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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  My First Lexus - 1996 Lexus LS 400
  By GKLCPA - September 1 - 9:23 am

  Ive no brand loyalty and have never purchased the same car twice. I believe that will change now. I purchased a 1996 LX 400 with 37,000 miles on it and have been driving it around this weekend. The only thing I can say about this car is that it is incomparable to any other vehicle Ive owned. (Ive owned Mercedes 190E, BMW535i, Maxima and Volvo 740 Turbo). It beats them all. The ride and build quality is simply superb. I had the car up to 90 mph on the highway and it felt like I was going 50 mph. It is the perfect road car and I see myself getting years of service from this car. Im quite pleased with my purchase.

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  6-month Update - 2010 Lexus RX 350
  By Lexus Loyalist - August 29 - 6:13 pm

  Ive had the car about 6 months now, and just completed a 3500-mile round-trip to the frozen north for the holidays. Driving 10 hours per day, the front seat left me feeling refreshed when I arrived at my destination. The XM radio entertained me, the climate control and seat heaters kept me comfortable, the nav found fuel stops for me, and all of the cars equipment performed perfectly. I prefer the new front seat armrest/console cover to the old bony sticks that folded down from the front seats. I averaged 22-23 mpg at 80 mph on hilly terrain--I think thats pretty good for a loaded SUV. Overall, a great, great car.

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  Fantastic car! - 2002 Lexus LS 430
  By BeemerBill13 - August 29 - 12:13 pm

  I bought a 2002 LS430 with 78,000 miles on it in Feb. 2008. I sold my 1997 LS400 for this and what a difference! You wouldnt know this car from new, no dings, dents, or scratches! The previous owner serviced it with regularity. The car has the Ultra Luxury package so it has every option offered. I drive mostly highway miles and am impressed with getting 25+ (up to 27.5 already) driving it! A good solid ride. I am very pleased with it after 8 months of ownership and 9,000 miles.

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  I Might Buy It Again - 2004 Lexus ES 330
  By MCG - August 29 - 10:00 am

  Like others, I have noticed transmission issues. Stopping at a stop sign and immediately starting again confuse the tranny. I have not had problems elsewhere. Freeway driving, merging, acceleration to get out of a jam...all excellent. No pull to the left issues w/mine. Drive the one youre going to buy. The interior is beautiful, comfy and convenient. The CD changer in the center console limits storage capacity. For the HP, the car is not responsive from 0, but, handles driving at speed nicely. I also like the Comfort vs. Sport suspension adjustment - it provides a noticeable difference in ride and handling. Beautiful car-should perform better.

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  SUV that gets 30mpg and can handle like a car! - 2015 Lexus NX 300h
  By David - August 26 - 3:10 pm

  Ok, was looking for a hybrid SUV. Green was the emphasis for the purchase. Sedans can be green without the hybrid (the CO2 emitted per mile in a Camry is less than some souped up hyrbids). Also, when your car is stopped, its just nice no to emit CO2. Toyota makes real hybrids (ones where the battery can boost up city driving mpg) and pioneered much of the technology. Our only real choices were the Nx300h, the Rx450h, or the RAV4 Hybrid. BMW makes a X5 plug in hybrid and Ford used to make an escape hybrid, but the X5 was too expensive acutely and the Escape Hybrid is no more. That being said, I would have gone for the RAV4 but the interior is nowhere near that for its cousing NX300h Lexus (although it has more camera angles). Ok, back to the car, it performs as advertized -- we are getting between 29-33 MPG in 80% city driving. It handles great and the safety stuff like blind spot monitoring, pre-collision assist, and radar guided cruise control are pretty great. The car is really whisper quiet. (*Acceleration however has a drone, but its not that bad but sort of unexpected in a Lexus). Handling is actually a bit more sedan like than the RX we gave up. Seats are bit tighter too than the RX -- but its a smaller car. Suspension and road feel are classic Lexus. My big qualm is the cost -- which it was not $5000 more versus a comprable nx200 to save gas and hurt the environment less. This car gets an easy 5-stars if they charged less for it. But, the ride is really quite good, the handling excellent, and luxury is strong. The new RX is bigger than the previous or we might have bought that with all the new safety and technology features, but they no longer make that 2012-2015 style. To complain of some almost unnoticeable acceleration compromises in an SUV that emits 276 grams of CO2 per mile (less than a Toyota Corrolla at 287 grams of CO2 per mile) seems besides the point. Its hard to ease your carbon footprint and be an SUV this luxurious other than for the nx300h. For comparison, note the nx200 emits 368 grams of CO2 per mile. Sad this technology is not incentivized more. Perhaps the government will at some point though.

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  best car in the world for 35k - 1997 Lexus ES 300
  By jim morand - August 26 - 3:00 pm

  great car for the money......drives like a 50k car for 15k less

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  Lexus LX 470 -1st Lexus Experience - 2007 Lexus LX 470
  By NC Lexus 470 - August 26 - 11:50 am

  The 470 is a very smooth riding enjoyable truck that offers enough HP for beaches to mountains. The gas mileage is worse than my former Chevy Suburban but the smooth quality ride is a little better. Note to those considering: the navigation system is really bad. It blocks the driver and passenger from searching for anything while the vehicle is moving. There is no work-around and we were told there was a bypass by two dealerships we contacted when we couldnt figure out how I could use it while my husband drove. It is a huge flaw in the vehicle if you do more than local driving. Lots of room in the interior and would love to keep but probably last Lexus due to nav limits.

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  For the long ride - 2006 Lexus LS 430
  By roger lance - August 24 - 10:50 pm

  Good road car, not so much around town given low gas mpg. Exterior quality is not so great, paint pealed in one spot on roof post. Car handles very nicely with good suspension that quiets the ride. Seats are ok for tall folks - over 6 - good for those less tall. Interior fit and finish is very nice and looks very well finished. Corner acceleration is hampered unless your turn off the AFS. Car doesnt need a lot of repairs but maintenance is costly.

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  GreatValu - 2004 Lexus LS 430
  By FIJIP - August 24 - 9:53 pm

  This is my 3rd LS and, in 10yrs & 150K miles, Ive had only one repair incident (pinch-control on sun roof.) Great car, great value.

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  A Dream To Drive - 2005 Lexus GX 470
  By Black Beauty - August 23 - 11:20 pm

  Proud owner of my first SUV. This is a dream car to drive. Perfect size and easy to handle. Lots of power. Short on gas mileage.