Driven: 2012 Lexus GS F Sport

Hot or not?

Open the driver’s door. Slide into the comfortable, red, F Sport leather upholstered seats. Foot on the brake. Press the ‘Start‘ button. And proceed to fill your ears with...silence?

Whilst the F Sport looks the part, with a revised, super aggressive front end, you still have to remember one crucial point. It might be hard to grasp for those not keeping up with Toyota and Lexus’ movements but this car, well, it’s a hybrid.

“Hybrid?!“, you gasp. Yes, it might weigh just under 2 tonnes but this family saloon is able to rock around town using electricity alone, and is also capable of catapulting you to 62 miles an hour in a scant 5.9 seconds. Allow me to explain why this Lexus – with siblings including the IS-F and LFA – possesses more than just witchcraft and wizardry.

Let’s start on the outside; 19-inch alloys, F Sport badging, front grille and bumper and lip spoiler help to create a rather mean look and with grey metallic paint, you’ll surely be mistaken for your hood’s local merchandise supplier. The L-finesse design philosophy gives road presence by the bucketload and coupled with a bank of LED lights a la CT200h, it means that if you catch the GS in your rearview you’ll probably make a mess in your unders.

The view from the side and rear haunches isn’t as pleasant – the word ‘bulky‘ springs to mind and from high up in the Austrian mountains where this launch took place, the GS seems a little out of place attempting to duck and dive between the carved out canyon corners. Again, without wanting to sound repetitive, you need to remember you’re driving a hefty vehicle and especially with the entry-level GS 250h sans F Sport, the car doesn’t carry its weight very well.

Of course what would a Lexus be without room in the boot for a set of golf clubs. Or shotguns. Or bags of narcotic. Thanks to the compact rear multi-link suspension and clever repositioning of the hybrid battery, the GS 250 gains an extra 30 per cent in boot space whilst there is more than 55 per cent extra storage in the boot of the GS 450h, boosting the headline figure to a grand total of 465 litres.

But enough about aesthetics and beauty. Does the ‘hybrid-ness’ of this saloon turn potentially an onroad beast into a bit of a softie?

Behind the wheel

Well, to be a proper fence-percher; yes and no. Let’s focus on the GS 450h as it’s the car that tickled our fancy although a new fuel-efficient, low emissions 2.5-litre V6 does exist for the GS 250. Under its ‘hench’ nose is another V6 but this time it’s an Atkinson cycle petrol engine with next-generation D-4S direct fuel injection. What this gobbledygook translates to is a real-world performance figure of 341bhp.

Press your foot down gently on the fast pedal and you’ll be forgiven for thinking that the press kit is telling porkies. There’s no sound and certainly no neck-snapping performance. EV mode is enabled if the car is driven sedately and for that reason electric driving will be kind on your wallet to the tune of 46.3mpg on average but harsh on your petrolhead brain. And consequently, you’ll find yourself hammering the accelerator once out of the urban jungle.

If you were wanting engine noise, there’s now noise with a mash of the fast pedal. Some say it’s a whine (and they would also say that I’m stealing lines from a chap named Jeremy). Mated to a CVT transmission, the V6 acts more like a drone keeping you in perfect gear ratio but also limiting aural pleasure.

Drive like a hoon, however, and the instrument panel will glow an angry red, informing you of your very un-hybrid-like actions. So if you feel like calming down all you need to do is use the drive mode dial and turn it to the left towards ‘Eco‘. The computers living within will adjust engine power output, throttle opening and air conditioning, so just like Arnold Schwarzenegger on Robaxin, your Terminator GS will chill the hell out and chug less petrol.

Flick the dial to the right once and ‘Sport‘ mode is engaged. The eco-meter is replaced by a rev-meter and the angry red lights return along with more responsive acceleration. Flick the dial clockwise twice and ‘Sport+‘ mode is on the cards, delivering tighter suspension control and improved steering characteristics. To the uninitiated, it’s clear that this car will never be GT86-like in corner handling. There is always body roll and corners become a matter of slowing right down and making sure there’s adequate run-off around corners in case things go awry. But as a machine destined to replace the previous family-fleet saloon, you’ll be ferrying around the relatives in extreme comfort and with a dash of speed.

Splash the cash?

A few final points to touch on before we conclude. The first is to note the phat 12.3-inch central display which is incidentally the largest screen on the auto market. It really is quite beautiful and allows for both the navigation and radio controls to be shown on the same screen at the same time. No more swapping to Kiss FM only to miss your turning. This screen is linked to an ultra premium Mark Levinson sound system which is in a word, incredible. We were lucky enough to get an evening demonstration on some £100,000 Levinson speakers and to say that Coldplay’s on-screen Chris Martin blew our socks off would be a gross understatement.

The second is to touch on safety. Cars in this segment usually lead the way in safety features and the GS with and without F Sport is no different. There’s an Advanced Pre-Crash Safety system, Driver Monitor Camera to slap your wrists if you decide to have a cheeky nap, all-speed Adaptive Cruise Control which operates down to 0mph, Lane-Keep Assist, Blind Spot Monitor, Tyre Pressure monitor and 10 airbags. Phew. Worry no more about little Billy in the back, he’ll be just fine.

And so to cap off. If you’re looking for the ‘Ultimate Driving Machine’, then it’s clear that this is no M Sport killer. If you’re looking for supreme comfort with massaging seats, then it’s clear that this is no Royce. If you’re looking for a cheap family car in bare-bones form then firstly why are you still reading and secondly this car runs the tills at over £50,000.

But if you’re looking for a solid car with badge quality, solid tech, an easy drive, high-speed capability (we took it to 140mph on the derestricted Autobahn) and stunning front-end looks that will make your kids’ school friends shake with fear, then this is the car for you.

The Lexus GS F Sport. Helping to channel your inner gangster.