Lexus LS600h Car Review

Facts At A Glance
Car: Lexus LS600h
Prices: £85,000-£87,000 - on the road [est]
Insurance Group: 20
Emissions: 219g/km
Performance: 0-60mph 6.3s / Max Speed 155mph
Fuel Consumption: (combined) 30.4mpg
Safety: Twin front & side, curtain, knee airbags, ABS, VSC, VDIM, PreCrash, Advanced Obstacle Detection, Lane-Keeping Assist
Dimensions: (length/width/height) 5030/1875/1465mm

HIGH-BORN HYBRID

Our Rating: 8.3 / 10

Most 2.4 tonne, 450bhp cars appear only marginally more environmentally friendly than the Exxon Valdez. Here’s one that’s very different. Jonathan Crouch runs the rule over the improved Lexus LS600h

Given that perception is often more important than actuality, perhaps few need question the green credentials of this improved Lexus LS600h. It makes a brilliant statement for company chairmen and politicians who don’t want to give up the luxuries but need to wear their environmental badge conspicuously. Salving the conscience has never been so cosseting.

There have been some tweaks to this car for the latest model year but they don’t add up to much. A styling nip and tuck, a hybrid Drive system that now meets Euro V emissions standards, more compact hybrid battery packaging and a new ECO driving mode with efficiency-adjusted throttle and air conditioning performance. Otherwise, it’s as you were, this remaining the only hybrid offering in the super-luxury saloon sector. For efficiency-minded boardroom buyers, it’s this or something with a diesel engine.

With a 5.0-litre V8 under the bonnet, this doesn’t seem the obvious candidate for the moneyed tree hugger but if you’ve ever driven either the RX450h or the GS450h, you’ll know that these petrol/electric hybrids can genuinely live up to what seem like implausible claims.

Although this may be a hybrid, it’s a luxury car first and foremost and one of the key requirements for a car of this ilk is plenty of power to put the proletariat in its place. The LS600h certainly doesn’t disappoint in this regard. There’s a total of 439bhp on tap, courtesy of the now Euro V-compatible 388bhp 5.0-litre V8 petrol engine and a 221bhp electric motor which part combine to devastating effect. Drive the Lexus LS600h as if you stole it and it will accelerate to 60mph in 6.0 seconds and run on to an electronically limited top speed of 155mph.

Unlike the LS460 petrol model, the hybrid gets a clever variable transmission that’s mated to a Torsen differential that divides the engine’s power between the front and rear wheels. Yes, you read that right. This car is a four-wheel drive. As you’d expect from Lexus, the LS600h majors on refinement and the silent wafting around town on just the electric motor will require vigilance as pedestrians won’t hear it coming. Don’t expect a sports car, as the 2,355kg kerb weight means this is a hefty piece of automotive real estate, but the LS600h can corner with some tenacity when pushed.

There are a few styling changes on the latest version of this car – but they’re pretty minor. Lexus experts will recognise the redesigned four-bar grille and front bumper with revised air intakes and foglamps. The headlamps have a smarter running light design and are finished in Lexus hybrid blue, giving the car a distinctive appearance befitting its flagship status. There are also revised door mirrors that incorporate twin LED turn signals and puddle lamps, with chrome highlights.

This generation LS model was the first to really have its own distinct design, rather than trying to copy other cars. As before, the look of this LS could be nothing other than Japanese and although it’s very different in execution to the likes of BMW, Audi and Mercedes, it’s no less effective. Although the fascia could never be described as pretty, being illuminated like Shinjuku at night, it’s easy to access all the major functions of which there are a lot.

In the cabin the instrument binnacle has been revised to include a new full colour, TFT LCD display. A new meter design features a three-ring analogue dial with a central speedometer, a tachometer and coolant temperature gauge to the left, and a fuel gauge and hybrid system indicator to the right. A display in the centre of the speedometer can be customised to display vehicle information, turn-by-turn navigation instructions and hybrid system status. B