5 Startling Sleepers to Choose From
Because there's nothing better than shooting past some guy in a sports car from the comfort of your Lexus.
LS600h L
Is there a more unassuming car than a big stately hybrid flagship luxury sedan? The LS600h L meets all of that criteria, and it couldn't be much more invisible to anyone looking for a racing opponent. But this luxurious sedan packs a 438 hp punch from its 5.0 liter V8 and two electric motors, along with an all-wheel-drive layout. So despite a rather hefty curb weight, the big hybrid runs 0-60 in only 5.3 seconds, shooting through the quarter mile in 13.6.
SC 430
The Lexus SC was built more as a comfortable grand tourer than a drag racer, but that doesn't mean this two-door convertible was slow. Unfortunately, the second generation SC, the SC 430, featured styling that didn't exactly ooze sportiness like its predecessor did. But the SC 430 did have a 300 horsepower, 4.3 liter V8 under the hood. And that was good enough to propel it to 60 miles per hour in only 5.8 seconds. Keep going, and the SC 430 will complete the quarter mile in 14.2 seconds.
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LS 460 Sport
The "Sport" in LS 460 Sport stood for a whole lot. When you checked that box, what you got was a dynamic, driver-focused version of the LS. This was made possible by a quicker-shifting eight-speed gearbox, bigger brakes, tighter steering, adjustable air suspension, and bigger wheels and tires. With a 4.6 liter V6 producing 380 hp and 367 lb-ft of torque, the hot LS was capable of running 0-60 in just 5.9 seconds and completing the quarter-mile in 14.2 seconds.
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IS 350 (2nd Gen)
Everybody knows that the IS-F is fast, but what most don't realize is that the 2nd generation IS 350 is no slouch itself. The cheaper, more subtle IS looks a lot like the base model, which is slow. But it uses a 3.5 liter V6 packing 306 horsepower to propel a reasonable 3,500 pounds, and the results are pretty impressive. 0-60 happens in 4.8 seconds, and the quarter-mile is eclipsed in 13.3 seconds.
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GS 460 (3rd Gen)
The 3rd generation GS 460 was and still is a bit of an under-the-radar entry as a luxury midsize sedan. And while Lexus has sharpened up the looks of the current GS, older ones are quite innocuous. But with a 4.6 liter V8 under the hood producing 342 horsepower, performance was quite good for an almost 4,000-pound sedan. 0-60 took only 5.3 seconds, and the 3rd gen GS will do the quarter mile in 13.8 seconds.
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