not the current 5.2 seconds. I don't know if that 4.9 number came from Lexus or from one of the auto magazines. Does anyone else remember the same?