Ah, Lexus. Although it needs no formal introduction, it’s difficult even mentioning the brand without highlighting its significance as one of the greatest automotive success stories in history. Prominently debuting with its much-anticipated LS 400 flagship back in 1989, Lexus was not only an overnight success, but unlike Acura and Infiniti, Lexus has maintained this success — along with continuous praise, innovation, and owner loyalty — ever since.
Agreeably, Lexus has always been a brand lacking the history, the emotion, and most noteworthy, the excitement of longer-established luxury marques hailing from Britain, Germany, and the USA. Nonetheless, Lexus is a luxury brand that has crafted a unique image of its own, and one that has triumphed with relatively few missteps in its now 30-year history.
The beauty of the original LS was that it successfully blended qualities of what upwardly-mobile Toyota owners wanted and expected, along with worldly qualities and a strong sense of prestige that made it a global competitor in the luxury field. The latter is something still somewhat unexplainable and something virtually no other luxury brand or even standalone luxury car launched by a mainstream brand in the past 35 years has been able to replicate. In this sense, one might say that Lexus got lucky; in reality, it was the careful execution of the LS 400 that is largely responsible for Lexus’ uncanny aura of pedigree and prestige.
Arriving in mid-1989 after nearly six years and at least half a billion dollars of development, the 1990 Lexus LS 400 was among the most meticulously-orchestrated vehicles ever, certainly worthy of its “Relentless Pursuit of Perfection” slogan. From its very conception, Toyota didn’t set out just to build a competitive world-class luxury flagship — it set out to build the world’s best luxury flagship.
In what’s typically a German fashion of over-engineering, virtually nothing was overlooked, with Toyota engineers painstakingly assessing, contemplating, and ultimately, addressing every element with scrupulous care, building over 450 prototypes until at last freezing the final design in 1987. The pre-production car, disguised as Toyota Cressidas and Crowns, underwent some three-million miles of testing all over the world including on Germany’s Autobahn and an extensive California to Florida road trip completed personally by Toyota’s chief engineer, Ichiro Suzuki.
In its quest to be the best, Toyota took immense effort in ensuring the LS 400 was more comfortable, quieter, and virtually vibration-free compared to the competition. Whereas competitors heavily relied on masking road and wind noise with layers of sound insulation, Toyota tackled this right at the source with the body of the LS. The result was one of the stiffest body shells ever created at the time, with welds some 50% stronger than average and fine-tuning perfected by countless wind tunnel tests with microphones attached all over the vehicle to pinpoint sources of wind noise.
The heart of the LS 400 was its state-of-the-art, all-aluminum 1UZ-FE 4.0-litre V8 engine. Toyota reportedly tested a total of 973 prototypes of this engine before ultimately perfecting one of the smoothest, efficient and vibration-free V8 engines ever, something evidenced by Lexus’s iconic champagne coupe tower commercial. Less technical aspects were also painstakingly scrutinized, including the selection of wood trim for the interior, special mica paint finish, and the choice of interior leather right down to process of its tanning.
The end result was a breathtaking flagship, indeed praised by many critics as the world’s best. Featuring front and rear double wishbone suspension, an advanced computer-controlled 4-speed automatic transmission, and the aforementioned breathtaking 1UZ-FE V8 producing an impressive 250 horsepower and 260 lb-ft torque, the rear-wheel drive LS 400 also included nearly every available luxury amenity as standard, bucking the trend of most other luxury vehicles. Furthermore, the world-class LS 400 not only boasted a higher top speed, greater aerodynamics, lower curb weight, and greater fuel efficiency, it most notably undercut competitors such as the Mercedes-Benz 420 SEL and BMW 735i by around 40%, with an initial starting price of around $35,000 USD.
Although the Lexus LS 400 was a risky gamble, it was met with instant and overwhelming success. Selling 11,574 units in the U.S. before then end of calendar year 1989, its first full calendar year of sales totaled 42,806 by the end of 1990 — greatly surpassing sales of any European competitor. Now the LS 400 was in its own right a nearly impeccable vehicle, but there’s no denying that timing also had something to do with the its success. It may sound cliché but the LS 400 truly was the right car at the right time.
The 1980s, for better or worse, was a revolutionary decade on many fronts but especially with pertinence to consumerism. Panned as “The Decade of Greed” by many, consumers were spending more, often on luxury goods and services with the intent to outwardly impress, and increasing demand for luxury cars was an immense impact of this. Younger “yuppies” on the East and West Coasts largely flocked to European luxury brands but among middle-aged and older buyers, particularly in Middle America, Cadillac and Lincoln still reigned supreme with strong sales through most of the decade. Yet as the 1980s drew to a close, consumers were increasingly embracing change.
In a world where most European luxury cars suffered from stone-cold interiors and increasingly expensive costs of ownership, and most American luxury cars suffered from gaudy styling traits and embarrassingly poor fit-and-finish, the Lexus LS 400 with its understated styling, inviting interior, and unpretentious image was the perfect vehicle to conquer many of these luxury car buyers as well as the increasing amount of upwardly-mobile Toyota owners, many of whom were baby boomers entering their peak earning years. Sick of the frivolous and flamboyant 1980s, the Lexus LS 400 emerged as the poster child for the clean, contemporary, and uncluttered 1990s.
In addition to its bargain pricing and overall breath of fresh air, Lexus also had a not-so-secret ace up its sleeve luxury brands from America, Britain, Germany, and elsewhere could not match: Toyota quality and dependability. It’s no secret that Toyota largely built its reputation in North America upon its consistently class-leading rates of mechanical reliability, build and material quality, and overall long-term low-cost of ownership and dependability. Versus the often expensive-to-maintain European luxury cars and often shoddy quality of American luxury cars, to many, the Lexus LS 400 seemed like a no-brainer.
Of course, the LS 400 was not without weaknesses. For starters, it was bland. Of course, this is subjective, but there’s little denying that inside and out the LS 400 lacked the visual pomp and circumstance of most rivals, with its tamed exterior styling featuring = minimal chrome and ornamentation, and a sobering interior that while perfectly functional and comfortable, abstained from anything remotely distinguishable. Above all, it was a total newcomer with no real reputation beyond that of which the economy-minded Toyota already possessed.
Alas, Lexus naturally had another answer for those who might have been weary to embrace it, by completely reinventing the dealership experience. Whether then or now, it’s not secret that most people hate visiting car dealerships, for either sales or service. No matter the circumstances, for most, it’s as painful as going to the dentist — it’s inconvenient, it’s time consuming, and most of all it’s hard not to feel like you’re getting screwed.
With the rollout of Lexus, however, Toyota put immense care into the look, feel, and level of customer service of the brand new dealerships for its luxury division, much like the level of meticulous care they put into the LS 400 itself. Everything from the upholstery of leather for chairs, to length of the showroom windows, to the height of service lounge coffee tables was carefully analyzed and dictated, with Toyota even going so far as to implement differing decors for dealerships on the U.S. East Coast versus the West.
Now in the thirty years since the original LS 400 and the Lexus brand debuted, a lot has changed. The automotive landscape is a vastly different one than it was in 1989, most notably favoring car-based CUVs — a vehicle which Lexus had a large hand in creating, yet one that would likely not have existed if it weren’t for the success of the LS — over sedans, and especially large sedans like the LS. Through it all, Lexus has continued the LS’s legacy of innovation, especially in technology and luxury, the latter most notably evident in the high degree of customizable interiors, largely hand-crafted by certified Takumi (匠) artisans.
In a post earlier this year, I outright posed the question of whether the LS even matters anymore for Lexus. That question is still largely up for debate, but one thing is for sure. Although time has seen the once-prominent LS take a diminished, back-seat role in Lexus’ lineup and the marketplace alike, there’s no denying that the original LS 400 was the industry’s poster child for revolution in the luxury car world, and a car that will forever go down in history as one of the automobile industry’s greatest success stories of all time.
Featured Taupe Metallic 1992 LS 400 photographed on Larimer Street in Denver, Colorado – September 2019
1992 Black Jade Pearl 1992 LS 400 provided by Will Jackson and photographed in Macon, Georgia – September 2019
Related Reading:
” Although time has seen the once-prominent LS take a diminished, back-seat role in Lexus’ lineup and the marketplace alike, there’s no denying that the original LS 400 was the industry’s poster child for revolution in the luxury car world, and a car that will forever go down in history as one of the automobile industry’s greatest success stories of all time.”
Yup! I had a 90 LS 400; that beast changed the game in a way that few other cars have ever done. A true Yeoman vehicle.
I think the OG Lexus was one of the industry’s greatest hits of the last 50 years, but it’s another full size sedan that is at the top: The Tesla Model S. That being said, this write-up was superlative and probably your best yet. Good job!
My thoughts exactly.
+1 Writeup could not have been better.
Well, thank you guys! It means a lot to finally do this car justice.
Edward, I completely agree with your comment.
It’s a superlative write-up, and as you stated the LS400 may be one of the industry’s greatest hits of the last 50 years, or maybe even the industry’s greatest hit in the luxury class of the last 50 years. And while I hate to sound like buzzkill, when you broaden the view to all vehicles produced by the industry in all body styles, sizes, and classes, well, I’m not so sure.
disagree
Tesla depended/depends on government subsidies for sales – Lexus sold w/o them
as tax credits are withdrawn, Tesla sales decline
Tesla sales in the US declined by @40% this last quarter, due to declining subsidies
and that pattern is repeated around the world – in Hong Kong their sales dropped off a cliff
US Tesla sales declined this quarter because Tesla has drastically increased exports, and had satiated the pent-up demand from the original large number of advance orders. Tesla sales in the US are now at a level in balance with supply and demand. Demand from new orders in the US continues to be quite strong, to the point where Tesla increased the price of the M3 in the US even in the face of declining subsidies.
Subsidies have a distorting effect on the market, and obviously folks in the market for an EV will place orders in advance of a reduction. But these effects are stabilizing, as has been shown in the US and Europe, where the M3 is doing very well even in the face of reduced subsidies.
I also read that in markets where traditional European luxury marques now have product, they are displacing Tesla in sales
– possibly because of Tesla’s build quality and/or that their novelty has waned
we’ll see
Most comments about any Tesla are about bad build quality and orange peel paint. Being a Brit can any body explain why American cars have crap build quality compared
to Japanese Cars?.
@Mark Hobbs
I can only surmise that U.S. automakers have historically had looser tolerances in the fit and finish department than Euro makes. Add cost-cutting to the mix and it’s easy to see why most U.S. cars have less-than-impressive build quality than European or Asian vehicles.
As for Tesla, they’re iPhones on wheels. For that reason, I wasn’t too shocked about the build quality.
The “voluntary import quotas” that were in effect at the time of this cars’ gestation period played a major role here, as attempts to much with free markets often d. The Japanese manufacturers, limited in the number of cars they could sell in the US, could only increase profits by maximizing profit per car, something that wasn’t easy to do with the lower-end economy cars the Japanese brands sold in the 1970s and early ’80s. So to build more profitable cars, Honda created Acura, Nissan created Infiniti, and Toyota created Lexus. As a result, Detroit no longer faced intense Japanese competition just for their Chevys and Fords, but now for their Lincolns and Cadillacs too. This year, Cadillac, which was easily in first place in US luxury car sales for decades, placed 7th behind BMW, Mercedes, Audi, Lexus, Acura, and Tesla.
CR just rated Cadillac worst in class too
It was the VIR that gave the Japanese such large profits that they then could use to develop their luxury brands/cars with massive budgets. Without the VIR, that might never have happened, or certainly not with such highly developed cars like the LS. A clear example of how market manipulations can have counter-beneficial impacts.
I remember what a quantum leap this car was for Toyota when it was launched. Time has been kind to this generation; their design has aged remarkable well. While I’ll always remember these being popular in black, white and taupe, I forgot how stunning the Black Jade Pearl was!
A friend of mine was a successful Cadillac salesman in the 1980’s/1990’s.
He said he would have nightmares about being chased by a Lexus LS 400, would wake up from this dream with his heart pounding and sweating.
He later switched his automotive allegiance and job profession to the Lexus dealer here in New Orleans.
I’ll bet Lexus customers were not only a lot easier sales but a lot easier to deal with than the “but I’m paying cash, I should get a better price” Caddy customers.
This is both an amazing car and a frustrating one. Frustrating because Lexus built the car that no American company was either willing or able to build – a modern American luxury car. This Lexus is almost the perfect analog to the Lincoln Continental of 25 years prior. High quality and with conservative, restrained styling. They walked right in because no American company had built such a car since the 1960s.
The Germans were building that kind of car, but with a more ascetic,Teutonic feel. And for a LOT more money. I remember when these hit and Mercedes was charging $50k+ on their larger models. Lexus really affected the German industry too, perhaps more than the American companies.
The American companies have still either failed or refused to build a genuine high end car. Until Tesla. And an interesting thing is that Tesla did it by becoming stylish. It will be interesting to see if they can handle the basic blocking and tackling to stay relevant as others try to compete.
An excellent piece of work, Mr. S.
What a great take on it. I never considered it as you state, but the reality is that the Lexus LS was the quintessential American Luxury Car, and it worked quite well for them.
The lessons from it should be apparent to Lincoln and Cadillac (and possibly Chrysler, if one even remotely considers them a luxury or near-luxury brand) but they don’t seem to understand. What made American luxury cars great was a combination of great engineering and a semblance of style combined with top notch materials. One has to note that while a Cadillac and a large Chevy shared body shells from 1959 on, the Cadillac had better materials for interiors, options not available on “pedestrian” Chevrolets, and small but important upgrades on most items. Heck, consider that most trim was polished stainless rather than chromed pot metal on a Cadillac. But, as they decontented and lowered material standards, the American luxury brands disintegrated into just being overpriced base cars.
I do agree that Lexus was bland in styling, but that was a strong point for them, not a negative. Had they had a polarizing style, then middle America, especially aging Buick, Olds, Lincoln, and Cadillac buyers would have never looked at them. They went for safe. Infiniti failed mostly based on the lack of a grille, for goodness sake, so how could Toyota had a hit if they looked like a cheap knockoff of another brand or some Japanese design of the 1970s?
If one looks at Lexus as an American brand rather than Japanese, we still have American luxury. It is just built by someone who moved here as an adult rather than being born here. Kind of like how DeTomaso, an Argentine ran an Italian company, or Bugatti, born Italian, was a French manufacturer.
For most time of my car usage, I went after the styling and it’s one of the few reasons I am willing to put up with the horrible build quality from certain Cadillac and still keep buying.
I don’t have tons of seat time in them, but I did live with two for extended periods. One was a 1978 DeVille, white with bordello red interior and roof, and the other a 1996 DeVille, light green all over. The 78 compared almost tit for tat with a 1976 LTD I owned, both in content and performance. Both loaded with the features of the time, and both living room sofas that cruised around the streets. The 96 was my dad’s last car, and while it performed better and was bigger than most cars of the day, it really did not impress. And neither of the Cadillacs really said style, no more than a similar Buick, Olds, or Pontiac of the day. They were corporate GM, and if that is what you find attractive, then they were good examples. In the case of the two I drove, the wreath and crest was what drove the purchase, as they were both purchased by older men as aspirational final cars. Without the Cadillac badge, both would have never purchased as they did. Neither wanted a Lincoln, and neither drove imports as luxury cars.
Probably my criteria is kind of unique, but it makes sense in a way.
It has to be good looking enough for photography magazines, tailored suits commercials, and human object photography projects, and I occasionally dip into those topics. Cadillac Brougham and Cadillac Fleetwood would do the work nicely, and unfortunately Lexus LS just won’t cut it ( however, Lexus SC could be a good candidate ) Also, of course Jaguar XJS would get the job done,
And they really look great in photographs, than in person.
Agreed. But it wasn’t just the car itself. If Lincoln or Cadillac had built an LS, it would not have had anywhere near the success because on the coasts, their image and reputation was already toast by 1992. There’s no way a huge swath of Californians would have touched one, no matter how nice it was.
The immense reputation of Toyota’s quality was a very significant factor in folks willing to shell out $35k for a brand new luxury car. And its untarnished prestige and reputation was the other factor. I saw this in real time: Lexus was instantly accepted as a high-prestige brand from day one in CA, because folks trusted Toyota to get it right, from lots of prior experience. They would not have trusted Cadillac or Lincoln, and for good reason, the Northstar V8 being Exhibit A, among many others.
Lexus’ initial success was of course greatest in CA, and then rapidly spreading to both coasts, in areas where imports and Toyotas had become the cars to have.
I mostly agree – better-built versions of what Lincoln and Cadillac were used to building would have had relatively little impact. Had one of them had the foresight to build something like Lexus did, I argue that they would have had success, though it would have taken longer to achieve. And, of course, we are still waiting 30 years later.
I continue to believe that it’s about the product. Nobody but AARP members would touch a Chrysler in the 70s or 80s. In the 90s and 00s they sold to a different demographic. Ford managed to do the same with the Taurus and Explorer. Of course, none of these examples showed the deep-down quality of anything from Toyota, so those gains were temporary.
I think we agree, but it is that Cadillac and Lincoln should have not built the crap they put out to begin with and continued down their paths from the early 1960s onward, without decontenting, and they would have been producing something akin to the LS. Instead, in 1992, they were building Town Cars and Sevilles.
Perhaps one can use this argument to have Lincoln or Cadillac cancelled, with their associated baggage dumped. If producing a really good product can’t improve sales quickly, then shareholders will never be satisfied, and any future product will have to revert to being decontented crap. It’s a vicious cycle…
Interesting but accurate comparison to the ’60s Continental James! You make an excellent case for it.
I would nominate the 1991 Ford Explorer as a greater hit because it influenced the move from sedans to SUV’s and then Crossovers that continues to this day.
First honorable mention to the 2007 GMC Acadia that was the first “Full-Size” crossover that had the dimensions to truly replace the Minivan and Full-Size Station Wagon. The design was so good that it has been mostly unchanged in twelve years and lives on as the Chevrolet Traverse and Buick Enclave. According to “Principal Dan” the reason the second gen Acadia was downsized is because it was cutting too deep into sales of the Yukon to the point where GMC dealers complained to GM of lower profit margins.
Second honorable mention to the 2008 Nissan Rouge. Came out at EXACTLY the right time (US Economic Downturn). A lot of people traded in their BOF SUV’s (1990’s Ford Explorers) for this crossover due to improved fuel mileage, improved crash structure, less tippy (Ford/Firestone settlement), etc. The 4-Cyl powertrain and dimensions of this crossover are often imitated by various General Motors, Jeep, and Ford vehicles but the Nissan remains a top seller and probably keeps the lights on at a lot of Nissan Dealerships.
Yes, the Rav-4 and CR-V beat the Nissan Rouge to market but the Nissan was thousands less and truly brought the crossover to the masses. Intended or not, I see the Nissan Rouge as the replacement of the Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera and Buick Century twins. A lot of the same middle-age to elderly demographic seems to flock to this car in the same way that they did for the Ciera/Century twins in the 1990’s.
The Lexus LS was unbeknownst to us at the time, one of the models at the climax of America’s Love Affair with the full size sedan that began with the 1949 Olds Rocket 88 and accelerated with introduction of the 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air and the opening of Disneyland shortly thereafter.
The Lexus LS proved that luxury did not need to be fragile and in doing so made the category become a commodity. With it’s owners becoming more concerned with things like “resale value” and “muted” colors to keep the resale values inflated. Whereas, most previous Full Size Sedans were seen as in-your-face disposable goods that piled on the (tacky?) wire wheels, vinyl roofs, opera windows, digital gauges, etc. The LS was the antithesis of this philosophy in a lot of ways and set the trend of the modern attainable Full Size Luxury Sedan (see Avalon, Genesis, and Kia K900).
Great points, James. I have not thought about some of those points you brought up! Very interesting!
I think your insight is more accurate, and as an engineer from Ford I agree.
This is still a remarkably modern design that belies the fact that it’s a 30 year old car.
I was a teenager when these were introduced. Although my allegiance back then steered towards muscle cars – and still does – I always liked the simple elegance of the original LS, particularly in all-black. I recall building a 1/24 scale model kit of this car as well…Tamiya or Hasegawa I think? A rear wheel drive sedan with a V-8 making 250+hp was kind of a big deal back then. Funny how times change.
Ha the irony!
Circa 1990, I bought that exact Tamiya kit in my second orbit of model building as an adult .
After paying for it, I opened it for inspection before leaving the store. (I highly recommend this practice BTW). It had a huge flaw line down the roof,
he didn’t have another, and I took home an Audi 4 instead. The irony.
I was invited to drive the LS right after it was introduced in ’89. Just walking into the dealership was a revelation, I mean, a receptionist? No Pressure. I drove the car and got progressively more angry. A virtually new from the ground up luxury car and it was…perfect! No fit/finish issues, no lame engine, no genuine simulated look of French Provincial plastic filigree, it was just perfect. I took it up to three digits and noticed a wind whistle caused by the little built in phone antenna, remember the metal ones on the rear window with the little squiggle at the base? Upon returning, I commented about the wind noise. The salesman asked many questions and dutifully took lots of notes.
The ’91 model year, Lexus made very few changes, the horn note was deepened and…the phone antenna was changed. As a lifelong Lincoln man, it was then I knew that it was just a matter of time.
Another great write up Brendan! I always enjoy your work.
The original LS400 in my opinion is one of the greatest cars ever produced, hands down. It set an all new benchmark for true quality.
To my eyes, it still has a current modern look. While I am a huge fan of anything “brougham”, I cannot deny that the LS400 embarrassed the Cadillacs and Lincolns of that era.
I was working for a Rental Car Company that was owned by a Toyota Dealership when these hit the ground. The owners of the parent company ordered 2 of them for their wives. They were selling above MSRP and were hard to get. Their relationship with Jim Moran the SE Toyota Distributor helped them secure 2 of the earliest models.
Excellent summary of this car – and a lot of the details you covered here (like the obsession with creating the idea dealership experience) are things that I’ve long forgotten, but were undoubtedly critical ingredients to Lexus’s success.
Bland as it may have been, the LS was a design that has stood the test of time. I bet that 95% of the public would never guess this is a nearly 30-year-old car.
I recall at the time, many articles (both in the automotive and general press) wondered whether a high-end brand without the legacy and emotion of the established luxury nameplates would be able to succeed. Lexus proved without a doubt the answer to be Yes… and blindsided Mercedes-Benz and BMW in the process. (Actually I’d argue that Audi pulled off a similar coup in the 1980s… yes, the brand had history, but a history unknown to most carbuyers). And in my opinion, Mercedes and BMW have never fully caught up.
A related point is how in recent years Hyundai/Genesis has tried to recreate the Lexus formula – without significant success. I don’t think the product is as deeply packed with quality as the original LS and until recently it still carried the Hyundai name. Just undercutting other luxury cars in price is not all there is to this game.
I live in the KDM and while I admit the Genesis series isn’t too shabby,
the locals don’t see it that way. Recent political issues have made buying anything Japanese a big -faux-pas. In fact, a couple of weeks ago I was behind a newish Prius that had a bumper sticker apologizing for having a Japanese car!
So what’s a well-off (or not-so, in many cases) youngish-Korean
successful going to do?
They buy German big 3, VWs, Volvo, Peugeots, Mini, Fiat 500 , even those French DS motors little Hatchbacks tht they have the nerve to call a DS!
All crap IMHO.
The smart ones drive Genesis. Reliable, low-profile, decent value,
long lived.
Many buyers in this demographic may recall a time when they ( or dad maybe) could count on an especially arduous tax audit for the sin of bbuying an import.
The unfortunate fact about Genesis is that it simply doesn’t offer anything unique or noteworthy, other than price. Furthermore, unlike Toyota’s praiseworthy reputation and admirable status at the time Lexus launched, in the U.S. Hyundai largely still suffers from an inferior image when compared to Japanese brands, even though its vehicles are very equal in terms of quality.
It’s also important to note that Genesis has yet to produce a CUV/SUV, though I know one is coming soon. The market for luxury sedans is much cooler than it was 30 years ago.
Lexus is the first to push dealership experience in a corporate level. Lincoln dealerships usually have consistent positive experience but it’s never clearly written on the paper until very recently.
Lexus Ls wise, as bland as the design is, it ages relatively well however.
Many excellent designs look great as new but tacky when old, some others look hideous all the time ( Roots Group )
Looking back, it’s hard to imagine how ripe for disruption the luxury-car market of the late ’80s was. You had Cadillac making their first tentative step out of the Brougham Era with the STS based on the minned-out ’86 Seville, Lincoln’s mainstay being the boxy, frilly Town Car while the Continental was all-too-obviously a Taurus in evening wear and the credible Mark VII was an increasingly niche (if not yet irrelevant) coupe.
On the German side BMW and Mercedes had shut off gray imports with what would become the 25-year rule (then a fixed 1967-or-earlier) and were happily carrying over stagflation-era pricing since the market would bear it. Something had to happen, and it did.
Terrible engineering with the power steering system in the 90, 91 and 92 models, The power steering leaks on top of the alternator why would you put the alternator under a power steering pump? How many people designed this engine and car? It’s a fantastic automobile but once the car reaches a 100,000 miles, you get this power steering problem in the early models, and replacing parts doesn’t seem to help for more than 2 months.. Just about all owners have that problem with high mileage Lexus’s ls400’s
PSA diesels are designed that way pwr steering or hydraulic pump at the top of the accessory tower alternator middle ac compressor at the bottom, never had any problems yet.
coming before the Lexus, the Acura Legend was arguably a greater hit, especially the second generation
so what did Acura do? they dropped the Legend name and and dumbed down the stying w/ the third generation named it the RL
sales crashed
people still remember the Legend but people forget the RL, which is still technically around
got to be one of biggest marketing mistakes ever
Fun fact: the current RLX is still called the Legend in Japan.
There was a turn-of-the-millennium fad of hiring marketing execs from the processed-food and soap industries into the auto ones. They just couldn’t accept that “Integra” and “Legend” had higher brand awareness than “Acura”, and didn’t understand why this was even more the case among young future prospects (because racing games were mainly developed in Japan, featured the Integra especially as a mainstay and listed it as a Honda…)
So they threw away what brand equity they had, because it was the “wrong” kind.
Acura’s RL also suffered from Chrysler Imperial syndrome – there was too much of lesser cars in the RL. Also, once the LS came out, trying to sell a 3.5L V6 in this class was bringing a knife to a gunfight.
It was a bit like the Toyota Previa – it didn’t matter that the supercharged 4 put out as much as Chrysler’s V6,a 4 cylinder minivan was poison in the price class they were selling in.
agree and disagree
the Imperial was pretty much separate from Chrysler for at least 10 years while Cadillac shared its ware w/ Buick and Olds for decades
the more I read about the Imperial (up to the late 1960’s) the more I like it more than Cadillac and Lincoln
I wish I could buy this brand new. Add a $ 50 Tom-tom from a liquidation store and good to go.
I have immense for Lexus. The only brand that lives up to the quaint notion that expensive cars should be better made, more reliable, and have long, trouble free lives.
Too bad they weren’t around 7 years earlier when the old man bought a POS Audi 5000 that emptied his wallet.
Why oh why did they have to go to that hideous-looking pucker face?
Why couldn’t at least offer and “LS Classic Front Appearance Package”, or something?
Roger how about a slightly used Chevrolet SS? It has a version of the GM LS V8 and is available with a manual transmission. The interior may fall apart but that powertrain is very durable and there is a huge aftermarket community to support the engine.
The exterior styling is very restrained.
SS is cool car-I’ve been a fan of Aussie iron.
However, as you can see from the service history of the GTO, Pontiac G8,
Caprice PPV and SS, the quality isn’t the greatest, and not just limited to interiors. It hurts me say it because I like them . Front springs cracking apart
and puncturing front tires, for example? Come on!
A great article on a ground-breaking car. I think the understated styling of the LS 400 really represented a way forward from the excesses of the truly awful and tasteless Brougham era without veering all the way to the Spartan aesthetic characteristic of the German makes. I think M-B, BMW, and Audi were all forced to “warm up” the look of the interiors of their cars in response to the Lexus challenge to their dominance.
I would also point out that in many ways, the ES series was even more influential, becoming the top seller among the various Lexus models (at least until the RX debuted) and representing the most attainable version of the Lexus ethos. There is no doubt though that the LS 400 was the halo vehicle that every Lexus owner aspired to own.
The ES and RX are no doubt highly influential and what have been keeping the bills at Lexus paid the last 20-25 years, and proof that a lesser Toyota product can be successfully badge-engineered with significant and meaningful changes. The LS was the car that paved the way for these vehicles to succeed.
I wish I could buy this brand new. Add a $ 50 Tom-tom from a liquidation store and good to go.
I have immense respect for Lexus. The only brand that lives up to the quaint notion that expensive cars should be better made, more reliable, and have long, trouble free lives.
Too bad they weren’t around 7 years earlier when the old man bought a POS Audi 5000 that emptied his wallet.
Why oh why did they have to go to that hideous-looking pucker face?
Why couldn’t at least offer and “LS Classic Front Appearance Package”, or something?
There are only 2 used luxury cars on this planet I would buy:
1-All LS generations ending at the pucker-face.
2-90-up Town Car
That’s it. Would not give a plug nickel for anything else.
BTW sorry for posting twice
Something went FUBAR with
the edit function.
The LS was roundly criticized for looking too “Benz-like” initially but as far as the US market is concerned that was really the only criticism. However, in the end, that clearly worked in its favor. The dealership experience was just as important as the product and it delivered (and continues to do so) and inspired others to attempt to improve theirs as well.
While the current Lexus sedan flagship is selling in significantly smaller numbers than the LS400 did, it is in many ways an even more impressive vehicle, and Lexus realizes that a luxury car company NEEDS to have a flagship at the top, something Cadillac for example does not (not counting the Escalade, which is pretty much the flagship but not really any more than a rebadged vehicle sold in two other “lesser” showrooms that sometimes even share a lot). Whether or not that flagship is a sales success or hugely profitable is somewhat immaterial, it merely needs to represent the “goal” and remain aspirational. With the LS400, Lexus managed two things, first to have a flagship and second to actually sell that flagship in significant numbers. One wonders if they had started with a third model in the lineup between the ES and LS, if the LS would have seen the success it did.
And yes, an excellent write-up, Brendan; if interested in more, there is a book called “The Lexus Story” by Jonathan Mahler (publ. 2004) that goes into the idea, creation, inspiration, and execution of every part of Lexus including of course the vehicles, but also the dealerships (building and ethos) that still define the brand today. It’s an excellent read and highly recommended.
Thanks Jim! I think I’ll have to check out that book!
In 1988, my wife started work as an interpreter/translator for a Japanese company just opening its doors in the U.S. The President of the company had gotten a development loan from the local government as an incentive to open his factory there, so he didn’t want to appear -too- successful to them. Thus he decided Cadillac and Oldsmobile unsuitable for his image. He therefore carefully chose a fully-loaded 1988 Chevy Caprice Classic as his personal vehicle. Both he and I came to hate that car because it would never start if the weather was cold, or even cool. It was a carbureted 305 V8. He hated it because it would never ever start, and I hated it because it became my job to fight with the dealership about it. I became personally embarrassed by the sad quality of the car and the indifference of the dealership. I wanted to be proud of America in the face of foreigners but damn, GM sure made it hard.
Anyhow, after two years of annoyance, he dumped it and bought an LS400, image be damned. I got to drive it quite a lot and I was stunned. It made the Mercedes I’d been in seem like I was riding in a bus where durability was more important than comfort, and it made American cars seem….pathetic… with their cheap plastic imitation wood and general K-Mart ambience.
It was so smooth, and so quiet. I had to be very careful to pay attention to my speed; there was no discernible difference between driving 40 and driving 90, so you had to actually look at the speedometer to stay legal. It really did seem like the ideal of what a car should be. I tried to imagine Cadillac building a car of the same level of quality….and couldn’t.
I will say that I agree that the Tesla is this generation’s equivalent in changing the automotive landscape. Both produce the same feeling that all other manufacturers are just doing it wrong and that they need to up their game or die…
Excellent write-up on a seminal car, and one that has been long overdue.
The timing of the LS was perfect: American luxury car buyers were disappointed in the home-town brands in rapidly growing numbers. On the West Coast, Cadillac and Lincoln were essentially toast. This was the perfect alternative to the more expensive Germans. And by this time, Toyota’s reputation for quality and reliability were well known, another key fact.
If Toyota had done this much earlier, it would very likely have been much less successful.
The LS completely changed the luxury car market. MBZ had to drop prices and abandon their all-out engineering priority in order to compete. It had the effect of making luxury cars more affordable, to the point now where they are now remarkably affordable, due to low interest rates and leases. But their image is not as exclusive as it once was. And as mainstream brands continue to increase their content, the distinction becomes less and less.
Tesla has of course changed the equation again, by redefining what is desirable: the highest technology and improved environmental impact, without the trappings of what used to define “luxury”. In fact, that name is overdue to be retired, as it carries connotations that are increasingly irrelevant.
I have to agree with Paul here, “luxury” is only well-defined when society is well-defined. I heard it described on this site once regarding the “GM-Sloan Ladder” that…
Chevrolet was for the line workers
Pontiac was for the line Supervisors
Oldsmobile was for the Middle Managers
Buick was for the Front Office Management
Cadillac was for the Business Owners
With the breakdown of US manufacturing and the on-going transition to Artificial Intelligence, class-warfare, gig-economy, and every other symptom that plagues the 21st century economy there is no more true luxury cars outside of the Rolls Royce, Ferrari, and Bentley echelon and even then “real luxury” today is a private jet. Take a look at the airport in Las Vegas during the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight a few years ago.
https://www.si.com/extra-mustard/2015/05/03/floyd-mayweather-manny-pacquiao-private-planes-airport-photos
This is Modern Luxury. Cars are so 20th century. Remember this photo too when these same people (attempt to) force you out of your gas-powered cars and into electric, hydrogen, etc. powered cars by taxes, laws. and other regulations.
Lexus’ impact on the German luxury brands, especially Mercedes-Benz as the most established “we can charge whatever we want and people will buy”, was profound. M-B’s cost-cutting in the late-1990s/early-2000s embarrassingly evident in many of its cars, and it’s only been in more recent years that the playing field has largely flattened. These days, basically every luxury brand will do most things well, but most each one excels in several areas and lacks in others.
Brendan,
Have you ever heard of Matt Farah from “The Smoking Gun?” He had (or still has, I think) a 1996 2nd-generation LS400 that went a million miles.
https://www.autotrader.com/car-news/ive-been-using-950000-mile-lexus-daily-driver-262222
Yes I actually have! I believe Tyson Hugie featured him on his blog!
As a person from the industry, I won’t call Lexus LS as the greatest hit, it’s a good attempt but it is still second tier.
The greatest hit would be a Lexus LS with the best design in the world, and most likely Mercedes W126 is one step closer ( but, its design is still a cut below Jaguar, Rover, or some Detroit brands ) However, Lexus LS has a great influence on the car industry, but it doesn’t make Lexus LS itself greatest.
Ideally, the greatest hit in the industry in the past 50 years would be an automobile with the best design, best engineering, well made, with a great influence on the industry. I don’t think such an automobile exists.
If we were to count a Greatest Hit as a high-end car that is still worth something when it’s 10 years old, has anyone else made one of those? M-B and the other German companies went on a cost-cutting binge and their high end stuff sells for cents on the dollar on the used market, certainly once the warranty is out. The Americans can’t seem to come up with something that is credible in that price class when its brand new, let alone old.
Lexus has done what nobody else has done (yet). They built a new brand around a flagship car. 30 years later the brand is still there, and so is the flagship. And even if they are not the most exciting things in the world, they are universally recognized as top quality cars no matter how old they are.
The 2005-2006 Ford GT has appreciated in value.
1987 Buick GNX
Most Ferraris and Porsche 911 and Carrera GT’s hold their value well.
Not sure I would nominate any of the as a greatest hit though because of low volume and sales.
If Buick was smart and used the Grand National and GNX lines to build an American alternative to Audi. Or a four-wheeled alternative to Harley Davidson it could have qualified.
The GN and the GNX were a dead cat bounce.
Buick has tried to sell itself as an upscale, classy performance brand for 50 years, with no success.
The four wheeled alternative to a Harley is a pickup truck, which Buick dealers have aplenty in the GMC brand.
If every Camaro, Mustang, Challenger, Charger, and 300 became a Buick today, GMC would still outsell Buick. There’s no reason to think a similar Buick branded car would be anything other than sales poison.
Once upon a time, Mercedes has the reputation like a cashier’s check on wheels. Quite a different world we are living in these days,
Excellent and thought-provoking writeup, and comments as well. I always have difficulty picking just one of anything, so I’d say there’s a trifecta of “Greatest Hits”. This Lexus, the Ford Explorer and the Tesla Model S. The LS reinvented the luxury car and destroyed any final perception of Japanese cars as “cheap”. The Explorer not only made SUV’s ubiquitous but I think also changed perceptions of domestic cars among many who had previously converted to imports. I thought of the Chrysler minivan instead of the Explorer, but ultimately, the SUV and its CUV offspring have been a longer lasting and more significant global impact than minivans. And the Tesla? I think it’s obvious, American technology AND manufacturing, the first successful automotive startup (outside China) since I don’t know when, and of course, those electrons.
If there’s room for a fourth car, I’d add the VW Golf. Not the first transverse FWD car but hugely successful all over the world, long-lived in what’s really the same segment without being reinvented, and finally, it transformed VW from a one-trick pony (rear-engined air-cooled Beetle derivatives) to a full line and multi-brand company like GM at its prime. OK, though Top 5 has a nice ring to it, I’ll quit now. Thanks again Brendan! (By the way, I’m not sure I’ve even sat in an LS let alone ridden in one)
Three decades later, it’s still a beautiful car…and Lexus styling went from beautiful to utterly gorgeous with the SC400 coupe. Brendan, your research is much appreciated
Good work, kid.
Thanks Tony. And I agree, the SC400 was indeed a gorgeous and much under-appreciated car!
I’m going to add the SC430 as being an under appreciated Lexus design as well. It’s really grown on me these last 15 years….
I am learning a lot from this; thanks to Brendan and the various commenters. Some good insight here.
What interests me most is the restrained style of the LS. I admired it back then but it did not excite or much interest me. Same with the Mercedes W124. But now those two cars in particular look especially good. The LS looks traditional; the 124 taut. Both are very discreet. Both have very sensible and attractive interiors. And both had/have very high quality material and assembly. These were (sorry for the cliche) timeless designs.
And the contemporary successor models from the same manufacturers are so disappointing by comparison. Over complicated. Silly (Lexus) or generic (MB) styling. Neither car significant of anything nor important. Did the manufacturers squander the franchise established by such impressive cars?
I comb ads and especially BAT for the LS (plus SC400/300) and 124 of thirty years ago. The design of the current offerings from Lexus and Mercedes interest me not a whit.
The funny thing about design is that restraint is both a hindrance and a help.
Look at fashion: A crazy, over-the-top dress looks great on the runway or the red carpet. But a Chanel little black dress is the go-to standard for women. We remember Chanel, but who remembers Balmain, or Schiaparelli, or a lot of the others?
I remember Balmain! The 1960s designs still look very neatly and elegantly tailored to me. I had a Balmain menswear jacket some years back. It was delightfully light and easy to wear.
“ And the contemporary successor models from the same manufacturers are so disappointing by comparison. Over complicated. ”
I believe (without doing any research to support my theory) that we can blame the influence of the Chinese market for this. The Chinese, generally speaking are nouveau riche and want to display the fact that they can afford the newest and most expensive vehicles. Arguably, you could relate that trend to the ostentation of American cars in the 1950’s when Americans suddenly had plenty of money to splash around after the Depression years and the war finally ended.
The details of the styling are different this time around but the “Hey! Lookee Here!” design approach is the same.
Lokki,
I am wondering what the excuse will be going forward for Cadillac not creating a “retro” themed 1959 Eldorado or 1969 Eldorado. I would even accept a retro Brougham at this point. The excuse for years was “bad aerodynamics” poor fuel economy and “people can get hurt on the emblems if the car hits them.” But now with the combination of electrics, the automatic hood camber in case of accident on the current Buick Regal, and breakaway plasti-chrome can I finally get a “real” Cadillac? There is too much heritage and technology in GM and Cadillac for this not to happen. It was a slap in the face when Cadillac’s first EV was a Volt Coupe. Particularly when the retro Mustang and Challenger sell so well. Can we please have retro-luxury “Real Cadillac” from Cadillac?
The dealership experience can’t be understated. In the early ’00s, mother was looking at a loaded-up Camry V-6, but was horribly put off by Toyota dealers. I suggested she check out an ES300. It was just a few bucks more (can’t remember exactly) but the first Lexus dealer she went to treated her so well that she bought on the spot.
Featured Taupe Metallic 1992 LS 400 photographed on Larimer Street in Denver, Colorado – September 2019
Um, not Larimer Street. It’s Market Street close to 15th Street. I used to work at P.F. Chang’s China Bistro in the late 1990s (you can see the wall motif in the background in the second photo—that’s next to P.F. Chang’s). I lived on Wazee and 16th next to Tattered Cover Book Store for four years so I know this area very well.
It seems to me that a very important side benefit to Toyota from the exercise of developing Lexus was the expansion and sharpening of their market research skills. By studying every tiny detail in such depth they gained a very strong understanding of what American buyers really thought they wanted and what they appreciated. The same goes for the sales process and after sale service. I looks like Toyota and Lexus have continued this discipline because very few of their new product launches miss the market. And, while continuous improvement (kaizen) has always been a core principal strong market knowledge has shown where they need to concentrate on improvement.
I do not think it is an overstatement to say that Toyota (and Lexus) have the most in depth understanding of the American auto market of any company in the world. They seem to understand who buys, who uses and how, the image of their products in the market, and what it takes to keep customers coming back. No one else seems to really have all that figured out.
JdN, Melody Lee, and Cadillac were so close by moving out of the Detroit silo to NYC, opening a coffee shop and staring at twenty year old Crown Victoria’s and Nissan badged Chevrolet City Expresses painted yellow all day.
Wait, your telling me Starbucks isn’t really wholly owned and a front for Toyota to perform market research in?
We actually need to do actual work? That will take years to develop? Quarterly results are due in two weeks? Sales are down? “Quick cancel our Caprice PPV and Chevrolet City Express. I am tried of seeing them all painted yellow!”
Fun fact: Lexus engineers replaced air in the tyres with nitrogen to eliminate resonance at high speed.I read that in LJK Setright´s review of the vehicle in Car in 1989, one of the best pieces of motoring journalism I ever set eyes on. Worthy of the car in question.
The image showing the first Lexus and the latest one says too much. The new car might be good in lots of ways; the styling is a horror while the 1989 car still looks utterly correct. If you see the first LS in the metal notice the way the brightwork is handled: almost no seams or joins. It´s astonishing. They don´t do that now.
And the front end on this one doesn’t look like an angry catfish.
The LS was a huge hit and the original still looks good in 2019.
The big thing with the LS was how Toyota handled any issues to it. I remember reading about a owner of a new 1990 LS who lived well away from a Lexus service center and had the car break down. Toyota flew a tech in with tools and parts and this guy went to the customer’s home and fixed it there. Benz or BMW would not have done that.
I work with folks that bought their first lexus vehicles in the 1990’s and have kept buying them because of the dealer experience
As a 77 year old male car guy who’s owned or driven nearly every car brand, I can tell you that our 1999 LS400 is, shall I say “perfect”. Bought it from the original owner with 66K on it and now at over 213K. The only issues we’ve ever had were the right front wheel bearing failed (slowly) and the cabin temperature readout back lights failed. The latter being a devil to replace or even find, yet only a problem at night. Lack of lube in the tilt steering mechanism causing a squeak, but one that I can service myself and lastly, the console lighter has never worked. Our only normal major outlays were for timing belt/waterpump/sparkplugs, tires, batteries and belts. We have run 87 octane fuel only and at 79 mph, it still gets 31. mpg! The best part of ownership is that my wife, who cares less about cars, just loves it, as do I. The only thing I’ve done for my part, is to follow the owner’s manual service recommendations to the letter. We’d buy another 1999 or 2000 in a heartbeat. Oh…one downside; the GPS cannot be updated, but it works flawlessly.
There is an exact copy of the lead photo car that I pass by regularly, that is in immaculate condition! Everything said about how well it has aged is true!
I have owned my 95 LS400 for 20+ years and it still runs and looks like new at 107,000 miles. I also have a BMW and a MB. The LS rides smoother and quieter. It gets over 30 mpg highway. The luxury drive and handling is outstanding. Besides oil & filter changes, brake pads, battery, tires- a starter was replaced with the 90k timing belt/wp service. A gem of a car!
I join many others in praising this piece, Mr Saur. Great work.
Auto enthusiasts like CCer’s tend to forget that the Great Unwashed might know a bunch of stuff we think only we know, such as that Eurohighbrows were hugely expensive to keep running, and not so very reliable. They did know this. They also knew that Toyota had become the byword for reliability. Enthusiasts also assume wrongly that rich folk care less about such matters because they are rich. They do. After all, that’s goodly part of how they got rich in the first place.
The relentlessly research-driven Toyota worked this out. So when they released a car that was absolutely and correctly feted in the press, it got their attention and they bought it. To repurpose an idea from elsewhere, to do so was a smart investment. This old barge wasn’t just mildly superior to the Euro and US competition – it was in every possible way a greatly superior product. And it was priced in such a way as to make me wonder if Toyota wasn’t prepared to take a loss on the first model (to establish the brand) as it reputedly did on the first Prius.
I am a contrarian about the styling. Sure, it seems derivative, but only if you didn’t see the many high-level Toyotas leading to it: seen thus, it’s just a logical extension of them. And more, in its own fashion, it is a perfectly good-looking car, still now. Toyota has too often been accused of producing bland vehicles but a careful look at lots of its “dull” stuff reveals quietly handsome cars.
I was curious of the article declaring the Lexus as being so important, but in recent years, I have to admit that Toyota did this right.
Although a Lexus doesn’t exact;y float my boat for an exciting ride, as my eyesight has suffered significantly these last two years, an “exciting” ride is the least of my concerns!
I would own and drive any Lexus nowadays! The best way I can describe my feelings about their cars is: Quiet, unobtrusive, confident luxury.
Someday, after I say goodbye to my 2012 Impala, who knows what I will (be able to) drive by then!
The LS is classy and distinguishable from all the other luxury brand cars. What impressed me the most is the standard features that the other brands charge thousands of dollars for.
I own a 3rd generation LS, purchased it used with 49k miles and now it has 260k miles. No major issues.
My wife owns a BMW that is 12 years old and she had to take it in for a recall and they would not give her a loaner. I took my car in not too long ago and I got a loaner, my car is 15 years old. Lexus customer service is 2nd to none.
Great article. Toyota put forth a thorough effort to compete directly with Mercedes-Benz. Meanwhile, GM made a half-hearted effort with the first-generation Seville.
It’s no wonder Lexus is now a top-tier brand in North America, while Cadillac is becoming increasingly irrelevant in its home market.
While these are lovely cars I almost never ever see them on the roads anymore which puzzles me.
I think one of the hallmarks of a really great car is that it makes you take notice even if it’s not your kind of car. When the U10 LS400 debuted, big, comfort-oriented luxury sedans with automatic transmissions were not my usual cup of tea (the subsequent SC was closer to my wheelhouse), but looking at its virtues and reading the almost universally ecstatic U.S. reviews, it made me think maybe Toyota had a point. It was short on flash and “heritage” (a point the British press inevitably hammered on to try to make the case for the Jaguar XJ40, an inferior car in nearly every quantifiable respect), but it was well-supplied with substance, which counts for a lot.
I’m not sure I agree that it was Japan’s answer to the American luxury car. (The contemporary S140 Crown, which shared some mechanical components with the LS400, seems a stronger contender for that title.) The target was clearly Mercedes-Benz, leavened by Japanese tastes that happened to coincide usefully with American ones, like a willingness to sacrifice Teutonic suspension damping for less harshness at legal speeds. Honda made some similar choices with the original Legend, for similar reasons. (Of course, the Legend ended up being mostly a U.S.-market product, since it failed to register in any meaningful way in the domestic market, but Honda had clearly hoped for more JDM sales than they got, including making some significant compromises that they probably wouldn’t have bothered with for the U.S. or Western European markets.)
I think Toyota’s biggest miscue with the LS was not going ahead with a long-wheelbase LS500L version offering the 5-liter 1GZ-FE V-12. Given the trends in the economy of the time, I can see why they didn’t, and in terms of actual sales it didn’t matter much, but that wouldn’t have been the point. Lacking that senior version kept Lexus from stepping into the ultra-lux snob segment, which allowed rivals some room to say, “Well, I guess the LS400 is fine for middle-management types, but serious players have a Mercedes 600SEL.” An LS500L might still have been an also-ran in that niche, but it would have demonstrated that Lexus was determined to be a serious player and squelched some of the residual “fat Camry” sneering.
I’m finally reading this and am glad I did. Wonderful find on the pristine original LS and you took full advantage of it with a great summation of the introduction of Lexus. It really was a remarkable car.
I remember around that time that it seemed like the Japanese might take over the world again, economically this time and by playing the industrial capitalism game better than the West. The flawless introduction of Lexus certainly contributed to that sense. Things didn’t work out with Japan quite as expected, but Lexus and Toyota have mostly gone from strength to strength.
I noticed the aftermarket steering wheel cover on your subject car is an amazing match to the wood and upholstery color of the car. That car has received some TLC!
Yep aq great car in the grand scheme of things automotive and the entire Lexus range got the same treatment of careful development just look ay the effort taken in making the wide body Camry quiet it was always destined to wear Lexus badges too oil driven cooling fan and very thick sound deadener throughout then decontented to be the bread and butter Camry for the masses, Toyota took their new luxury brand very seriously indeed while Honda simply rebadged the regular lineup as did Nissan, Mazdas luxury effort was stillborn and the Germans ran around in shock.
An excellent write up on a car that showed (and still shows) everyone else how it’s done. The LS 400 still looks great today, and it’s a testament to Toyota that Lexus continues to succeed on the strengths of this one original car. I’d choose one of these over a newer American or German luxury car any day.
Not the fastest, or most exciting to drive, but the best car ever made.
We purchased our 1999 LS400 w/GPS and usual options like heated seats in 2007 with 66,000 miles on it. One owner who serviced it regularly. Here’s our take on this very fine automobile. We now have 215,000 miles on it and we only use 87 branded fuel and it makes 30-31 mpg at 79 mph! Running gear is untouched other than timing belt/water/pump/plugs and one front wheel bearing. We’ve never had a Lexus dealer touch it; instead used Toyota or independent shops. Being a boat mechanic, I do some things myself, like air filters, windshield fluid tank, any basic maintenance and so forth with no problems. We’ve installed five windshields but found the best ones are from Safelite, which cost under $240 installed. Except one devilish situation: the cabin temp/clock back lighting has failed. I finally went to the Lexus Owners Club for advice and found a tutorial on removing the GPS/Audio equipment, but cannot find the lamps online other than Maplin in the UK. I’ve contacted that company and awaiting information on availability. This is a poor piece of engineering in that it’s not an easy fix for the owner. Other than this, it’s the best car we’ve ever owned of about 50 so far. As long as we can get parts, we’ll keep driving it and loving every mile. And gawd, it handles great and fast as we need to go.