Lexus GS F Sport on Cup track

The Australian appearance of the new mid-size luxury sedan flagship is the latest in a series of global events and unveilings of what Toyota Motor Corporation  president and CEO Akio Toyoda has described as “The first car of the new generation Lexus.”

The GS first appeared in concept form at the New York motor show in April, followed by the production car’s unveiling at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in August, and the unveiling of the hybrid version at the Frankfurt motor show in September.

Lexus Australia chief executive Tony Cramb describes the all-new GS as “an absolute game changer” and conceded that until now the brand has lacked a serious rival in the category he declared the “core of any prestige brand”.

It’s a category dominated here by the BMW 5 Series and Mercedes-Benz E-Class, which to the end of September had sold 1042 and 1122 cars respectively, versus just 69 sales of the current Lexus GS.

Describing the category as “the core of any prestige brand”, Cramb made it clear that Lexus was banking on not just the GS F Sport but the entire GS range to reenergise the brand bother here and abroad.

“This car is bigger than this car. It signals the regeneration of Lexus as a brand.  It’s the bold new face of Lexus and our rebirth as a franchise,” says Cramb.

Referring to the benchmarking Lexus has done against its German prestige rivals, Cramb says the car’s performance and dynamics had been influenced by the LF-A supercar.

Describing the GS as “easily the best car in the segment to drive”, he adds, “it’s a serious improvement. Much better than the outgoing car.”

The GS F Sport, like the broader GS range is powered by either a 233kW 3.5-litre V6, or a hybridised version of the same engine dubbed that makes an impressive 252kW.  

The hybrid version is being positioned by Lexus as a rival to both the economical diesel engines offered by the Germans, and a performance rival to their V8 offerings. The hybrid V6 is mated to a CVT transmission while the conventional V6 mates to a six-speed auto.

With the car’s launch not expected until the end of the first or beginning of the second quarter next year, Lexus refused to discuss pricing or exact launch timing, but did concede that there would be a delay of up to two months between the launch of the petrol models and that of the hybrid versions.

“Given our recent history you can assume we’re not going to be uncompetitive,” Cramb says. 

Safety and technology features abound in the base car but the GS F Sport adds to this with features such as sports tuned suspension, all-wheel drive, larger front brakes, 19-inch alloy wheels, specific tuning for the transmissions and a raft of high-tech electronic handling aids.