The Lexus GS 350 is a performance luxury sedan that is aimed at the consumer who wants a few lavish touches in their daily driver. Someone who’s kids might be getting a little bigger and who might have some upscale passengers on occasion too. Perhaps that owner still wants a sporting vehicle but doesn’t want the neighbors to know what his car is capable of.

So why is it then that the GS 350 elicits such an enthusiastic response from the youth on the street? This sleek, classy looking machine drew an uncommon amount of attention from the hip hop crowd during our week with the car. Getting gas yesterday afternoon even the young gas station attendant informed me how sick my car was.

It has been close to two decades since Lexus appeared on the market and they have done an incredible job of marketing to one crowd, while keeping the interest of future owners. The brand marketers really ought to be proud of themselves.
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That’s right. I’ve gone and gotten a flat in on the Lexus IS-F and essentially buggered our weekend plans to shoot a road test video. I suppose it would hurt a little less if I had been hooning around in the car, but that wasn’t the case. Here in Ontario, the boys in blue have gone hog wild in their pursuit of speeders and that includes sending helicopters after conspicuous speeders on rural roads on long weekends. I dutifully drove home last night with the cruise set at a pedestrian pace, while I watched hundreds of other cars sail past me. Once I hit the secondary roads, I towed the line like a good little soldier.

As I crossed an intersection I drive through daily, there was a patch of gravel that has been there for a couple of weeks. I had driven over it the day before in a car with 55 series tires and there was no bump. This time, there was just enough bump at 50 kmh to snakebite the giant left front Michelin Pilot Sport. The low tire pressure warning came on almost immediately and the telltale whomp whomp of a flat tire made itself known. I pulled over to inspect the damage and prayed that a full size spare was part of the package. Sadly, I had no such luck as I pulled out the bright yellow mini spare that just screams: Hey, look at the dolt in the sports car with a flat tire!

The plan for today was to get together with Kevin “Crash” Corrigan and Lesley Wimbush and take some video of the blue beast on the road. Now it seems like it will be a more stationary shoot, with lots of Gary abuse at the hands of the wonderfully witty Mr. Corrigan. Unless of course I can hunt down a 255/35ZR 19 Pilot Sport somewhere in the next few hours!

I have often said that a great car reviewer is one that can place themselves in the shoes of a potential buyer of any vehicle they may be handed. This week, I truly feel like a duck out of water. The 2008 Lexus LS460 is a magnificent ride, one suitable for shuttling executives and their wives to the opera or the theater. While I do enjoy the finer things in life, I’d rather enjoy them in jeans and a tee shirt, not a jacket and tie. The LS is definitely a jacket and tie kind of car.

The ride is supple and beyond smooth. Power delivery through the 8 speed automatic is silky and shifts are almost imperceptible under normal driving. Press the gas a little harder from a light and the 385 horsepower V8 growls and shifts become a bit more crisp. The character of the LS460 is a little more sedate than that though, which is just fine as few owners are likely to be looking for a stoplight battle.

Much has been said about the techno wizardry that Lexus has brought to the silver hair crowd, including the trick ability to park itself. While we haven’t tried the self parking mode yet, we have figured out just about all the other stuff. To be honest, it took 2 industry guys, with a combined 50 years experience, about a half hour and many tries for some buttons to figure it all out. Perhaps this may be a bit too much tech for the target audience.

So far, we can’t help but be a bit overwhelmed by the level of comfort offered in the 2008 Lexus LS460. The car certainly draws attention, as we’ve had waves from old and young alike and even got chased by a Lexus owner from New Jersey who just wanted to give us a wave.

A couple from Kilgore, Texas, Craig and Sondra Harrington, have this thing about car names.

They are not car enthusiasts or employed in the automotive industry yet can’t resist Porsche, Audi and Lexus.

It appears the Harrington’s have a daughter named Lexus. To keep the car theme going they recently had twins and named them Porsche and Audi.

Both babies come with warranties. Can a “Baby” Mercedes be far behind?

This weekend is the first ever Canadian Motorsports Expo, hosted by Glenn Butt who most enthusiasts know from his involvement with Mosport. With a many Canadian racing stars coming by for autograph sessions, it looked like a promising day, so I took a couple of the kids out for a walk around.

For the first year of the show, I think Glenn and friends did a great job putting together a nice gathering in a really great venue. While the show is still small, there was a bit of something for everyone. There were open wheelers, stock cars, race bikes, showroom stock sedans and even an off road race truck and buggy. The line up of racing stars is incredible, with names like Ron Fellows, Scott Maxwell, Pete Shepherd, J.R. Fitzpatrick, Shane Jantzi and even Chris Economaki.
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Up here in the Great White North, we only have valet parking at hotels, theaters and weddings. When I was in Chicago last summer, I was amazed to see Valet Parking signs all over. There was Valet parking at every door of one shopping mall we went to! How lazy is that?

In the spirit of fat, lazy people all over, Lexus is offering The ES Insiders Guide to Valet Parking. This fun and informative guide is going to be available at www.lexusvaletguide.com There’s no word if it will teach you how to protect your ride from the angry robotic Valet.
press release after the break

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