Faults:

Nothing.

General Comments:

The criticisms about the LS400 centre around its appearance. Those who take themselves seriously buy an LS400 as they don't need to make a statement about themselves to lesser beings. S-Classes are for those who want to pat themselves on the back and the 7 series though superb are generally bought by the Nouveau Riche.

Hence discretion and perfection are the aims of the LS400.

Performance is more adequate than the Royce and delivered with no fuss whatsoever.

The quietest car on the road.

The most reliable car on the road; the Germans envy the diligence with which Lexus stick to procedures when building a Lexus.

The MkIV is so good that Autocar in their 1999 review criticised it really heavily. Those who know anything about cars know the Autocar writers are technically inept. They mis-quoted completely the specification of the MkIV and stated that optical connectors in the S-Class Hi-Fi was for quicker signals! A totally emotive review that missed the point of each of the cars reviewed.

The LS400 MkIV is a flawless car.

Faults:

Nothing has failed yet.

General Comments:

Handling is interesting with or without the VSC, but this car was not designed for "boy-racers". Acceleration is smooth but extremely quick; I can only tell by the way the other cars appear to stand still in the mirror.

I would have preferred a coupe version rather than a whole train carriage. Sat-Nav is very good but I do tend to become dependent on it just following it blindly until I arrive.

I can't see the point of the LS430 to be honest, I think the later the model the uglier these cars get and the differences are very subtle.

I believe it fulfils its intended role perfectly and that includes its understated styling; this car is not for those who want to show off, a bit like a Maserati.

Faults:

Nothing.

General Comments:

This is a superb car in every respect, the only thing against it, according to other people (not me) is the brand. If you are happier driving a badge instead of what is proably the best car in the world then you are missing out on a wonderful driving experience.

Fuel economy is excellent for a two ton, 155 mph (limited) luxury car, I have returned 31mpg on a 230 mile run and it rarely does less than 23 mpg.