Overview & Reviews

Lexus has earned a well-deserved reputation for turning out utterly refined luxury vehicles. The hallmarks of this brand are a quiet, well-crafted cabin, a plush ride and commendable performance from powerful, nearly silent engines.

Lexus began out of a desire by parent company Toyota to create a world-class luxury car brand. Groundwork for Lexus was laid in the mid-1980s, when the company began tapping U.S. focus groups in an attempt to define design concepts best suited for American consumers. Hundreds of prototypes were built and tested on Germany's autobahn and on U.S. roads.

In early 1989, the company unveiled its first two models (which would debut for the 1990 model year) -- the entry-level ES 250 sedan and the flagship LS 400 sedan. The LS 400 was lauded by both journalists and consumers alike for offering a stellar luxury-car experience, with a remarkably silent cabin, superb build quality and a refined V8 engine. At the same time, the LS was priced considerably lower than smaller, lesser-equipped, six-cylinder European rival luxury sedans.

By the early 1990s, the Lexus brand was expanded to other markets, including the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia. More models were added to the lineup, including the SC 300 and SC 400 coupes and the brand's first luxury performance sedan, the GS 300. By decade's end, the company had added SUVs (in the form of the LX 450/LX 470 and RX 300) and had sold more than a million vehicles in the U.S.

The first decade of the 2000s saw Lexus proving itself a trend setter with the launch of many hybrid-powered versions of its vehicles such as the RX 400h and the GS 450h. And by 2011, Lexus even introduced a world-class supercar, the LFA.

In the years since its inception, the Lexus brand has distinguished itself time and again in quality and reliability surveys. The brand's vehicles may not offer as much passion as some Teutonic rivals, but for drivers interested in vehicles that emphasize quality, dependability and comfort, the Lexus marque is hard to beat.

User Reviews:

• 

  Fun Car - 2004 Lexus SC 430
  By Lynda Deuble - May 24 - 9:26 am

  This car has incredible brakes! It will stop on a dime! It corners well and handles well and is a dream to drive. The steering is quite sensitive compared to other cars.

• 

  Nice to Look at - 2007 Lexus ES 350
  By Ric - May 19 - 5:23 pm

  Overall it is pretty much what I expected from Lexus, except the finicky transmission. It is quiet and despite what the competition thinks of its looks it gets plenty of second looks; its black with darkened windows and the spoked rims. It is often mistaken for the much more expensive LS by the uninformed including my boss and co-workers who ask "are we paying you too much?” and "how did you afford that". If only the transmission would settle on a gear and not want to jolt my bad back when in stop-and-go traffic or even the slightest incline I would give it a strong 9. Had to have a new transmission put in at 5000 miles, new transmission only slightly better.

• 

  Gas Mileage a Fraud - 2006 Lexus RX 400H
  By Kelly Turton - May 13 - 11:03 pm

  Touted as 31MPG City, 28MPG Hwy. We have around 1800 miles on ours and the very best it gets is 21MPG overall. Dealer said that it did not need a break in period. Now they say it could take 6000 miles to break in. Both dealer and factory said the RX400h is more about performance and less about MPG. Baloney! There are a lot of cars out there that get 21 MPG. The only reason we paid the $10,000 higher sticker price over the regular RX model was for the better mileage. Both dealer and factory have tried to blame our driving habits. We live in So. Cal. where the weather is good and the roads are level.

• 

  Comparison of GX470, Cayenne and X5 - 2005 Lexus GX 470
  By stonedesigner - May 11 - 7:26 am

  I just purchased this suv loaded. I compared the Porsche Cayenne and the BMW X5 and the Mercedes M class. There was no comparison in terms of overall comfort, status and value in the long run. My sister has had hers for about 4 months 2004 and mine is 2005. She loves it more every day and I am starting to love mine too! I know I made the right decision. THe Porsche had more of a wow factor but more time in the shop which I dont need, the mercedes wasnt up to snuff and the BMW was a close second but too trucky. This was MUCH more luxurious. I even was able to add 2 extra seats which wasnt available in the BMW or the Porsche. I am happy.

• 

  Not like previous ES cars - 2014 Lexus ES 350
  By taxedtoomuch - May 6 - 11:15 pm

  The current ES350 is not you fathers car. Too bad it is not. I have owed five of these cars and this one does not meet previous expectations. It drives like an Rav4. The road performance could be better. The ride is not as soft and cushiony as previous cars. You will feel every bump on back roads and roads that are not perfectly paved. For that reason, I am disappointed. Overall it is quiet and has plenty of power, although there is a slight delay. Remember this is not the inline six as before. My guess is, the IS engineers got ahold of this car instead of the LS engineers and did it their way.

• 

  LACK OF CUBBIES - 2011 Lexus RX 350
  By bff - April 30 - 7:03 pm

  Where do you put your stuff in this car? No place for pens, note pads, etc. for the driver. The storage in the center console is very difficult to access. And the cell phone charger set-up!!! That has GOT to be improved.

• 

  It is a Toyota with below par electronic - 2015 Lexus ES 350
  By David P. - April 30 - 5:11 am

  This car is sold as a luxury vehicle, but after owning it for while we realized nothing is luxury about it except the grittiness of the company and the dealership. Basically, this is a Toyota with a little better paint job outdated electronic and very frustrated entertainment system. Most disappointing is the outrages maintenance prices $300 for an oil change and $475 a yearly charge if you want your navigation system to be updated. Personally, I would not recommend buying this car.

• 

  Try trading in - 2010 Lexus HS 250H
  By zag - April 16 - 2:00 am

  I purchased hs 250 h last year with a price tag of 45,000.I am not totally happy with the ride,so I looked into upgrading to GS or RX.I was offered 25,000 as trade in value for a car with 17,800.This is not the value I expected from a Lexus.

• 

  Does it worth $10K over the RX 330? - 2006 Lexus RX 400H
  By Les - April 10 - 4:36 am

  Disappointed with the interior of the dashboard and steering wheel--the RX 300 looks more impressive. The Navigation screen is hard to see during sunny days due to glare (at nights it is wonderful). Overall gas mileage for the first 1,000 miles is about 26mpg, even though we drove more in city thn on the highway. This figure is about 35% better than the RX 300, but not what Lexus claims.

• 

  A little underwhelmed - 2010 Lexus RX 350
  By LongCommute - April 5 - 3:10 pm

  This is my first Lexus, although my family has owned many. In my opinion, this is the best looking crossover but the interior is underwhelming. The doors are plastic and the center console in the front seat is not user friendly. The power outlets are way down in the bottom of the console and I have to remove everything to add or remove my cell phone charger. The backseat has made an awful squeaking noise since I purchased the vehicle. Five trips to the dealership have not fixed the problem. The light tan leather is beautiful but every time I wear blue jeans, they leave blue dye on the seats. This model does not have exterior door guards and although it looks great, this car is a ding magnet!