Rydo
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I'm going to start with a disclaimer and hopefully a flame limiter from everyone here - I don't own an LC and so yes you could argue this list is petty and pathetic considering that fact. However, as a bit of fun I am sure I will raise some interesting points.
In no particular order.
1. The seats (no massaging or thigh support).
The Mercedes S-Class Coupe, a vehicle of similar power output and of similar budget albeit at first glance no spring chicken, has massaging seats. The new LS has massaging seats. Lots of cars cheaper than the LC have massaging seats. Offering this at least as an option to appease those who complain about the extra weight it would incur would be sensible for a car in this price bracket.
Massaging isn't quite as essential however as thigh support. 20 year old Audis and BMWs come with the front portion of the seat bottom moving forward in order to support the 6 inches or so between the things and knees...so why does neither seat option of the LC offer this function at all?
2. Turn signal placement.
This one is a bit of a cheat being on this list and very region specific. The LC comes with turn signal operation on the right of the steering column for right hand drive Japan...this means that the driver can cruise comfortable with one arm on the door and use the same hand to use the turn signal. Indeed, in the left hand drive markets the placement is on the left of the steering column to allow the driver again to cruise with one arm on the door. For some reason (and the LC isn't the only car making this a bit of a cheat worst part) the right hand drive market of the U.K. has the turn signal stalk on the left of the steering column. This means that you can't cruise on the motorway with one arm operating the wheel (yes I know this is not advised anyway but everyone does it on a long drive) because your left hand constantly needs to come up off the arm rest to operate the turn signal. I've drive cars with both right and left of steering column stalks and I can say without a doubt the stalk should be on the right of the steering wheel for added comfort.
3. Seat/Steering heaters/coolers buried among menus - no dedicated controls.
Seriously? My 2007 Honda Legend has a button that I push once in the space of 0.2 seconds to start getting my hind toasty on cold mornings. In this 100k car, startup screens need to load and then a myriad about 3 menus deep is needs to be navigated in order to start the process...come on now.
4. No CarPlay/Android Auto.
This crazy aspect of Toyota/Lexus at the moment is beggar's belief. I know this is of no relevance to some people, but honestly, most people now have their phone on them at all times and being able to access the (much improved) interface that CarPlay or Android Auto offers is something that entry level cars are now doing across the board. It is lunacy to offer a 100k now without such feature (brand new, as I am aware that some older model high profile Mercs etc. still don't have it...yet).
5. Infotainment system.
It has been said in reviews endlessly, and although I've not used it yet (go on, quote that line and point out how stupid this point now is), I can tell by looking at people using the infotainment that the click wheel system favoured by BMW, Audi and Mercedes looks to be a far better option. When driving, the very tactile click of a wheel that can only go in 2 planes will always beat the floaty mouse pad that can navigate anywhere...try moving around on the screen whilst going over bumper terrain and your finger will inadvertently move the cursor around where it is not wanted.
What I will say is, it looks a damn sight cleaner and more fluid to use than the last generation infotainment by Lexus.
6. Options 'packs'.
This is becoming the norm with most major luxury automakers now, but Lexus jumping on the bandwagon with this isn't right. You only want rear wheel steering...sorry. You want a glass roof - we have the entry level model only for you. You aren't too crazy about the rear wing...too bad it comes with that rear steer package.
Options packages cause nothing but frustration, I find more and more that people simply aren't satisfied with the predetermined bundles available. Stop being lazy and allow real choice for customers, put them first rather than the extra logistics needed at the factory to cope with these options.
7. Interior trim anomaly.
I posted about this before in my Lexus LC Videos thread (which died instantly) but within the gorgeous interior of the LC appears two anomalies. First of all, the driver and passenger doors are different. Now, as someone who likes hold the tactile vertical handle of my current car's interior (such as the one found on the passenger side of the LC), the small cubby hole that the driver gets to use to pull the door closed seems frustrating. I can't really understand this choice. I also recognise this is something that might not affect people in the slightest.
The other unforgivable anomaly is that fact that the door trim does not flow with the dash properly. This is something that I spotted on the pre-production models and assumed would be sorted for production. Now that cars are out there that are ready for customers I can see that it hasn't been sorted. The very clear flow line that swoops across the dash and continues to the doors experiences about a half to one inch rise from the dashboard to the doors. My 2007 Honda Legend also does this, and my dad accustomed to Mercedes with similar design flowing onto the doors pointed it out immediately as a little sign of the quality not quite being up there with luxury automakers.
Lexus being a proud automaker founded on quality should have sorted this line so that it sits level.
8. No remote start/HVAC settings on the remote.
Not even as an option. On those cold or hot days be prepared to enter a car that is freezing or like a sauna. The best you have is the 20 year old feature of holding the unlock button to put all windows down...or nothing on a cold day. Again, cars 15 years ago came with optional remote starters with HVAC controls on them. 100k cars need to be have something like this as standard.
9. Parking cameras.
The LC does of course sport the standard backup camera with guidelines as Lexus has offered for a long time now.
What is lacking is the simulated top-down view achieved by cameras at front and sides of the car. This features is offered on the likes of $25k Nissans, and all of the LCs rivals. For a curvaceous and awkward to park shape like the LC...all the assistance available should be on there. Expect to see a lot of curbed rims in the used market as a result.
10. Exhaust tips.
They are all doing this across the board now, but carmakers need to stop this trend for large chrome tips as part of the bumper, with some weak and ugly regular pea-shooters hidden not too far back. Whatever happened to the days of plumbing the exhaust into the exhaust tips so that a clean finish was achieved. Cars from years ago have exhausts around the same size as LCs fake tips but the tips are actually part of the exhaust system...no pathetic ugly black pipes hiding anywhere.
In no particular order.
1. The seats (no massaging or thigh support).
The Mercedes S-Class Coupe, a vehicle of similar power output and of similar budget albeit at first glance no spring chicken, has massaging seats. The new LS has massaging seats. Lots of cars cheaper than the LC have massaging seats. Offering this at least as an option to appease those who complain about the extra weight it would incur would be sensible for a car in this price bracket.
Massaging isn't quite as essential however as thigh support. 20 year old Audis and BMWs come with the front portion of the seat bottom moving forward in order to support the 6 inches or so between the things and knees...so why does neither seat option of the LC offer this function at all?
2. Turn signal placement.
This one is a bit of a cheat being on this list and very region specific. The LC comes with turn signal operation on the right of the steering column for right hand drive Japan...this means that the driver can cruise comfortable with one arm on the door and use the same hand to use the turn signal. Indeed, in the left hand drive markets the placement is on the left of the steering column to allow the driver again to cruise with one arm on the door. For some reason (and the LC isn't the only car making this a bit of a cheat worst part) the right hand drive market of the U.K. has the turn signal stalk on the left of the steering column. This means that you can't cruise on the motorway with one arm operating the wheel (yes I know this is not advised anyway but everyone does it on a long drive) because your left hand constantly needs to come up off the arm rest to operate the turn signal. I've drive cars with both right and left of steering column stalks and I can say without a doubt the stalk should be on the right of the steering wheel for added comfort.
3. Seat/Steering heaters/coolers buried among menus - no dedicated controls.
Seriously? My 2007 Honda Legend has a button that I push once in the space of 0.2 seconds to start getting my hind toasty on cold mornings. In this 100k car, startup screens need to load and then a myriad about 3 menus deep is needs to be navigated in order to start the process...come on now.
4. No CarPlay/Android Auto.
This crazy aspect of Toyota/Lexus at the moment is beggar's belief. I know this is of no relevance to some people, but honestly, most people now have their phone on them at all times and being able to access the (much improved) interface that CarPlay or Android Auto offers is something that entry level cars are now doing across the board. It is lunacy to offer a 100k now without such feature (brand new, as I am aware that some older model high profile Mercs etc. still don't have it...yet).
5. Infotainment system.
It has been said in reviews endlessly, and although I've not used it yet (go on, quote that line and point out how stupid this point now is), I can tell by looking at people using the infotainment that the click wheel system favoured by BMW, Audi and Mercedes looks to be a far better option. When driving, the very tactile click of a wheel that can only go in 2 planes will always beat the floaty mouse pad that can navigate anywhere...try moving around on the screen whilst going over bumper terrain and your finger will inadvertently move the cursor around where it is not wanted.
What I will say is, it looks a damn sight cleaner and more fluid to use than the last generation infotainment by Lexus.
6. Options 'packs'.
This is becoming the norm with most major luxury automakers now, but Lexus jumping on the bandwagon with this isn't right. You only want rear wheel steering...sorry. You want a glass roof - we have the entry level model only for you. You aren't too crazy about the rear wing...too bad it comes with that rear steer package.
Options packages cause nothing but frustration, I find more and more that people simply aren't satisfied with the predetermined bundles available. Stop being lazy and allow real choice for customers, put them first rather than the extra logistics needed at the factory to cope with these options.
7. Interior trim anomaly.
I posted about this before in my Lexus LC Videos thread (which died instantly) but within the gorgeous interior of the LC appears two anomalies. First of all, the driver and passenger doors are different. Now, as someone who likes hold the tactile vertical handle of my current car's interior (such as the one found on the passenger side of the LC), the small cubby hole that the driver gets to use to pull the door closed seems frustrating. I can't really understand this choice. I also recognise this is something that might not affect people in the slightest.
The other unforgivable anomaly is that fact that the door trim does not flow with the dash properly. This is something that I spotted on the pre-production models and assumed would be sorted for production. Now that cars are out there that are ready for customers I can see that it hasn't been sorted. The very clear flow line that swoops across the dash and continues to the doors experiences about a half to one inch rise from the dashboard to the doors. My 2007 Honda Legend also does this, and my dad accustomed to Mercedes with similar design flowing onto the doors pointed it out immediately as a little sign of the quality not quite being up there with luxury automakers.
Lexus being a proud automaker founded on quality should have sorted this line so that it sits level.
8. No remote start/HVAC settings on the remote.
Not even as an option. On those cold or hot days be prepared to enter a car that is freezing or like a sauna. The best you have is the 20 year old feature of holding the unlock button to put all windows down...or nothing on a cold day. Again, cars 15 years ago came with optional remote starters with HVAC controls on them. 100k cars need to be have something like this as standard.
9. Parking cameras.
The LC does of course sport the standard backup camera with guidelines as Lexus has offered for a long time now.
What is lacking is the simulated top-down view achieved by cameras at front and sides of the car. This features is offered on the likes of $25k Nissans, and all of the LCs rivals. For a curvaceous and awkward to park shape like the LC...all the assistance available should be on there. Expect to see a lot of curbed rims in the used market as a result.
10. Exhaust tips.
They are all doing this across the board now, but carmakers need to stop this trend for large chrome tips as part of the bumper, with some weak and ugly regular pea-shooters hidden not too far back. Whatever happened to the days of plumbing the exhaust into the exhaust tips so that a clean finish was achieved. Cars from years ago have exhausts around the same size as LCs fake tips but the tips are actually part of the exhaust system...no pathetic ugly black pipes hiding anywhere.
