The most recent press loan car that I received was last week, a Lexus LS460 4-door sedan with all-wheel drive.  The team that delivered the car to Greeley was Rocky Mountain Redline, a fleet management firm in Dacono.  The car came in Liquid Platinum (silver) metallic and the interior was black semi-aniline (perforated) leather.  The car seated five comfortably because the LS (M.S.R.P. $90,444.00) is big, with a wheelbase of 116.9”, overall length of 200”, height of 58.1”, and width of 73.8”.  Weight is 4,652 lbs.

  Power for the Lexus is provided by a 4.6 liter, 360 horsepower (@6,400 rpm) V-8 with a fuel economy rating of 16-city, 23-highway, and 18-combined mpg.  My fuel mileage during the week with the car was 23.6 mpg, and the car held 22.2 gallons of premium gasoline.  Torque rating for the Lexus is 347 lb. ft. @ 4,100 rpm, and the transmission is an eight-speed sequential-shift automatic with manual control setup.   Acceleration was smooth and supple, and reportedly the LS460 will go zero to sixty in 6.0 seconds and top out at 130 mph. An adaptive air suspension system was featured on this LS, enhancing the ride appreciably.   

My wife Ruth and another couple all jumped into the Lexus recently to go to Denver to have dinner at the Denver Press Club.  That couple was Mr. and Mrs. Bud Wells, Bud being the long time auto columnist that was with the Denver Post for over three decades.  The LS, of course, gave us a superb ride and we got lucky and parked right in front of the restaurant on Glenarm Street.  Dinner was great and Mr. Wells had many stories about his days of visiting the PC after late nights meeting deadlines at the Post.

    This car came equipped without the lane departure warning and radar cruise control, but it had a big navigation screen (12.3”) and 19 speaker, 450-watt Mark Levinson stereo with satellite radio, moon roof, and blind spot monitor.  Also, the LS had Bluetooth, Lexus Enform app suite, and power tilt/telescope/heated bamboo steering wheel.  All the windows powered up or down (out of sight), the mirrors folded in when the car was locked and a proximity key fob and pushbutton starter button were in the car.  The front buckets were superb and adjustable in 16 (driver) and 12 (passenger) ways.  Stitched leather was all over the interior, including some well-designed door panels.  All four corner seats were heated and air conditioned, something for all the seasons, and the trunk held 18 cubic feet with a lid that powered up and down.  The rear seats had a reclining feature, and sunshades were installed in all three rear windows.

The styling of the car was a striking, metallic silver, and up front resided LED lighting for day or night attention.  Taillights have three “L’s” molded within each, and an appropriate amount of chrome is installed on the car.  The  wheels were 19” split-seven spoke forged alloys surrounded by 245/45R19 all-season radials.  The twin exhausts puffed out of two sculpted chrome finishers molded into the rear fascia.

Driving the LS is a pleasure, the styling of the car is fine, and comfort for all people inside is top notch.  The competition is fierce in this segment, but shoppers for a luxury sedan should not bypass the Lexus dealer during their search.