The new Lexus GS: built for pure driving enjoyment

When the boss has been personally involved in a car’s development, you know it’s important. With the all-new Lexus GS, the way the car looks and performs will resonate throughout the Japanese company’s range. And that’s why Akio Toyoda – Toyota Motor Corporation president and great, great grandson of the company founder – made the new GS his pet project.

The fruits of his labours are immediately evident when you look at this new hybrid petrol-electric model. It’s edgier, more angular and more dynamic than we’ve been used to from Lexus. The front bumper is sculpted around the fog lamps and air intakes. And the grille’s racy, pinched-in waist is emphasised by the LED daytime running lights and rakish high-intensity bi-xenon headlamps.

The wider track of the wheels combines with the shorter overhangs front and rear to give a more poised, athletic appearance than its predecessor. The resultant longer wheelbase improves body stiffness by 14 per cent to make the new GS safer and better handling. Even the rear lights have been redesigned to incorporate a fin that helps make the car’s overall shape as wind-cheating as a Toyota Prius.

The GS450h F Sport that I tested comfortably combines a handsome 3.5-litre V6 petrol engine with electric power. And it does this in such a seamless way, the only time you really notice it is when you drive at at low speed. Rather than the rumble of an engine you’re accompanied by an eerie silence because the car is running purely on batteries.