Hey CL fam, this post is overdue.

Around this time last year, my 14' 350 F Sport RWD was hit while parked and totaled (neighborhood drunk driver). Though sad at first (and still sad till this day!), I had started wanting a 450h leading up to that point as I think the thrill of owning a 350 began to wear off after nearly 3 years of ownership (i.e mpg, lack of torque in daily driving, etc. staggered tires are cool, until you have to pay the price, lol) I knew pretty much immediately after it was totaled that I would be moving into a 450h. After a 3 month search, the one for me popped up, Flaxen on Liquid Silver, just wish it had PCS (would have came in handy already ), LKA, and HUD.

I'm going to keep this short, lol. I've had the 450h for 10 months now, I like it, it's a very refined car, a better daily drive than the 350 in my opinion. It solved all my gripes about the 350. It has low end torque (the same torque curve as an E39 M5 up until 4500~ rpms), MPG is great, ride quality is great with the 18's compared to 19's, don't have to stop for fuel before 300 miles - getting 420+ miles per tank now, and overall just enjoying all the benefits Hybrid offers. EV mode is fantastic.

But my God do I miss the 350. The F Sport was, through and through, a sports sedan. I miss my 245/285 staggered setup and the handling it had; I miss the sound of revving out the 2GR, I miss everything about it. The 450h, on the other hand, has zero emotion. It’s more mature, definitely a better daily driver, but it has zero emotion. Did I know this going in? Yes lol. The RWD F Sport always felt like a baby GSF to me, and I’m really glad I got to experience it.

That's all from me. Who's owned or driven both? Same thoughts?


450h.

Swapped the wood steering wheel for a leather one.

Had to take a pic next to the E39.

My Old F Sport.

The last time I saw it 💔

When I was hunting for our GS450h, I also looked at the LS500h and took a GSF out for a drive. The LS500h was ruled out pretty quickly it’s simply too long for our garage, and getting it up and down a tight spiral car park every day would be a headache.

The GSF was a blast, but not a realistic daily for me. I’d be pouring alot of petrol ($2.20 AUD per litre or approx $6.00 USD per gallon) into it every week, and the gearing is so long (and a little slow) that you can’t really enjoy the engine at legal speeds. The V8 makes its best torque high in the revs, so it needs to be worked, and by the time you’re in 2nd/3rd gear you’re already deep into lose your licence go to jail territory. It’s a road registered car, but it feels like it was set up with track use in mind.

The GS450h, with its traction battery mounted at the rear, sits very close to a 50/50 weight balance. It handles beautifully through twisty roads when you’re in the mood for a spirited run, but it’s not a quarter-mile hero.

I’m lucky to have a couple of weekend toys in the garage already, so the GS450h fits the daily role perfectly for us.

@gripau1 Agreed on all points, I test drove a GSF two years ago. I think the same applies to the F Sport, just to a lesser degree. There were several times I was at lose-my-license speeds while owning it.

GS450h is definitely a perfect daily with a weekend toy to match. It just doesn't have that "on rails" feeling that the F Sport did IMO.

Nice review. Yet there is a GS450 F Sport package also correct? That would have the handling of the GS350 F Sport.

Thanks JG. And yes F Sport was available on the 450 from 2015 and up, extremely rare though. I think the biggest difference would be the extra 400 pounds and still the ECVT instead of the automatic.

The ECVT is a smooth but very boring trans.