Road test: Lexus GS F

It’s less powerful than its main rivals – but if it’s as mesmeric as it looks, that might not count for much…

26 August 2016

Dare to be different, and all that. The GS F is definitely different, with its slightly unhinged looks picked out here in a natty combination of deep blue paint and bright orange brakes.

It’s daring, too. Here we have a 5.0-litre V8 with much less power than the last versions of the current BMW M5. So by buying one, you risk being the guy eating everyone else’s dust.

Less power in this case is still quite a lot, though. Like 477bhp. And 4.7 seconds is hardly slow. Besides, we all know that vulgar numbers can mean very little – that M5, for example, may pack mongo horsepower, but it’s hardly what you’d call raw and exciting.

The power seems to come in surges, so just when you thought you were going fast you go faster still. As the redline approaches, it’s like a sprinter lunging for the tape – so the depth of pull might not be there, but wring its neck and it’ll give you everything.

There’s no drama to the way it does this, though. There’s a parallel universe in which Lexus V8s are synonymous with drift heroics, but try that sort of thing in the GS F and it’ll tut quietly and pat you on the head.

Having said that, despite having less power than its obvious super-saloon rivals, this is a more entertaining car than most of them. It has traditional values alongside a styling package that’s other-worldly on the outside and classy as hell in the cabin, and in creating it Lexus has managed to add a note of character that takes it beyond the realms of mere facts and figures.

It’s cheaper than the M5, too, at £69,995 – and that’s before you start adding options to the German legend, whereas Lexus gives you more or less everything as standard.

But then it should be cheaper, right? After all, it has less power. And the numbers never lie. Do they?

KEY STATS - Engine: 4,969cc, V8

Transmission 8-speed auto, rear-wheel drive
0-62mph 4.7 seconds
Top speed 168mph (limited)
Weight 1,790kg (Lexus minimum kerbweight)
MPG 25.2
CO2 260g/km
Price £69,995

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Road test: Lexus GS F

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