5th Generation (2018+) Lexus LS 500 & LS 500h Megathread

[sl0519]

Still hard to believe it’s gone. 2025 been something else

Why stop making sedan c'mon...they could develop a new engine and a new RWD platform and use it across multiple models — LS SUV, LS coupe, LS sedan whatever. I mean sure, fewer people are buying sedans these days, but with platform sharing they could offset the R&D costs using profits from the SUVs, right?

No sedan, no LS.

 

[ssun30]

I recently started having real needs for second row comfort and none of our cars fit the job. How does LS500 do as a chauffeur car? LS with luxury/executive package are almost non-existent in US so there are only normal 5-seat versions available. LS500 depreciate surprisingly fast so most 2021-2023 cars are very cheap. I've thought of getting a GX460. Would the extra space and SUV seating position make up for its unsophisticated chassis (compared to the LS of course)? I plan to keep it long term so I won't be getting a S-class or 7 series.

 

[sl0519]

I recently started having real needs for second row comfort and none of our cars fit the job. How does LS500 do as a chauffeur car? LS with luxury/executive package are almost non-existent in US so there are only normal 5-seat versions available. LS500 depreciate surprisingly fast so most 2021-2023 cars are very cheap. I've thought of getting a GX460. Would the extra space and SUV seating position make up for its unsophisticated chassis (compared to the LS of course)? I plan to keep it long term so I won't be getting a S-class or 7 series.

If you want something quantifiable… it’s hard to put numbers to comfort, but compared to a GS the difference is very obvious. On rough roads, the LS basically cuts down the harshness by like 20–30%.

In daily driving terms:

• On a GS, you still feel the little road chatter.
• On an LS, those tiny vibrations pretty much disappear.
• A big bump that would feel like a real “thud” in the GS turns into just a normal soft “dong” in the LS.

Body roll is more noticeable than the GS, for sure, but that’s just part of how the LS is tuned. These are just the differences I consistently feel between the two.

But that said - if you’re expecting that super-floaty “couch on wheels / land yacht” softness like old-school American luxury cars… this generation LS is not like that (SG’s comment about it being a Lincoln Town Car felt a bit exaggerated, but not entirely wrong), and honestly will never be that. It’s more of a supportive softness, not a marshmallow. But definitely softer than GS for sure.

For context, I’m comparing a GS with AVS to an LS (post 2021) with the air-suspension AVS setup.

 

[Tragic Bronson]

 

[mediumhot]

^
That's either manufacturer agenda or fan's coping excuse why LS is getting canceled. No matter what that's not the real truth. More relevant truth is Toyota didn't want to sell LS and GS so they made them not to sell well.

At the time when 4LS went to its three refresh phases there was no major market shift in automotive industry nor tier 1 flagship market. Even if you can call turbocharging V6/V8 and infotainment advancements as major automotive shift it's not something that Toyota couldn't adjust to. They just didn't want to. After all Toyota was leading the automotive real big shift with their hybrids. They gave up the flagship marketshare for the reasons only known to them. Well they are building Century GT limo from the ground up, I don't know how that makes sense but investing into well established proper 5th and 6th generation flagship sedan 15 years ago didn't make sense. Century is a pipedream at this stage much like how Lexus was 40 years back, it could work but at the same time it can misfire.

 

[CRSKTN]

how that makes sense

In a recent interview Akio says he told them the Century is an "honorary chairmans car".

All he says he told them was effectively "build a century *I* would want to drive" and his team went and did all the work.

Then the guy starts taking credit for everything. You know how actually disturbed, how much of a malignant narcissist you have to be to do that? He starts going off about japanese nationalism, yada yada.

The dude is f****** demented. He is a japanese Musk.

Decaying an entire luxury division because your equipment doesnt work you need it all to be about you and your name is wild.

 

[mediumhot]

What Stephen Elop did to Nokia is also fine read. Many parallels there. Except that it turned out he was an imposter CEO so Microsoft could snatch Nokia.

 

[mikeavelli]

I always said when Aiko debuted the Camry in 2017 at Detroit and not that LS at the same show, that really said a lot.

Fast forward years later and he had a GRMN Century V-12 built. Not the LS.

Looks like 7 series sales grew in 2025 at around 11k. A solid number and obviously great image maker for the brand. That said they sold 32k X7s

Without a LS, it just won’t be the same…Or it does come back as a SUV

 

[Gor134]

This generation 7er has had a consistent 3-year run of 5-digit sales.

Previous gen only had 5-digit sales in it's first year on sale and was down.

This generation 7er is the first to abandon it's sporty roots and go full on boat, imposing, and comfort oriented too.. with competitive powertrain options and EV as well. Makes you wonder if an LS would also sell well going back to a less sporty design.

7er despite polarizing, ugly looks, you cannot deny it has presence on the road and the quality inside to back it up. And I love the wool-based seats they offer, they're so comfortable.

I always said when Aiko debuted the Camry in 2017 at Detroit and not that LS at the same show, that really said a lot.

TBH, I recall Carmaker1 referencing the LS's development being extremely delayed as they wanted to see the W222 for benchmark testing... W222 was, and I'm gonna be a little dramatic here, revolutionary upon it's debut in 2013. Even with all of it's delays, I think Akio knew the LS500 was DOA and uncompetitive against the S Class ESPECIALLY debuting 4 years later in 2017.

 

[sl0519]

This generation 7er has had a consistent 3-year run of 5-digit sales.

Previous gen only had 5-digit sales in it's first year on sale and was down.

This generation 7er is the first to abandon it's sporty roots and go full on boat, imposing, and comfort oriented too.. with competitive powertrain options and EV as well. Makes you wonder if an LS would also sell well going back to a less sporty design.

7er despite polarizing, ugly looks, you cannot deny it has presence on the road and the quality inside to back it up. And I love the wool-based seats they offer, they're so comfortable.


TBH, I recall Carmaker1 referencing the LS's development being extremely delayed as they wanted to see the W222 for benchmark testing... W222 was, and I'm gonna be a little dramatic here, revolutionary upon it's debut in 2013. Even with all of it's delays, I think Akio knew the LS500 was DOA and uncompetitive against the S Class ESPECIALLY debuting 4 years later in 2017.

I’ve been saying this for years: the sedan market never died. BMW has clearly proven that the 7 Series is still standing strong at the top of the segment. So no, the issue was never “people don’t want sedans anymore.” The issue is simple: if your sedan isn’t selling, your product just isn’t good enough.

Also, I think the whole “it’s too sporty” argument is a bit of a red herring. Go watch SG’s Panamera review. With Active Ride, the car delivers both insane comfort and next-level handling. At highway speeds, quick lane changes are rock solid and drama-free, and on rough roads you barely feel any impact at all.

So what’s the takeaway? Luxury sedans are still selling. If yours isn’t, that’s not a market problem — that’s a product problem.

 

[Gor134]

There definitely is a downwards trend in sedan sales, including luxury sedan sales. Far far far from dead though, like you said.

 

[LCLFV]

It's not just the 7 because BMW sales are now an order of magnitude ahead of Mercedes in almost every class they compete against each other in. The only place left where Merc still outsells BMW is in the ultra-luxury segment where their weak attempts like the XM and 8 Series flopped, and even then one could argue that they already counter that with Rolls Royce.

BMW just read the market better than Mercedes. They stuck with their guns by holding onto their high-power inline 6's and V8's as Mercedes tried to replace them with 4 bangers. They also developed EV's based on ICE platforms that were more conventional than the EQ vehicles. Now Mercedes is having to backpedal on both fronts. Cherry on top is that BMW is now no. 4 in Consumer Reports reliability rankings. Other than their design direction everything is going as well as it could for them beyond the Chinese market, which is also hurting Mercedes and VAG to an even more severe degree.