Category: Executive 
Price Range: £33,100 to £40,290
High-tech safety kit, refinement, hybrid option, Lexus reliability and quality, handsome looks
No diesel option, hard ride, poor steering feel, lack of character; VDIM and pre-crash safety systems only in top-spec models
It's not quite the all-out sports saloon Lexus claims it to be, but it's a comfortable, sophisticated, high-quality choice with some unique touches
First launched in 1991, the GS-series is Lexus's contender in the BMW 5-Series/Mercedes E-Class/Audi A6/Jaguar S-Type sector. Its first two iterations have been very US-focussed, with an emphasis on comfort and luxury rather than driving pleasure, but this high-tech third-generation model has been developed with far more sporting aspirations. Rear-wheel drive, it comes with an all-new 3.0 V6 (245bhp), a revised version of the 4.3 V8 (279bhp) petrol engine, and in hybrid petrol-electric model, badged GS 450h (see separate Driving Impressions story for more on this). The GS 450h combines a 3.5-litre V6 petrol engine (292bhp) with an electric motor (197bhp) to give super-saloon performance yet diesel-style fuel economy. There won't be a diesel version, however - with the bulk of Lexus sales in the USA, developing such a model wasn't deemed worthwhile.
Built on an all-new platform, the GS boasts a hugely impressive level of safety equipment. Besides up to 12 airbags (and a chart-topping five-star score in the Euro NCAP crash tests), the top SE-L models have a pre-crash safety system which uses sensors to detect if a collision is imminent, and thus prepares the seatbelts for optimum restraint and primes the emergency braking back-up. A new electronic programme called VDIM (Vehicle Dynamics Integrated Management) co-ordinates the ABS anti-lock brakes, traction control, stability control, brakeforce distribution plus the variable steering ratios, adaptive variable suspension and adaptive cruise control, to fine-tune driver assistance and help ever more to keep the car on track in an emergency situation.
Very well-equipped, with kit including adaptive front headlights and dual-zone climate control as standard, the GS Mk3 has a longer wheelbase, more cabin space and an improved ride over its predecessor, itself a very comfortable car. It's altogether more modern-looking, with a much-updated interior and more aggressive exterior looks, and although it still has a bit of a made-for-the-US feel to it, it's much more Euro-friendly than before both in terms of its styling and its driving dynamics.
