Lexus Malaysia has just unleashed their flagship model upon us last night, which showcased their new LS Luxury sedan; hailed by them as the ultimate in refinement and luxury for a Japanese saloon, for a market that’s been usually dominated by European marques.
First introduced in 2006, the new LS now comes fully packed with creature comforts and a whole load of hand-crafted sophistication that now literally sets the this brand apart from the rest with its exclusivity.
Attention to detail are aplenty that will require you to take a close-up on the items that may not find its way into your line of sight from a distance till you lean forward, turn you head or even twist around. But rest assured they’re there alright.
Now sporting the Lexus signature spindle grille, the LS comes to us entirely different from its predecessor that seems to leak out a sportier presence.
Unveiled was the LS 460 L which has a 4.6L V8 for a heart that’s capable of pumping out 380bhp at 6,400rpm and 493Nmm of torque at 4,100rpm. Added to engine are electric motor-driven Dual Variable Valve Timing with intelligence and Electronically (VVT-iE) controlled intake cams, which helps the engine produce its high output performance and provide for exceptional engine-start-up operation.
There’s a dual-fuel injection system (both port and direct) that helps optimize efficiency under all conditions, where the direct injectors help to provide cylinder cooling to allow for a high compression ratio translating into a cleaner and more efficient combustion.
The interior of the LS has a button for almost everything, except for your potty needs of course, but each button is comprehensive and easy to understand, furthermore it seems to mesmerize you – putting it simply, each button seems to be asking to be pressed.
While there’s plenty of buttons to be had up front, the case would be the same at the rear, only they’re all situated on the arm rest you’ve got climate controls, audio visual controls, two headphone jacks, a remote control (inside the arm rest) and our favourite – lazy-chair controls.
All seats feature cooling ducts that channel air into the seats from the air-conditioning unit, through the perforated leather back rests and cushions – an added ability on top of multi-zone climate controls.
Much like the front seat’s ability to recline, so do the rears have such an ability. However, we’d predict that the rear left seat would be the most highly sought after, since it has the ability to turn itself into a lazy chair – foot rest and all, as you ‘lazily’ watch your favourite Blu-ray Disc on the screen ahead of you with the acoustics nicely handled by the mark Levinson Reference speakers that can be found directly above your head for all 4, rather than merely have the speakers firing from the sides of the doors. And they do go unnoticed till you start playing your favourite entertainment or suddenly have some strange reason to look directly up into the roof above you.
If you do ask any high-ranking Japanese what they’ve love to do during their free time, it’d be golf, but with all that rear seat electronically adjustable modes being made available, it seems there may not be enough room to fit anything else inside after a way has been found to cram in 2 golf bags. What the boot has in width, it lacks in depth – all for the sake of rear cabin spaciousness.
However, if the rear seat doesn’t happen to be your preference and would rather take on the role of a chauffeur, then 5 questions will always be posed to you when you take the driver’s seat – ECO, NORMAL, COMFORT, SPORT S or SPORT S+.
Upon your decision, these modes will work with the Frequency Adaptive Damping (FAD) shock absorbers as well as the Adaptive Variable Suspension (AVS) air suspension system to control pitch and bound/rebound rates for a flatter, road hugging ride or perhaps for a more supple ride at a simply turn of a knob and you can see all that information on an ultra-wide 12.3” LCD multi-display screen, let alone control the options found on it via the second generation of Lexus’ award winning Remote Touch Interface (RTI).
The new Lexus LS is now available in four different models. The LS 460 which is priced at RM788,000, the LS 460 F SPORT is priced at RM818,000, the long wheel base LS 460 L which is priced at RM878,000, and the top of the line LS 600h L which is priced at RM1,068,000.
http://youtu.be/nSRA8kVh9SI
