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2007 Lexus GS 350 RWD Road Test

It’s four o’clock in the morning and I’m sitting in a rather dodgy 24-hourdiner. After a good night with friends, I found myself full of energy for some strange reason. I had already been up for 25 hours, and wasn’t ready to call it quits just yet. I had a Lexus GS 350 parked out front with a full tank and an urge to drive it. “Who’s up for breakfast in Whistler,” is what came sporadically from my mouth. To my surprise I got two yeses. With that we paid the bill and jumped in the car.

Now I’ve been known to pull a stunt like this before, and it usually means that at some point in time I’ll be fighting sleep, and require mass quantities of caffeine and sugar filled drinks to keep from nodding off at the wheel. But as long as there's a steady flow of chit chat coming from beside and behind there usually aren't any problems. This time however, I would not be driving a broken down

The more powerful GS 350 RWD and AWD take the place of the old 300 model. (Photo: Budd Stanley, American Auto Press)

Toyota with no muffler. No, this time I had a brand new Lexus.

As we wound our way up the Sea to Sky highway I came to enjoy thehandling abilities of the RWD GS 350. The big sedan was carving up the corners with ease and powering down the straights with force. The performance side of the car was keeping me wide awake and I found myself enjoying every moment while the smooth ride and comfort of the midsize Lexus was slowly putting my partners in crime to sleep. Regardless of the heavy acceleration and high G cornering capability the Lexus was still smooth and settled enough to lull my passengers

Long journeys are almost too easy in the extra-comfy GS... (Photo: Budd Stanley, American Auto Press)

into dreamland. Even after stopping off in Squamish to top up on Red Bull and coffee, my weary friends succumbed to the comfort of the Lexus, while I strived ahead with a smile on my face and no sign of fatigue.

Unfortunately, the majority of GS 350’s work willbe relegated to transporting big business types to work and back. While they will get there quickly in comfort and style, most won't have time for road trips unless work demands. For those, a day on the job will become much more enjoyable as the highway is where the updated GS shows its true colours, or so I found out. It’s a high-speed cruiser that will hold its own with just about any autobahn burner,

Best in class materials make the GS a luxurious treat. (Photo: Budd Stanley, American Auto Press)

and the 350 is the least powerful of the three GS trim levels.

Now sporting the 3.5L V6 lifted from the IS 350, the GS 350 hasgrown a little in displacement, but has taken great leaps in terms of performance. The 3.5L revs up like a high-strung four-cylinder on steroids (albeit a much more refined one) and makes passing other cars a sport. While cruising through the mountains, I cracked the throttle and watched the fuel efficiency graph stretch across the dash screen while all passengers were left firmly planted into their leather chairs. The tourist in the rental car that was previously in front of me quickly disappeared into the rearview mirror, kind of making me wonder what the V8 equipped GS 430 is capable of. After all, I'm more than satisfied

IS 350's direct injection engine has landed in the GS. (Photo: Budd Stanley, American Auto Press)

with the performance prowess the 350 gave me on the highway.

Big power and RWD means that tractioncan sometimes come into play if the throttle is abused beyond the limits of the tires. I love it, and with the traction control button set to play, the big GS can spark a smile on my face with the greatest of ease. For wet and frozen situations the GS comes with a power/snow button that increases or decreases throttle response to accommodate the conditions. When used in conjunction with the two-step Traction Control setting, the car can be set up to suit a driver's specific tolerances required for the current road conditions. The car must be at a standstill in order to disconnect the TC, mind you, and in order to keep the TC off, the button must be held down for four seconds. Simply pushing the button only allows for a few

Hidden controls have been a source of criticism for Lexus. (Photo: Budd Stanley, American Auto Press)

seconds of freedom before the TC automatically reengages.

The shifter works well in manual shift mode, however the center console armrest gets in the way and makes its operation uncomfortable. Still, it's worth the trouble as power delivery is much more controllable when walking through the gears manually, making the car much more predictable when driving hard and cornering. It is, however, one of the better automatics I’ve driven, as shifts come crisp and quick. It also allows the engine to rev right to the rev limiter, and will even bounce off of it a couple times before engaging the next gear, which is performance you just don’t see in other automatic transmissions. It's unfortunate that the car is not offered with a manual gearbox. If the GS wants to compete with the 5-Series in terms of true performance, and that all-important fun to drive factor, the GS, especially in base 350 guise,

The GS 350 is an elegant looking machine. (Photo: Budd Stanley, American Auto Press)

could could use a manual shifter. Of course, it's understandable that they don't do it, being that they'd probably only experience a take-rate of 1 percent.

The exterior has a distinctly Japanese elegance to it, and like any Lexus enjoys phenomenal fit and finish. The stretched D-pillar reaches out onto the rear trunk lid, lending a performance coupe feel to the car's profile, despite having four doors. Cornering HID headlights make it easier to navigate sharp curves at night, and look great doing it. Subtle chrome accents around the windows and front grille give the GS a hint of class, while the rest of the car is conservatively designed to safely appeal to a larger market of potential customers.

Of course, as a luxury car the GS 350incorporates a lot of top-tier convenience features that enhance the overall experience, although some of these items don't work quite as well as the brochure states. For instance, the rain sensing wiper system is just plain frustrating. This is another

Electroluminescent lighting and brushed metal gauges are cool and sophisticated. (Photo: Budd Stanley, American Auto Press)

high-tech add-on that I just don’t like. They don’t seem to want to wipe the windshield when it’s covered with droplets of water, and will turn on when vision is clear. The sensor is in a bit of an annoying place between the two defroster vents too, which means that the road salt spray from other cars during winter driving tends to dry and collect in this area more easily, blocking the sensor and therefore making the system think the windshield is obscured when it really isn’t. All rather annoying in the end, when I end up flicking the wiper lever more on this car than I would with a cheaper car without the system. When snow gathers on the proximity sensors, the alarms like to go off as well. Having a warning buzzer constantly beeping while trying to drive gets quite irritating. Lexus needs to do a little more cold weather testing before it brings these features to market.

More complaints? Sure, I'm glad you asked. Next, I hate foot emergencybrakes. Why a luxury sedan has the same e-brake system as a domestic truck is beyond me.

Keyless ignition and push button starter are always handy. (Photo: Budd Stanley, American Auto Press)

Toyota seems to like them on all their larger cars for some reason. The GS 350's pedal hangs out beyond the door opening, where I hit it almost every time I stepped inside. Sure if it was engaged, and therefore pressed down it wouldn’t be a problem, but being winter and an automatic, I hardly ever used it and would eventually pay the price with bruised shins.

What else about its interior design? Well, the GS has a rather flat dash with a couple of creases used to break up its somewhat stale styling. Most controls are confined into a very clean, attractive yet straightforward area which surrounds the touch screen navigation and car operations screen. Buttons and heater vents are flush with the surrounding dash, and all work well. Still, as well made as everything is it's a tad boring to look at.

Audio, climate control and other operations are controlled on the touch screen, which I found very successful in pulling my eyeballs from the road while driving. I find that keeping all high usage controls as conventional dials or organized by buttons allows the driver to operate them by feel alone, without taking their

Sometimes all the technology goes too far... (Photo: Budd Stanley, American Auto Press)

eyes off the road. In the GS 350, I was forced to choose an operation display and then take the eyes off the road to read and operate the touch screen. Unfortunately I found myself losing concentration with the road several times while tuning the radio or increasing the fan strength... not good.

With all the high-end sedans, whether they be from Lexus, Audi, BMW,Mercedes-Benz or Infiniti, the engineers always try to ram as many gadgets into the car as possible to show that it’s the leading edge of today’s technology. The climate control in the GS, for instance, was adjustable from three different places, as did the stereo controls. It all felt confusing and unorganized, while at the same time took up an amazing amount of concentration which should have been directed to the road.

Several functions such as mirrors, interior lighting, sun screens and such are hidden in a secret compartment which folds out of the lower dash on the door side of the steering wheel. These controls are hidden away as they are rarely used. When it does come time to adjust something, however, I would suggest that the car be at a stop, as just trying to find the trunk release button is hard enough as it's blocked

Silky smoothness is unparalleled. (Photo: Budd Stanley, American Auto Press)

by the steering wheel (but most drivers won't find the need to open the trunk while driving). When the control panel lowers down, I also found that it rested against my leg, and made operation uncomfortable and difficult. In the beginning it was quite annoying as it took me quite a while to find the mirror controls, however being that these are rarely used thanks to memory functions, hiding them away makes sense and helps keep clutter off of the dash.

As mentioned before, it’s the cars performance and comfort that makes it stand out. Plush leather seats hold the body tight during high-speed cornering, while being very comfortable. Front seats offer three stage heating and cooling, while the rear passengers sit in nearly identical comfort. Seating position is good, and the steering wheel offers an excellent feel. Space can be a little tight, something I found out when a 6'5" of mine just managed to squeeze into the front seat. The trunk is also smaller than some in this class.

Nevertheless, the GS 350 managed to prove itself to me and my friends during our all-night road trip. The car pleased both driver and passengers by offering a fun to drive character for the driver and a silky smooth ride for the passengers. And it was all done in style.

 

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