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Just watched a new review of the LS500 from Consumer Reports and thought I'd share. Obviously many who have made the leap to the LS500 will not agree with the reviewers, but most of the things these reviewers bring up have been discussed on this forum.
Just another data point for those considering an LS500...
For the specific discussion of the LS500, skip to the 4:40 point of the review. A comparison to the Genesis G90 starts at the 9:05 mark.
To me the real test drive is always the ride home in my LS after I get out of the other car. My 2007 felt better to me mainly because I like a linear throttle which the LS500 didn't have. I also don't like a track pad. I have to go into the screen on my wife's car every time for the seat heaters and heated steering wheel and I find that to be an unnecessary chore. The LS500 is a pretty cool car but not cool enough for me to get past the shortcomings mentioned.
I finally had a chance to drive one, and it is a disaster. They are spot on with their criticism. Worst in class. Even the CT6 is better.
Wow, from 00:04'40" all three reviewers totally stabbed the LS500 to death.
They said unlike the four: S Class, 7 Series, A8 & G90 - the LS500 is cramped inside, especially headroom
All three reviewers also criticized the touchpad overshooting, and having to go through the touch controls to adjust the seats.
All three criticized the lack of linear power delivery and refinement of the V6; the V6 could be smoother if it was a smaller capacity like 3.0L, but then it would have less output.
They then criticized the LS500 for being 300 lbs heavier than the next heaviest competitor, citing that this could be one reason why there is less acceleration than the other four full size luxury cars.
They said that at a time when competitors were becoming lighter, the LS500 was becoming heavier.
Originally Posted by john341
What does "Too Wide, too Long to be nimble" even mean. BS review.
The more concentrated the mass towards the Center of Yaw, the more agile and more quickly it changes direction.
For example, if an ice skater wants to spin slowly, then they spread their arms apart; but if an ice skater wants to spin quickly, they bring their arms together.
The same with cars. For a car to be agile, and quickly change directions after steering input, the car must beboth short and narrow.
If you ever get a chance to drive a Lexus IS back to back with a GS or LS, you will notice that the IS is very agile - after steering input, it changes its direction very quickly.
Because the IS is so light, it also has more terminal grip than both GS and LS too.
We are all humans.
We all make mistakes now and then.
It is only a matter of apologizing, fixing the mistake, and moving on.
Sure it is a costly mistake in years, but Toyota Motor Corporation is the richest auto manufacturer in the world with net equity/net wealth of some US$171 billion dollar, and even Daimler AG by comparison has a net wealth of only some US$81 billion dollars.
Last week, Elon Musk made a mistake calling someone a pedo.
Elon has both deleted the post, apologized and moved on.
The worst thing anyone could do having made a mistake is to turn a blind eye, and sweep it under the carpet...
.
I finally had a chance to drive one, and it is a disaster. They are spot on with their criticism. Worst in class. Even the CT6 is better.
As usual, I think you're being way over dramatic. The car is quite different than the previous versions of the LS, but to say its a "disaster" is dramatic.
Like I said in another thread here on ClubLexus, let these people talk trash about the new 5LS all they want. Perhaps that will only limit the number of 5LS's out on the street, which will only make my 5LS more distinctive and rarer on the road. In any case, both my wife and I are so happy about our upgrade from an 07 LS460 to this new LS 500. There are even more things about the 5LS for us to enjoy for years to come.
That is disappointing, since CR has so much influence with car buyers. I agree with the complaints about the seat menu, the rear headroom, and maybe the overall length. But I disagree with all the criticism of the V6--I thought it drove great!
I agree with their overall opinion. Its just a very different car, if you review it in a vacuum you see that its a great car, sporty yet still rides well, it has a peppy engine, beautiful interior, athletic looks, etc. Its the comparison to the old car that gets it because its just so different. Its like they said "Its just not the car I remember"...and it totally isn't. Its stiffer, firmer, smaller inside yet larger outside, complex when the LS was always simple...its just an entirely different car.
Its unusual for a car company to take a product that is so established in the marketplace as filling one niche and then all of a sudden make it completely different and make it appeal to a different niche. Lexus is doing this to many of its models and its making these sorts of reviews common. Imagine if Mercedes all of a sudden decided they were going to sell the CLS as the S Class... or Audi said the new A7 was going to be the next A8. Thats essentially what Lexus has done. When you're somebody like me that loved the LS for what it always was, the new one just doesn't appeal at all.
Yeah, they lambasted the car, but their issues were spot-on with my reasons for switching to the V6 Mercedes S-class:
1. Very difficult touch pad
2. My wife said she felt cramped (could just be the seats)
3. Engine seemed lame
4. Harsh ride on rough roads
5. Smaller trunk even though the car is bigger
I thought the trunk was reasonably long, adequately wide, but now very shallow.
Some internet stats said that the LS500's trunk was metric 440 L, compared to 530 L in a Maserati Quattroporte, and 520 L in S Class and Camry.
In metric, the IS has a 480 L trunk, while GS is 520 L.
For some reason, there was no space under the trunk for a spare tire, hence run-flats - or was I looking at the hybrid?
Its unusual for a car company to take a product that is so established in the marketplace as filling one niche and then all of a sudden make it completely different and make it appeal to a different niche. Lexus is doing this to many of its models and its making these sorts of reviews common. Imagine if Mercedes all of a sudden decided they were going to sell the CLS as the S Class... or Audi said the new A7 was going to be the next A8. Thats essentially what Lexus has done. When you're somebody like me that loved the LS for what it always was, the new one just doesn't appeal at all.
Yes, it is unusual to take an established and successful product, and change it.
If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
In engineering, normally a product is designed to fit consumer/human tastes etc.
With the 5LS, it is like the consumer must adapt their tastes to fit into the 5LS.
Maybe Lexus internal polling suggested that their buyers were after sporty niche tastes?
If polling suggests, then "No more boring cars" is fine.
However, even if Lexus does unnecessarily change an established, popular & successful product in the LS line.
A step below the LFA and the LC Coupe, even if Lexus chooses to use hot selling RX/ES to finance so that they can deliberately & unprofitably low volume niche the 5LS to be "halo" sports sedan product with a lower center of gravity and a front mid-engine for a slightly/moderately shorter cabin, I believe the sports niche 5LS would still sell in very decent numbers if it weren't for the controversial six sided window design and the rear quarter styling - which many posters have commented on.
I recall one poster even went to all the trouble to Photoshop an Infiniti Q70 alongside the 5LS for comparison.
I have NEVER come across anyone who described the LC Coupe or the forthcoming 7ES - as being Infiniti-like.
LC & 7ES are much better styled than 5LS IMO.
5LS leg room is still pretty decent, and a good 4 to 5" longer than 4GS.
However, it is a bit narrower at the back, and certainly lower in the cabin, and in the trunk - compared to typical full size sedans.
5LS should have looked more sexy like its prototype.
5LS is very similar to the prototype and sexy 7ES in overall design.
However, the 5LS "details" aren't as sweet as the LF-FC prototype, nor the 7ES.
All cars basically look the same, and are designed with similar principles, however it is the details in the styling that set them apart.
The sketch below is very sexy.
The prototype is quite sexy too.
This is nice...
My view? They really lost it here.
Where did the 5LS's six sided windows come from?
The Avalon & G80 have six sided windows, but they look nice.
Lexus forensic internal polling will ascertain where 5LS went wrong...
The 5LS has made the fatal error of having the highest number of side window panes of any sedan in the world!
From my memory, most cars with six side windows do NOT additionally have the REAR VENT GLASSpane. Having six side windows AND the rear vent glass pane is simply too much, and too many.
The more I think about it, the more I realize that the 5LS has actually pioneered the world's first eight (8) side window design on a conventional twin row of seats sedan?
Below is 5LS, Maserati Quattroporte & Maybach with six side window designs.
5LS is a mess.
It just doesn't look simple, clean, smooth & slick.
Consumers shouldn't have to go to all the trouble of purchasing a dark colored 5LS, and install very dark tinted glass, to hide 5LS's unattractive lines - to make their 5LS's look good.
The new 2019 JDM Toyota Crown is a mess too.
Someone must tell Akio to stop using too many side glass panes. It may hurt to tell President Akio, but if we don't tell him - he will continue to produce more cars with too many side glass panes.
Furthermore.
The 4LS has conservative simple yet clean styling - which is timeless, and will take a while to age.
The rear face of the trunk is near vertical, but is slightly positively raked, with a smooth and slick look.
For many years, Audis have used the six side window design, and the Audis have always looked attractive.
The Avalon & G80 uses six side window design too, and both look attractive.
So what happened to 5LS?
Look hard - of the Audis, Avalon, G80 & 5LS - only the 5LS includes a fussy/complicated extra "rear vent glass"!
Some owners will try to mask unattractive 5LS styling by:
1) Using dark colors to hide unattractive lines.
2) Using dark window tinting on the side windows to try to mask the fussy/complicated extra rear vent glass - which only the 5LS has, and is NOT used in Audis/Avalons/G80.
Furthermore, somehow the 5LS's rear windscreen is heavily raked, making the trunk deck short.
Rather than accept that shortish trunk deck like the G80, Lexus tries to make the trunk deck longer by raking the rear face of the 5LS trunk is "negatively" raked inwards - so it doesn't look as smooth.
The curvature at the base of the six sided window, and the rear door vent window - which tries to follow the contours of the flared rear wheel arches - don't look particularly graceful either.
Overall, the sharper creases, with a lot more lines will age faster.
I know which I'd go for.
4LS is conservative, simple, smooth & slick; timeless in design.
The 5LS doesn't look too bad from the front quarter; it is the 5LS rear quarter that is most often complained about.
07-20-18, 02:17 PM
Consumer Reports: Talking Car Reviews for LS500
