Lexus GS 350 F Sport 2013 Long-Term Test - 1

Price Guide (as tested): $102,900
Options fitted to test car (not included in above price): See text
Crash rating: N/A
Fuel: 95 RON PULP
Claimed fuel economy (L/100km): 9.7
CO2 emissions (g/km): 225

Long-Term Tests
motoring.com.au aims to make your choice of vehicle easier. Our Editorial section does this via our mix of news, international and local launch reviews as well as our seven-day tests.

From time to time we also take the opportunity to spend more time in a vehicle. These longer term tests can be as short as a couple of weeks, but more recently we've settled on a six-month period as indicative of 'normal' ownership.

Long-term tests give our staff writers and contributors a chance to get to know a car as an owner would. While the car is with us, we pay for fuel, pay for the servicing and generally use and live with the car as a new owner would.

We believe long-term tests give car buyers an added insight into the vehicle on test, but also the qualities behind the brand and nameplate. The extended period also allows us to touch base with the dealer networks in question.

No surprise manufacturers tend to have a love-hate relationship with long-term tests ... Six months is plenty long enough to fall out of love with the latest and greatest, and start to nitpick -- just like real owners do.

Lexus GS 350 F Sport
It’s one thing to inspect, prod and steer a car, but to ask it settle into your daily life is a whole different test scenario.

Forever chasing the spotlight its German peers enjoy, the Lexus GS often finds itself relegated to the shadows. But just what is it that puts the Japanese luxury marque on the backfoot?

The GS’s list price starts at $77,900 (plus on-road costs) for the GS 250 and tops out at $109,900 (plus on-roads) for the GS 350 Sports Luxury. Our long-termer, the mid-spec GS 350 F Sport, retails from $99,900 (plus on-road costs). ‘Our’ test car comes with Mark Levinson audio system and 12.3-inch media display, which brings it up to a total $102,900 (again exclusive of on-road costs).

On paper, it’s got to be a contender. Surely. The GS offers a comparable level of specification and similar engine performance -- and yet it skulks in the shadows cast by the Audi A6, BMW 5 Series and Mercedes-Benz E Class.

Our GS 350 F Sport moves to the purr of a 3.5-litre V6 engine. The engine note is beautiful, and very engaging under heavier throttle applications. It is paired to a six-speed automatic transmission and produces 233kW and 378Nm. Top speed is rated at 235km/h and the sprint to 100km/h, Lexus says, is dealt with in six seconds flat.

Initial pace feels more like a rapid build than a sudden bite. The power delivery is smooth, linear, like a charismatic crooner; and at the wheel, this translates to a relaxed and confident experience.

The interior of the GS 350 is plush. The large leather seats are lounge-like and provide intricate adjustability (16-way electric) including lumber and pelvic support, as well as adjustable, side-hugging bolsters. Seat heating and ventilation is standard across the GS range.

The large leather-clad centre armrest adds to the lounge-suite ensemble. You sit behind the steering wheel, spoilt for technology and comfort, completely enveloped by leather. If it had a coffee machine, I’d have stayed there for days.

I’m quickly impressed by the dynamics of the GS. It is controlled and self-assured, with a beautifully balanced ride. Cornering grip is impressive.

Put your foot down from standstill, and the GS could get a little flighty in the tail, but as the traction control is fast to step in, the balance is redressed with little fuss.

Like the driver aids beneath it (including dynamic rear steering, pre-collision safety system and active cruise control), the GS’s in-cabin technology is equally abundant, though I personally find the 12.3-inch screen a little over the top. This screen dominates the cabin and is the key to navigating most of the on-board technology -- navigation, info, radio, vehicle set-up, media, climate and phone.

In spite of its size, the screen’s visual representation is great. The mouse-like control pad that you use to navigate, however, is not. It is overly sensitive and skips through menu choices as the vehicle moves over subtle bumps in the road. It caused endless frustration, particularly when it came to engaging the satellite navigation system.

That said, the satellite navigation system itself was clear, timely and fast to accommodate changes in route -- once the address was finally entered.

With some tweaks to its driver-machine interface the fourth-generation GS has what it takes to prove its worth against its long-standing (German) market favourites. My initial impressions are that the GS 350 F Sport is fit for the challenge, but we’ll see how that opinion is shaped after three months with the team at motoring.com.au