2018 Lexus LC 500
As a luxury high-performance flagshgip coupe, the Lexus LC 500 must not only feature enough style to attract attention to the brand; but it also needs to back that up with impressive performance. Both keep buyers happy, and get the automotive press like us excited. So, let’s find out if this all-new luxury missile delivers.
Well, this 2018 Lexus LC 500 certainly has the level of refinement you expect in a top-tier automobile. And remarkably, Lexus was able to keep most of the LF-LC concept’s dynamic lines in place; as the LC looks better in person than we ever imagined.
And that includes the ultra-slim LED headlights, and the best interpretation yet, of Lexus’ controversial spindle grille. From the rear, there are hints of the LFA supercar. But from any angle, it’s one slick, ultra-modern looking piece of automotive sculpture, that holds its own against the best in sheet-metal benders like Aston Martin.
Standard wheels are 20-inches, but you’ve come this far, so why not opt for the 21s?
But as modern as the exterior is, the interior is spiced with retro flavor. Lexus designers were allowed to have some fun here, and it shows; as they’ve managed to infuse it with a mishmash of mid-century automotive Detroit clichés. It’s way cool!
The very linear dash has a flowing design highlighted by chrome-trimmed controls, horizontal vents, sharp angles, grab handles, and well-integrated infotainment.
There are mini-stalks behind the wheel for some controls, while audio inputs reside on the console; unfortunately, so does Lexus’ not terrific touchpad controller. It all combines for a beautiful, modern space, with a time warp sense of a bygone era.
Front seats are very luxurious and comfortable, though there’s not much space in the rear for taking along friends. It’s clearly at 2+2. Which makes it perfect for using the space packing for weekend getaways with your significant other, as there’s just 5.4 cubic-ft. of room in the trunk.
Fire up the engine, and there’s a nice powerful burble coming through the dual exhaust tips.
That audio comes from a 471-horsepower 5.0-liter normally-aspirated V8 with 398 lb-ft. of torque. A 10-speed Sport Direct Shift transmission channels all of the goodness to the rear wheels. A 3.5-liter V6-based hybrid is coming as well.
But the V8 goes like a rocket, and even feels like one blasting off the line. We leapt to 60 in 5.0-seconds flat, with just a touch of wheel-spin at launch.
The transmission rifles through gears with CVT-like smoothness, and you hear virtually nothing in the cabin except for some fantastic V8 exhaust notes that sound more like a 60’s muscle car than an Asian luxury coupe. The ¼-mile run was 13.3 seconds of utter smoothness at 110 miles-per-hour.
As for handling, well, there’s a lot to love; but there’s no getting around the fact that the LC is a heavy beast. Curb weight is 4,280-lbs.
You have to engage Sport+ for it to feel really serious, and even then you mostly notice it in throttle response and steering, as handling stays amazingly flat no matter what mode you’re in.
Steering feel is awesome, something we don’t say often, and certainly not in reference to a big Lexus. It is very quick and direct. There is a slight understeer tendency, but plenty of mid-range torque to overcome it with just a quick stab of the throttle.
We averaged very consistently short 105-foot stops from 60. However, brake pedal feel was very inconsistent. Yet, it didn’t affect the numbers.
Away from the track, Comfort mode keeps thing pleasant and inoffensive in every way, for that true Lexus experience; with barely any noise seeping into the cabin, and all of the serenity of floating through outer space.
Government Fuel Economy Ratings are 16-City, 26-Highway, and 19-Combined; which we almost matched exactly at 18.9 miles-per-gallon of Premium.
A $92,995 base price will keep sales limited, but it’s a relative bargain for those who are able to enjoy the finer things in life; fully competitive with cars costing 50-grand more.
So the 2018 LC 500 does indeed deliver; it’s quite the personal-luxury 2+2 euro-styled grand-touring flagship coupe, that fully encapsulates all that Lexus is about, yet at the same time points to where they’re undoubtedly headed.
Specifications
- Engine: 5.0 liter
- Horsepower: 471
- Torque: 398 lb-ft.
- 0-60 mph: 5.0 seconds
- 1/4 mile: 13.3 seconds @ 110 mph
- EPA: 16 mpg city / 26 mpg highway
2024 GMC Hummer EV SUV
It May Not Make A Whole Lot Of Sense, But It’s Still An Awesome Vehicle
The reborn GMC Hummer all-electric pickup delivered all the off-road chops we expect from a Hummer, plus the supercar-like acceleration of a high-performance EV that we didn’t expect. Well, now things have come full circle, as the Hummer is once again an SUV. So, let’s burn up some rubber, and some electrons, and learn what’s next for Hummer.
What a roller coaster the Hummer has been on. In seemingly no time at all it went from aspirational military-inspired ruggedness, to the poster boy for excess and environmental irresponsibility; and then just as quickly, it disappeared altogether as a casualty of GM’s 2009 bankruptcy.
Well, then under the GMC banner, the 2022 Hummer EV Pickup flipped the script by becoming the ultimate pollution-free EV at a time when EVs were just becoming mainstream. Since this 2024 GMC Hummer EV SUV more closely resembles the original, it looks like we’ve come full circle.
Most of the same stuff that made the pickup version so unique and so awesome are here: interactive LED lighting, Crab Walk, Super Cruise, Extract Mode, Watts to Freedom… just slightly less of it as the SUV version has four fewer modules in its double-stacked battery assemblies that make up this Ultium platform.
This 3X uses the same three-motor arrangement as the pickup, one up front and two in the rear, but “only” 830 horsepower here, due to the smaller battery; though 11,500 lbs. of torque is plenty enough for any land-based automotive task we can imagine. As to range, if you opt for the Extreme Off-Road package, which comes with mud-terrain tires, you’ll be limited to just 298 miles; but the standard setup here is rated for 314.
We saw as much as 305 available in the gauge display, so we planned a 302-mile road trip and still had an indicated 46 miles remaining at the end of it, putting us on pace for a range of 348 miles.
It can be a handful when you give it a foot-full, as Watts to Freedom launches are no joke.
With a 9-inch-shorter wheelbase, the SUV’s tidier package makes for better off-roading agility; that is, if you’re comfortable hammering through trails in your six-figure EV showpiece. And the SUV has also brought a few new things to the Hummer portfolio such as satellite-based trail mapping as part of the myGMC app and a Power Station onboard generator that gives you 19.2-kW of power for charging things out on the trail, including other EVs.
Much like the Hummer EV Pickup, it can be a handful when you give it a foot-full, as Watts to Freedom launches are no joke. Then only 3.6 seconds to 60 for a borderline cinematic experience with unique displays and sounds along for the ride.
Nothing is held back here. Full power is unleashed whether there’s enough grip for it or not, so you tend to get pulled in different directions as you take off and, for the most part, the whole way down the track. We cleared the quarter in 12.3 seconds at 112 mph as power never really lets up.
It’s easy to say that an 8,500-lbs. vehicle probably shouldn’t be moving that fast, but a few trips through our handling course reveals it has more than enough stuff to handle that weight. If you’re not afraid of some body roll, you can push it quite hard, and it will turn in without issues; the four-wheel steering clearly helps. And it dealt with that weight just fine in panic braking runs too, stopping us from 60 in a respectable 130 feet with no drama.
With everything forward of the rear seats the same as the Hummer Pickup, the interior is very familiar. There’s plenty of comfort and space for three in the rear seats, plus lots of flexibility. Cargo area is accessed through a side-opening, power-operated door that reveals 35.9 cubic-feet of space, which expands to 81.8 cubic-feet with the seatbacks folded; and of course, there’s also 11.3 cubic-feet in the front under hood cargo area.
But even with the shift to battery power, this Hummer remains very thirsty, using 63 kWh of energy per 100 miles. Pricing for this 3X starts at $106,945, the two-motor 2X at $98,845. Both the same as the Pickup.
While it can seem more ridiculous than practical, it’s hard not to love the reborn Hummer. Not only is it a purely unique automotive experience, but it’s a rolling example of what’s possible with battery power, while at the same time being incredibly fun and surprisingly easy to drive. The 2024 GMC Hummer EV SUV delivers much the same macho bravado of the original Hummer H1, but does it for a new era.
Specifications
As Tested
- Motor Setup: Tri Motor
- Battery Size: 212 kWh
- Horsepower: 830
- EPA Range: 298 miles
- 0-60 mph: 3.6 seconds
- 1/4 Mile: 12.3 seconds at 112 mph
- Braking, 60-0: 130 feet (avg)
- MW Test Loop: ~ 349 miles