In the world of the luxury saloons, Germans have reigned supreme for a while now – at least on a global scale, because in North America, Lexus‘ LS is keeping up, if not with Merc’s S-Class, with BMW‘s 7er.
On a generational scale, it wasn’t too long ago that Porsche brought along the Panamera and Jaguar launched the XJ, placing the Lexus LS into an even tighter corner, considering how you’re not exactly spoiled for choice in terms of which version of this car you can buy from a Lexus dealership.
Currently, whether you live in the US or the UK, you’re still limited to two engine choices with the LS. While you might be able to get a long-wheelbase model or an F-Sport trim on the side, the engines are still the same – either the 4.6-liter V8 (aka LS460) or the LS600h hybrid.
Being on the market since 2006 in this form, the XF40-codenamed LS falls behind the S-Class and 7-Series today. The latter is a brand new car, with brand new tech doing crazy cool things like parking all by itself with no one inside. Oh, and wait until the autonomous all-new Audi A8 descends upon the luxury saloon landscape. It’s going to be a “bloodbath”.
While Lexus might communicate that they’re OK with the LS’ performance in the market, they’re not and the fact that they’re planning to build a better looking car just goes to show that they’re tired of taking a back seat to the Germans. In the automotive industry, you can’t afford to lead from behind, this isn’t Starcraft.
So how about this LF-FC Concept-based next-gen LS? It’s got proper door handles, mirrors, wheels and headlights, while the front spoiler now houses a pair of fog lights. The grille has also been slightly modified and comes with a more basic horizontal line pattern.
What do you guys think?
Rendering courtesy of RM Design
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