- 2015 Lexus GS 350
- Interior / Exterior »
Mixing a conservative roofline to the new Lexus ‘spindle’ grille, and mating it with racy, sculpted, quite organic sheetmetal along the sides, the GS has a look that makes it instantly recognizable. Of all the GS sedans we’ve seen flow out of Lexus’ studios, this one’s the most upright. The side glass and the cut of the D-pillar echoes strongly of the 2002-2010 BMW 7-Series, where the GS’ entire history put low, sleek lines higher on the honey-do list.
Front-end details are striking, although the tucked-away foglamps and LED eyeliner for the headlamps add up to a bit too much complexity in the F Sport models. At first glance challenging and bristling with detail and surface excitement, the GS 350 settles down quickly and comfortably into your brain.
The cabin does something similar, even as it executes a 180-degree turn from the softly rounded, smoothly deployed ghost of Lexus past. There’s a spartan vibe underneath that emanates from the horizontally themed dash, something akin to a Nakamichi sound system, all work while it plays, while cool LED ambient lighting glows around the perimeter and a high-resolution display sucks in all the attention, away from beautiful, big gauges.
Materials are clearly a step ahead in many of the builds of the GS, compared to German luxury benchmarks. Padded leather panels in rich, deep hues keep the subtext alive: we’re looking at something that’s more live-performance studio than traditional Lexus library. Real wood trim softens the cabin up well, while F Sport cars wear metallic-printed plastic that sounds less appealing than it looks.
- Performance »
With the redesign the lineup received two years ago, the GS got a new eight-speed automatic transmission but lost the available V-8. Yet countering that, the GS has become just a little more athletic in driving feel — especially if you focus in on all that you get on the F Sport model.
All versions of the GS now sport electric power steering and an independent, multi-link suspension for the front and rear. Thanks to some impressive tuning, a lighter-weight suspension, and a stiffer body, the GS extracts a lot of performance from its standard 17-inch, 50-series tires. We’ll also give some kudos to relatively well-executed power steering that keeps the base car pleasant, nimble, and communicative, while offering a more composed ride than either the previous GS or most current rivals.
The all-wheel-drive system, for the 40 percent who have to have it, varies its torque from a 50:50 split to 30:70 as needed.
On Luxury models, you add an adaptive suspension, a pricey option for subtle differences in ride and handling, we think. It’s the more progressive steps forward with the adaptive suspension and active steering, combined into the F Sport package, that set a new benchmark for the brand. While rivals from Germany struggle in their own ways to elevate electronic driving controls to their high standards of driving feel, the F Sport delivers a driving experience that doesn’t at all feel remote or ‘digital.’
In all, the F Sport adds stiffer springs, roll bars and bushings; adaptive shocks; variable-ratio steering; and bigger front brakes. Active rear steering is available, and it can dial in up to 2.0 degrees of steering angle at the rear wheels opposing the fronts, to slice off apexes more neatly, or steer in tandem with the front wheels at high speeds for better stability. Managing it all atop 19-inch wheels and tires, Lexus finally has drilled one home. It’s dialed up instantaneous steering response and very tightly damped ride control, with very low tolerance for potholes and bad pavement junctions the price paid for its crisp handling.
The standard 3.5-liter V-6 on GS 350 models is tuned to 306 horsepower, and it’s a fully modern engine, with direct injection, four valves per cylinder and four cams, plus variable valve timing. This engine is definitely stronger on torque from about 3000 rpm and above, where there’s also an aural boost with a muffler and sound generator that pipe the magic right into the GS’ cockpit — pretty much the opposite of Lexus tradition and its super-quiet interiors on other models.
The eight-speed automatic transmission that arrived last year at last made this model fully competitive on the numbers; but it’s the throttle-blipping, quicker shifting, and Eco and Sport shifting modes — plus a Sport + mode on top versions — that makes the GS a sportier character.
All told, sending power to the rear wheels on the basic GS 350, Lexus quotes a 0-60 mph time of 5.7 seconds, or a few tenths slower with optional all-wheel drive. Top speed’s set at 142 mph for RWD models.
And there is one very different other choice in the GS model line; that’s the GS 450h hybrid, which pairs a special Atkinson-cycle version of the V-6 with a 147-kilowatt motor and 30-kilowatt nickel metal hydride battery pack–altogether making 338 horsepower. We’ve found that while this hybrid delivers strong acceleration, as well as comfortable, quiet low-speed all-electric operation, its driving experience feels more detached.
There’s a wide gap in ride and handling, too. Lexus has opted to make its semi-active suspension standard on the hybrid, along with electric power steering and a drive-mode selector that programs the electronic continuously variable transmission (ECVT) to behave in eco, sport, sport-plus, and EV modes, as well as in normal mode. It now has eight pre-programmed steps. The different driving styles adapt well enough to the GS 450h’s demeanor, though it’s still saddled with the lower end of the GS’ performance abilities–the smaller sizes of tires, lower rolling resistance for better fuel economy, and a lighter touch to its steering all remove the feedback that’s been carefully dialed into the sporty versions of the gas-powered GS 350. The brakes are the usual hybrid sore point, with lots of regenerative stiffness and little real braking sensation. This is the GS to drive if you’re strictly concerned with a planet-friendly statement.
The 2015 Lexus GS 350 and GS 450h hybrid continue to take on a set of (mostly) German rivals that include the Mercedes-Benz E Class, BMW 5-Series, Audi A6, and Cadillac CTS yet again. The new Acura RLX Sport Hybrid SH-AWD also serves as a head-to-head rival with the GS 450h.
With the ‘spindle’ grille that’s now been introduced for the entire GS lineup, plus a boomeranged frame for the grille, the GS asserts its identity among sport sedans in a way that’s refreshing for the market, and for Lexus. We like the voluptuous, organic side sheetmetal matched with the more calculated roof profile, and the way that it pairs with the Nakamichi-minimalist interior fitted inside, upholstered with lots of leather and LED lighting. As for the GS 450h hybrid, it gets the usual blue hybrid badges, a choice of unvarnished bamboo, and hybrid-specific information screens.
The GS 350 models, with their 3.5-liter V-6 now rated at 306 horsepower and paired with an eight-speed automatic, are surprisingly satisfying in a traditional sport-sedan sense. With rear-wheel drive, as well as shift paddles and sport modes, the GS doesn’t feel completely out of its element on the track; and although there’s no V-8 anymore, 0-60 mph times are around 5.7 seconds. All-wheel-drive models carry over the six-speed automatic that’s been around since the last generation. Steering is actually quite good in the GS 350 (there’s an effective active-steering system available, too), and in what seems to us to be in complete opposition to what Lexus has always stood for, engine sounds are piped into the cabin.
The GS 450h hybrid is a different animal. It blends V-6 and electric power, sending it to the rear wheels, for some impressive mileage numbers, of 29/34 mpg and 31 mpg combined compares to the GS 350′s 19/28 mpg; today’s hybrid thus puts more distance between itself than did the previous hybrid, an improvement of about 35 percent, according to Lexus. We’ve noted that while fuel economy is better for this model, and it’s ultimately quicker (5.5 seconds to 60 mph), with more of an ability to run in electric-only mode, the driving experience is a little less direct for this model.
In comfort and spaciousness, the Lexus GS feels warm and inviting. As you’d probably expect, you’ll find 10-way power seats, other than optional 18-way power front seats with heating and ventilation and semi-aniline leather in the loveliest of shades. But what makes the GS a little less appealing is its tight back-seat legroom and rather shallow trunk. It’s a matter of priorities, you see.
The base set of features in the 2015 GS 350 is impressive in itself, wrapping in ten airbags; a rearview camera; leather upholstery; satellite radio and iPod connectivity; Bluetooth with audio streaming; and Remote Touch, the mouselike controller that runs secondary systems. This year, with an Enform App Suite upgrade, you get Slacker app-based streaming audio and upgrades to iHeartRadio; and navigation-equipped cars get the improved infotainment system that made its debut on the IS sedans last year is now added to the GS. It brings improved map views, predictive traffic, voice recognition, and even a 15-minute buffer feature for radio listening.
There’s also a Siri EyesFree mode that, if you have a compatible iPhone, adds enhanced compatibility through the vehicle interface. And a new Enform Remote subscription-based service adds things like remote locking and unlocking, a vehicle finder, status reports, and a “guest driver monitor” that might allow you to clue in on your teenager’s driving habits.
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