Combining an exciting design and exhilarating performance, the all-new Lexus LC luxury coupe gives sports car fans new reasons to fall in love with the brand.
Lexus hints that this is just the tip of the iceberg as to the future of the Lexus brand, and that this all-new premium 2+2 coupe will set the bar high for its competitors.
What is it?
The LC series is the first Lexus based on an all-new rear-wheel-drive platform known as GA-L. This platform is part of a new global architecture for its luxury vehicles.
Key to this platform is a low centre of gravity and centralized positioning of components resulting in an even more dynamic driving experience. Lexus focused on keeping the LC’s occupants low, the wheels as far out at the corners as possible, and the engine behind the front axle’s centreline.
The LC’s bodywork combines exotic materials such as aluminium, carbon fibre, and high-tensile steel to reduce weight and lower the centre of gravity. In fact, the LC has the highest torsional stiffness amongst all Lexus vehicles.
For the LC500, strategic use of high-strength steel results in a car that resists twisting forces even better than that of the exotic, carbon fibre-intensive LFA supercar.
The LC will be offered as two models, the LC500, and the LC500h hybrid, both heavily inspired by the LF-LC concept car. Despite being heavily enhanced by a multitude of materials, the LC’s designers have managed to achieve both a look that combines avant-garde styling and the proportions of a dynamic looking coupe.
The end result is a shape that is athletic, but also seductive and glamorous.
Pick your pleasure
What Lexus designers promise in style is also delivered in performance. Lexus says that the vehicle represents a new relationship between the design and engineering teams and the end result was not just a new car, but also a new way to design and build their luxury models.
Powering the LC500 is the latest iteration of the high revving Lexus 5.0L V8 that graces both the RC F and the GS F. With 471 hp and a 10-speed direct shift auto transmission, the LC500 promises an exhilarating driving experience to match that which is hinted by its sharply angled sheet metal and massively meshed grille.
The 10-speed adaptive automatic transmission, the first in a luxury car, selects the optimum gear according to the computer’s estimation of the driver’s behaviour based on vehicle speed, throttle pedal application, and even past driving history. Lexus says that this new transmission is smaller and lighter than some current 8-speed transmissions and has shift times that rival those of a dual-clutch transmission. The LC500’s 0 to 96 km/hr (60 mph) time is expected to be less than 4.5 seconds.
Also available with hybrid power
The LC500h hybrid introduces an all-new Lexus multi-stage hybrid powertrain system that has specifically been designed for high-performance vehicles. Delivering 354 hp, the system is built around the latest lithium-ion hybrid battery technology coupled with a 3.5L V6 engine and a continuously variable transmission. This CVT is further mated to a four-speed automatic gearbox to closely align engine RPMs with throttle inputs.
This novel setup eliminates the elastic band feeling that most CVTs are associated with, delivering a surprisingly sharp connection between the throttle pedal and vehicle response.
Since sound contributes such a big part to the driving experience, Lexus engineers have gone to great lengths to carefully tune everything from the air intake to the final exhaust, creating a “concert hall
