Lexus GS: Step into future now

The future has a mind of its own. It scorns soothsayers and defies expectation.

Otherwise, the world already would have ended a dozen times. Rod Serling would not have had a career. This space would be devoted to developments in personal jetpack technology.

Better yet, we’d be teleporting.

Beam me up, Scottie.

Keeping Fast Company

During the great gas crisis of the early ‘80s, a tremendous hue and cry arose bemoaning the certain demise of the entertaining automobile. Cars were to become cookie-cutter econoboxes, neutered by tree-hugging politicians and power-sapping plumbing.

But no one then understood how completely computers would impact the automobile. Today’s cars do more things, in more entertaining ways, than anyone dreamed possible.

Take today’s tester, the 2007 Lexus GS 450h. It’s a midsize, four-door sedan driven by a hybrid gasoline/electric power system. More to the point, it’s a sport sedan that delivers the performance of a V-8 with the fuel efficiency of a V-6.

It’s a numbers story: 340 horsepower and gobs of torque; zero-to-60 in 5.2 seconds; EPA ratings of 25 city/28 highway; and a sticker price of $55,595, including destination.

Those numbers land the GS 450h amid some very fast company, including the Audi A6, BMW 550i, Mercedes-Benz E550 and Infiniti M45.

There are the expected disparities in price (they range from $50,500 to $59,000) and performance, but, with one notable exception, the group is competitive.

The big exception is fuel efficiency: Despite having been tuned for performance at the expense of frugality, the 450h runs circles around the others. In their V-8 forms, they average about 17 city/24 highway.

This is the future no one could have predicted — hybrid technology in the service of comfort, performance and fuel efficiency.

A Lexus Throughout

In this class, it’s not enough to be quick and comfortable. The serious contender must also be elegant, safe and technologically progressive.

The 450h scores across the board.

Available in a single trim level, it’s outfitted with top-of-the-line leather interior accents and seating surfaces. The heated and cooled front seats adjust in 10 directions. High-gloss wood accents and electronic chromatic instruments and gauges set a tony mood.

Instead of an overly complicated user-input device, Lexus employs intuitive touch-screen technology, although using it leaves fingerprints that may annoy some owners. The nav system incorporates a rearview monitor and Bluetooth technology helps eliminate those nasty talking-while-driving citations.

Safety measures are here in full force, including virtually all the airbags and electronic vehicle management systems known to humankind.

Practical Realities

Lexus’ hybrid system incorporates not only a 3.5-liter gasoline engine and two electric motors (one’s role is more administrative than productive), but also a chunky battery pack. It lives beneath and behind the rear seats, reducing trunk space significantly and rendering useless the middle rear seating position.

At 7.5 cubic feet, cargo capacity is about half of what the competition offers.

Other than that, the system is fully transparent. Just fill ‘er up and go. Speaking of which, the 450h will cruise a nifty 430 miles between fuel stops, besting the competition by 50 miles and more.

Beyond the Numbers

Lexus proved long ago it could build a world-class luxury sedan and its hybrid technology improves with every generation.

But before introducing the GS 450h, it had not built a sport sedan that could go toe-to-toe with the world’s best.

And it still hasn’t.

Eminently smooth, fast and quick, the 450h lacks the finely tuned athleticism of its primary competitors. Electronics are at least partly to blame; the electric power steering system is virtually devoid of feel and feedback. The driver entering a hard corner at speed is left to guess at the proper vehicle positioning.

Regenerative braking is a remarkable strategy for capturing energy normally lost as heat, but here it produces an artificial feel and a tendency to grab under light pedal pressure.

The continuously variable transmission maximizes fuel efficiency, while extracting nearly every ounce of twist from the hybrid system, but it’s not sure how to handle the demands of high-performance driving. It hunts awkwardly among its programmed ratios as the driver pushes it beyond its comfort level.

Sharp elevation changes and quick transitions are a challenge, as well, thanks to chassis dynamics that fall short of class standards.

Needless to say, none of this prevented me from having a ball driving the daylights out of the GS 450h on narrow, winding roads deep in the channeled scablands. The new Lexus will provide all the excitement required by at least 98 percent of the driving public. The balance should be banned to the track.

The future notwithstanding, the Lexus GS 450h is a real here-and-now proposition. That any car can be this good and still lay claim to a semblance of fuel efficiency is something to get excited about.

Teleportation may be quick, but it would never be this much fun.