 2008 Lexus LS600h. Click image to enlarge |
Review and photos by Paul Williams
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Photo Gallery: 2008 Lexus LS600h
Phoenix, Arizona – Arizona is a popular place for manufacturers to introduce their latest vehicles. You get smooth roads, brilliant light, exotic scenery and posh hotels – all great for showing off a new car.
The 2008 Lexus LS 600hL fits right in. It’s the new flagship for the Lexus brand, with a long wheelbase, innovative hybrid powertrain, all-wheel drive (AWD), more safety features than you can imagine, and an interior that uses leather from special cows that are only found in Germany (more on that later, of course).
Priced at $132,000, or $158,700 for the Executive version, the LS 600hL is the pinnacle of Lexus manufacturing and design, and with only 120 available for Canada each year, it will be an exclusive car indeed. It is, as Lexus points out, “the world’s first V8-powered, full hybrid AWD vehicle.”
This is a car with so many significant features and thoughtful detail touches that an introductory article such as this is challenged to do the LS 600hL justice.
 2008 Lexus LS600h. Click image to enlarge |
Let’s start with the basics. The 5.0-litre V8 engine is an enhancement of the 4.6-litre V8 found in the LS 460. It uses a different crankshaft, connecting rods, pistons, valve timing system and exhaust manifold, and adds the new Lexus Hybrid Drive system. Although designated an LS 600, which may imply a V12 power plant, Lexus chose to showcase its hybrid technology as a statement of its leadership in this area. Consequently, the car is described as having the attributes of a 6.0-litre V12, “but with the fuel efficiency of a 3.5-litre V6 and the best emissions performance in the segment.”
Horsepower is, as another luxury brand used to say, sufficient. Especially if you like to be pushed back in your seat as the LS 600hL’s 438 hp and 385 lb.-ft torque propels you from zero-to-100 km/h in under six seconds. Fuel consumption is estimated to be 10.6/9.1 L/100km city/highway. So while satisfying stringent emissions standards (Tier 2 Bin 3 in the U.S.), owners will enjoy eco-friendly power, performance and prestige.
The transmission is an electronically-controlled continuously variable unit (CVT) that delivers continuous power to all four wheels (although the LS 600hL is rear-wheel biased). Located in the trunk, the hybrid battery supplies high voltage to an inverter, and on to the transmission where two electric motors work to start the car, recharge the battery, and generate electricity for motive power.
 2008 Lexus LS600h. Click image to enlarge |
The driver can select from three ranges of control – power, hybrid and snow – depending on driving conditions. In addition, the standard Adaptive Variable Suspension offers Comfort, Normal and Sport settings to regulate the dampening forces of the air shocks. The system also allows the vehicle to be raised by 25 mm via a “Height Switch” for travelling over speed bumps or rough surfaces.
There is also an EV (Electric Vehicle) mode, by which the driver can direct the car to run with only electric power if required conditions are satisfied.
The LS 600hL will be available in two levels of trim, with the Executive model adding and modifying features. The Executive package, for instance, uses 18-inch wheels fitted with P235/50R18 tires, rather than the standard 19-inch wheels with P245/45R19 all-season tires. Available with the Executive level is an Advanced Pre-Collision System (APCS), which detects and automatically reacts to impending collisions. It uses Object Recognition Cameras to detect near-infrared light, and continuously scans ahead of the vehicle for objects in its path. It will apply the brakes with authority, aggressively bringing the vehicle down from 60 km/h to some10 km/h while applying the seatbelt pretensioners, to minimize the severity of a collision.
 2008 Lexus LS600h. Click image to enlarge |
Other technology highlights include a steering column-mounted Driver Monitor. Lexus describes this as a world first, and it definitely is the first production version of similar technology that other companies (Volvo, for instance) are developing. Using six near-infrared lights that illuminate the driver’s face (this is not noticeable by the driver), the system monitors whether the driver is looking away from the road, and sounds an alert if an imminent collision is detected. The system will also apply the brake as a warning, and cooperate with the steering to optimize actions taken by the driver to avoid a collision.
At the vehicle’s introduction, Lexus’ Chief Engineer, Osamu Sadakat, said that his vision is a vehicle that will not have a collision: in other words, to eliminate car crashes altogether.
 2008 Lexus LS600h. Click image to enlarge |
Standard on the LS 600hL are Light Emitting Diode (LED) headlamps, another “world first.” According to Lexus, these emit a light close to that of sunlight, but use very little power. Each housing contains nine LED lamps – five low beam, two side marker and two front clearance – plus a high beam that doubles as a near-infrared projector for the APCS. The five LEDs used for the low-beam array use only 58 watts of power, while the four LEDs used for the side marker and clearance lamps use 2.2 watts. This minimizes the use of power generated by the hybrid drive system.
The headlamps are also adaptive, which means they self-level and turn to illuminate the road ahead when entering a corner. Either one or both of the headlamps will rotate, depending on vehicle speed.
Yet another technology “first” is the much publicized “Advanced Parking Guidance System”, initially seen on the 2007 LS 460. This is the system that will automatically parallel park the car. By driving past a parking space, and pulling up slightly ahead of the vehicle you wish to park behind, the driver simply puts the vehicle in Reverse, presses a button on the video display, and the car takes over, executing a perfect parking manoeuvre in the right conditions.
  2008 Lexus LS600h. Click image to enlarge |
The long wheelbase of the Lexus LS 600hL adds 120 mm to the length of the car (5,150 mm overall), all of it to the rear seating area. That area contains an optional reclining, massaging seat with ottoman, giving passengers the feeling of an executive seat on an international flight. Complementing the optional rear seat entertainment system, provided as standard equipment, is a 19-speaker, 450-watt Mark Levinson Reference sound system. The system, according to Mark Levinson representative Trevor Neumann, is equivalent in performance to a home system that would cost over $200,000. It is astonishing.
On the road, the Lexus is at once nimble and smooth. The difference between the “Sport” setting and “Comfort” is very noticeable, with the former providing a firm, sharp feel, and the latter impressively damping out the effects of potholes and cracks in the road. The LS 600hL has an “intelligent” cruise control, which modulates speed based on the presence and speed of vehicles ahead of you; this, combined with the “magic carpet” highway ride makes for a very relaxing and comfortable driving experience.
Acceleration is delivered smoothly and progressively, and the car really moves along from standstill when required. The engine note is quite satisfying under hard acceleration, and disappears otherwise. In everyday driving, the hybrid powertrain is all but (although not completely) transparent to the driver. The transmission has none of the drone of lesser CVTs, and seems perfectly suited to the car. Interior appointments are luxurious and plentiful. Numerous touches speak to the attention to detail that is built into the car: even the hangers in the rear seat area are gently damped as they extend to receive your jacket or coat.
 2008 Lexus LS600h. Click image to enlarge |
Trunk space is compromised however by the presence of the batteries at the rear of the car. You can still fit a couple of sets of golf clubs, though.
All that being said, the overall presence and presentation of the Lexus LS 600hL still requires, if you will, an exclamation point.
While the LS 600hL is a technological triumph (I counted over 130 buttons and switches in the cockpit alone, to control all manner of features and amenities), and truly pushes the safety and power train envelopes, the je ne sais quoi factor is yet to fully resolve, at least for me. Crudely put, it just doesn’t blow you away when you get into the car. Should it? I think so. It needs a bit more soul, a bit more identity. There’s no doubt the design follows recent BMW directions, and while it is certainly one sleek automobile, it reminds one of the big 7 Series.
 2008 Lexus LS600h. Click image to enlarge |
However… the cows. The leather used in the interior of the LS 600hL is sourced from a German company that raises cattle in fields that are enclosed by wooden fences. Metal fences, used by most other suppliers, will nick and score the animal’s hide. Wooden fences ensure a hide without blemishes. And only that is good enough for the LS600hL.
Should you be in the market, the LS 600hL can be ordered now, but several have been pre-ordered, so don’t delay. The 2008 Lexus LS 600hL officially goes on sale this summer.
Related stories on Autos
- First Drive: 2007 Lexus LS 460/460L
- Test Drive: 2007 Lexus LS 460L
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