The Goodwood Test: Lexus GS F

Heritage

While the heritage of the GS saloon is nothing to write home about (Lexus launched it at Pebble Beach, back in 2011, to muted applause), the heritage of that last little letter gets us all hot under the collar. “F” stands for “Fuji Speedway”, the place in Japan where Lexus works its dynamic magic. It also stands, in our book, for “Fun: lots of”.

The F badge first took its place on the bodywork of the outstanding V10 LFA supercar in 2007, and now graces a series of sports-performance derivates in the Lexus range, including the RC F, in the manner of BMW’s M division. With the LFA, Lexus stormed the performance stage and took no prisoners: can it translate that racing pedigree to the GS F?

Design

Goodwood’s GS F test car was a startling electric blue; just the colour for this monster saloon, which is no wall flower. The paintwork is wet-sanded by hand, and has a deep lustre you’d expect from the upper echelons of the luxury market.

The quad exhausts and bronze callipers give you some indication of this car’s performance, while the familiar Lexus spindle grille dominates the wide front. The F-badging gives this saloon new front and rear bumpers, flared wheel arches, side skirts, rear diffuser and lip spoiler. It’s enough to flag up the car as a performance derivative, without over-egging the pudding.

Inside, leather-clad bucket seats are generously proportioned, there’s a computer-style mouse between the front seats to select the touchscreen functions plus a rotary switch for four driving modes. Materials are a mixture of carbon-fibre, smart black plastics, perforated leather and piano black shining surfaces.

Performance

Well, yes. Lots. Here, Lexus gives BMW’s M5 a proper run for its money. A new 5.0-litre, naturally aspirated V8 engine mated to the Lexus eight-speed automatic gearbox with sequential shift mode produces 467bhp and 389b ft of torque. Peak power hits you at 7,100rpm. It feels, for a four-door saloon, decidedly perky, and is easily a dynamic match for the RC F, which is 70kg lighter. The car dispatches 62mph in 4.6 seconds via the rear wheels, with a top speed of 168mph. Acceleration feels, if anything, a touch faster than the figure suggests, which is probably down to the phenomenally taut chassis featuring a strut and multilink suspension package and some reinforcements over the standard GS.

Twiddle the knob to select “Sport +” mode and the digital display changes colour and graphics. Your heartrate will change too; the responsiveness of the drivetrain sharpens with spine-tingling alacrity. The fact that you can get this performance in a spacious saloon that will take the kids, the shopping and the kitchen sink, is frankly hilarious, and we love it.

Passion

By the bucketful. This car comes from a company constantly hit round the head with the “dull” stick. Indeed, it was the criticism of being boring, thrown at the standard GS at its Pebble Beach launch, that caused a fundamental rethink inside Lexus and a determination to inject some dynamism into the brand. The F division changes all that, and how. The GS F packs aggression into its styling and performance and leaves the Lexus of old trailing in its wake.