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:

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  Disappointed - 2008 Lexus RX 400H
  By VA Beach - April 23 - 3:53 am

  Purchased this vehicle because it is a hybrid--low emissions and better in-town gas mileage than our MB E320. We do most of our driving around town. We are very disappointed in the city gas mileage which is 21 to 22 mpg. Not the 26 mpg we expected. The dealer and Lexus blows our complaints off. We live in a coastal area meaning the closest we come to a mountain is a bridge. Our city driving meets Lexus statement for the 26 mpg. However, we do get 26 mpg on the interstate. Go figure. Otherwise, we very much like the vehicle.

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  Transmission Problems - 2004 Lexus RX 330
  By HAl K - April 20 - 10:00 am

  For those who have not checked into this car throughly, I suggest googling: "ES330 hesitation." Mine hesistates badly at both low and high speeds, which the dealer says is "normal." I would not recommend anyone buy a 2004 ES or RX330 until Lexus stops stonewalling and addresses the problem.

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  GOOD CAR - 2005 Lexus ES 330
  By 2ROBERT2 - April 15 - 10:00 am

  GETZ LOTS OF COMPLIMENTS

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  One of first built - 2007 Lexus ES 350
  By Tommy Mather - April 11 - 8:13 am

  This is not my first Lexus and the only problem is the car has developed squeaks and rattles, sounds like the whole panel has a body flex when going over bumps. The whole panel behind and in roof sounds as if it is bending and making a terrible noise. It has been back to dealer and they have replaced seat and other parts still the same noise rattles/vibrates when I turn. I have stopped using the car 7,000 km in the last year used to be over 20,000 km. Great performance. I have only used premium and it returns great gas mileage. It takes several tries for the voice-recognition system to work. I will most likely go back to Infiniti.

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  160,000 and still going strong - 2001 Lexus RX 300
  By tstutz - March 19 - 9:06 am

  I bought this vehicle used with 120k miles. Aside from oil changes and new tires, Ive only had to replace the belts. Ive put 40k miles on it over the past 2 years. If you jumped in and drove the vehicle without looking at the odometer, youd never know it had 160k miles. The ride is still comfortable and the engine runs strong. My Lexus has been good to me so far.

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  The best buy LUV on the market - 2004 Lexus LX 470
  By Sam Miao - March 19 - 2:00 am

  This is by far the best SUV on the market regardless of price, plus the Lexus reputation for service and quality.

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  Nice car but.. - 2002 Lexus ES 300
  By Ole John - March 12 - 10:00 am

  Well it has a nice ride & is quiet. Nice features. It is a little under powered, but I expected that. Many have complained about instability of the transmission - but it is my understanding that the ES300 has fly-by- wire control, & have experienced "shuttering" to different degrees - from the feeling that your on a bumpy road, to a low frequeny shutter after coming down a hill & getting ready to go up another. This is a classic unstable servo system - something that the engineers should have solved long ago. BTW, the transmission isnt all that great either. Should be a lot better for a 35k car made by Toyota.

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  2005 LS 430 - 2005 Lexus LS 430
  By Keith Hartman - February 16 - 7:50 pm

  Wonderful in many ways, not so good in snow country and sometimes scary in the wind & rain. This car that seems so easy to drive does not handle well at the limits of high speed and adverse weather. (My previous car was an Audi A-8; but this car doesnt handle as well as my wifes Surbaru Outback.) Not so important but a niggling problem is the placement of various buttons on the steering wheel that are easily bumped and change the audio system (or turn it on!), set off the voice activation programs, etc. Also, four times I ran the battery down because a door was not completely shut, which I couldnt tell from the interior lights that stay on for a minute or so after the car is shut down.

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  Steering shake & wobble at highway speed - 2007 Lexus ES 350
  By zee - February 15 - 8:43 am

  The car is nicely built. At 65 mph and above at highway speeds the car wobbles and the steering wheel shakes.The car has been in for repairs at least more than 5 times in two months. At the dealership they tested new ES 350 2007 cars from the lot, they all had the same problem.The dealership and the Lexus company cannot fix this problem. Lexus HQ from California cannot suggest any repair to this problem, they say it is the characteristic of the car and I should keep driving the car with the steering shake and wobble at highway speeds. I am totally frustrated with this car experience. Spending $40000 and asking for headaches.

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  Great Freeway Cruiser - 2009 Lexus RX 350
  By Ohio - February 14 - 5:33 pm

  In the 4 months Ive owned the RX350 it has been from Ohio to California and back, with several 700 mile days in the driving mix. Fuel economy runs around 23-24 mpg at 80 mph+ cruising speeds. Its extremely comfortable, with nice performance, being very brisk off the line, but at speed shows its weight and aerodynamic drag. The car (suv?) is very solid, and most interior features are well thought out. It feels large inside, but I came out of a restaurant at lunch to find it parked between two Suburbans; then it looked tiny! Brakes are very good, but the steering is a bit numb and the suspension is soft with resulting "average" handling. Not a single problem at 6000 miles. Great vehicle