Considering Purchase Of Gs450h

[shepsan]

Good morning

I am considering the purchase of a GS450h. Reading mfg articles and talking to local dealer, I think that the GS450h is a exciting next step in automobile ownereship for me.

For the past thirty years, I have owned and driven many top luxury automobiles. At present, I drive a 2006 INfiniti M45. It is a powerful performer that provides outstanding features. I wonder if a move from this to the GS450h will be a let down or a move upward.

The performace figures that I have read for the Lexus are quite good. The appoitnments appear to be of quality. One thing that had been written that troubled me was the handling of the GS450h.

I would appreciate comments from those who actually own and drive this new breed of Lexus. What are your opinions and recommendations to me.

Thank you.

[Rx330driver]

Welcome to the club.

Problem is...about .2 percent of the people on this forum own a GS450h. It has not been a popular choice among the folks here so you are not going to get a lot of responses from GS450h owners. I can tell you that handling will be a let down. It is after all a lexus and they add more emphasis on luxury than sport, especially when comparing it with the Infiniti. You could get the air suspension, which would allow you to switch to sport mode, which i hear is only slightly better, but better nonetheless.

be aware of other problems as well like the small trunk. You should enjoy the car very much, go test drive it and see. Your opinion is the one that counts.

:D

[shepsan]

Welcome to the club.

Problem is...about .2 percent of the people on this forum own a GS450h. It has not been a popular choice among the folks here so you are not going to get a lot of responses from GS450h owners. I can tell you that handling will be a let down. It is after all a lexus and they add more emphasis on luxury than sport, especially when comparing it with the Infiniti. You could get the air suspension, which would allow you to switch to sport mode, which i hear is only slightly better, but better nonetheless.

be aware of other problems as well like the small trunk. You should enjoy the car very much, go test drive it and see. Your opinion is the one that counts.

:D

Thank you for your reply. It confirms to me what I had thought about the handling of the GS compared to the Infiniti M.

I found your comment about trunk size to be important. My wife and I do pile shopping goods and travel gear in the trunk of our car quite often. I just checked the dimensions of the GS and found it to be almost half the size of the M. Not good at all for us.

My next step will be carefully look at the GS at a closeby dealer.

Thank you again. I appreciate your response.

[RX400h]

By the way, Shepsan, what kind of fuel mileage are you getting with your M45?

Thanks,

Dave

[shepsan]

By the way, Shepsan, what kind of fuel mileage are you getting with your M45?

Thanks,

Dave

Hello Dave

I do all stop and go city driving. The longest stretch without stopping is almost 5 miles (if no traffic). My average from day one to last fill up on Saturday is 15.5MPG.

I do not ever floor the M from a standing start. However, I do bring RPM's up when I want to fly past a slow car.

[speedyg]

Good morning

I am considering the purchase of a GS450h. Reading mfg articles and talking to local dealer, I think that the GS450h is a exciting next step in automobile ownereship for me.

For the past thirty years, I have owned and driven many top luxury automobiles. At present, I drive a 2006 INfiniti M45. It is a powerful performer that provides outstanding features. I wonder if a move from this to the GS450h will be a let down or a move upward.

The performace figures that I have read for the Lexus are quite good. The appoitnments appear to be of quality. One thing that had been written that troubled me was the handling of the GS450h.

I would appreciate comments from those who actually own and drive this new breed of Lexus. What are your opinions and recommendations to me.

Thank you.

I test drove an M45 and liked it but I like my much GS450h more. I would definitely consider it a step up. With the Active Stabilizer Suspension System option (note that this is NOT the same as the adjustable suspension which is standard) the handling is quite good. Worlds of difference from an ES or RX, which both ride like boats. For even better handling, replace the run-flats with stickier rubber. The GS450h is a good compromise I think. the GS450h you get great performance, good fuel economy, good ergonomics, good handling, good reliability, clean emissions, quiet smooth ride, and luxurious 4-person seating. The only thing you sacrifice is some trunk space.

[hendjaz]

I agree with SpeedyG's assessment of the 450h. I am a former 450h owner and only traded it because I moved up to the LS 460L when it first came out. I had the active stabilizer in the 450h and highly recommend it. It really kept the car flat on turns. Very fast and fuel efficient given its power. It certainly will be better than the M45 in the mpg department. I also have a G35 Coupe and expect that the M45 may be a bit better handling car than the 450h as Infiniti seems to place a premium on sportiness even in its sedans.

Shepsan, I remember you from your Acura RL days and when you traded in for the M45. Your located in the NW Valley as I recall and we have a home over in Scottsdale where the G35C is kept. I think you will like the switch to Lexus in all regards and the 450h is a great way to go. The only downside as mentioned is the very small trunk so if you don't want to use the back seat for supplemental trunk space then you may be more happy with a standard GS or move up to the LS.

[RX400h]

By the way, Shepsan, what kind of fuel mileage are you getting with your M45?

Thanks,

Dave

Hello Dave

I do all stop and go city driving. The longest stretch without stopping is almost 5 miles (if no traffic). My average from day one to last fill up on Saturday is 15.5MPG.

I do not ever floor the M from a standing start. However, I do bring RPM's up when I want to fly past a slow car.

All I can say is "Ouch!" I guess that is to be expected with a high-horsepower non-hybrid sedan.

My Corvette averages 19-20 MPG with a 60/40 split of highway/city driving and a daily blast of 80-90 MPH for 15-20 seconds.

[Komrad Andre]

Good morning

I am considering the purchase of a GS450h. Reading mfg articles and talking to local dealer, I think that the GS450h is a exciting next step in automobile ownereship for me.

For the past thirty years, I have owned and driven many top luxury automobiles. At present, I drive a 2006 INfiniti M45. It is a powerful performer that provides outstanding features. I wonder if a move from this to the GS450h will be a let down or a move upward.

The performace figures that I have read for the Lexus are quite good. The appoitnments appear to be of quality. One thing that had been written that troubled me was the handling of the GS450h.

I would appreciate comments from those who actually own and drive this new breed of Lexus. What are your opinions and recommendations to me.

Thank you.

You know the handling is rather touchy but i've only had it for 1.5 months and i've compensated for it quite well. I don't feel it's an issue for me, its not as horrible as i've read. But it is is a dream at 45mph+ tho, for me. I do love smoking other cars on the road unsuspectingly with its surprisingly QUICK acceleration. The boot space does suck, enough for only one small adult body ;^).

Anyway, So far I absolutely love it. But again, your best bet is to drive it, and check out the trunk ( they will leave this part out if you don't ask to see it ).

Good Luck Komrad.

[vipergtr21]

hi there

ive had my gs 450h for about a half a year now and i can tell you it is one of the best deals in the big sedan market you can buy.

the interior and options are fantastic, the stereo is crystal clear, and the led reading lights and door lights can always make an impression on first time riders. the headlights are what impress me the most. they stay at about 10 feet off the ground, and always show the road ahead of you, even on mountain roads.

speaking of mountain roads. i have the privelidge of living in the nw, where mountain roads are abundant, and i can vouch that nothing shy of a porsche can keep up with both acceleration and handling. ive been through very windy roads at roughly 65 mph, impressive for a car its size. ive also had it to the 1/4 mile to test the performance first hand, mostly because i hadnt been able to find many specs besides 0-60. and from what i was able to achieve was a 13.8 at a little over 103 mph. that means its right up in performance with cars like the mustang gt and the 350z. also the passing is most impressive in this car. 60 to about 80+ is what suprises me the most. even better, ive taken out a few kids in their lancer evos and stis, as well as a porsche carrera. its hilarious to play around with little teenagers and their little modified hondas. the look on their faces when i take the lexus to beyond 100 mph in seconds is unforgetable.

as for mileage, i can get about 26 on an average tank, but if you learn to use the radar cruise control, mpg shoots up to about 30 on the freeway.

hope this helps!

[Mark55]

Hi

I suspect whether you can live with the handling depends on how you drive or how you are willing to adapt your driving to the car. I have had a GS450h for around 13,000 miles and moved to it from a Jaguar S-type 4.2 Sport and prior to that an M5 V8.

The handling is not perfect, and whether you can enjoy it really depends on how you drive it. If you drive at less than 80% and use a slow-in fast-out approach (highly recommended on the public road anyway !) that allows it to keep its balance then its quite good fun. It all falls apart a bit if you late brake and then turn in at the last moment - something both the Jaguar and M5 excelled at. It feels like it is very well balanced front to rear but has a high centre of gravity - I suspect part of the problem is that if you brake heavily there feels like there is some sort of transfer taking place from the regenerative braking to the front brakes and this upsets the handling just at the point you want to turn in. The dead steering doesnt help at this point.

If you like to make brisk, smooth cross country progress then its fine.

Mark

[shepsan]

When I went to the local Lexus dealer to buy the GS450h on June 20, I saw a ES350 adjacent to a GS450h on the lot.

This will probably sound incongruous, but looking at the two of them side by side, I thought that the lines of the ES was more pleasing. I sat in the driver's seat of the ES and immediately found the "fit" of the cockpit to be appealing and had the sensation that the interior was larger than the GS.

During my test drive of the ES, I thought the car felt more comfortable to me than either my M45 or the GS450h. Second, the handling, while not as visceral as that of the M45 with its rear wheel drive, was quite good. Most surprisingly, the ES had excellent power and acceleration with a smaller engine..

After the test drive I looked at the GS again and implusively told the saleman that I wanted to buy the ES instead of the GS.

I have now had the ES for 111 days. Unlike many who have had mechanical failures with this model, mine has operated flawlessly. I am very happy with my choice.

In closing, I thank all that have responded to this tread.