Lexus LC500H VS Audi RS5
Lexus LC500H
Likes
- Cracking interior
- Awesome ownership perks
- Comfortable when you want it to be
Dislikes
- Not as angry as V8
- Probably less sporty than it looks
- Cabin tech still fiddly
Audi RS5
Likes
- Potent engine
- Supermodel looks
- Premium and polished interior
Dislikes
- Tight rear seat in Coupe
- Gearbox can feel fidgety at speed
Summary
Lexus LC500H
For those merely gazing up to the lofty, ivory-tipped towers of high society, it would be easy to think that the mere ownership of a plush, premium vehicle, like the Lexus LC 500h for example, is a reward in and of itself.
The truth, though, is that Australia's premium manufacturers then sweeten the ownership pot even further, often inviting new owners into a secret club filled with tickets to exclusive events, seats at the fanciest of dining tables and concierge-style car maintenance, to name but a few of the perks on offer.
Lexus, though, sits atop the pile when it comes to offering ownership perks to its owners, and now more than ever, with the brand's existing Encore Club today welcoming a new and more-exclusive tier, called Encore Platinum.
We'll circle back to all of this under our 'Ownership' sub heading, but the short answer is that anyone who has bought a RC F, GS F, LX, LS or LC, like this 500h, since January 1 this year is automatically signed up, and is in line for some serious goodies.Â
Perhaps the most pressing question, though, is will it be the new ownership program that lures customers into a LC 500h? Or can the luxurious Lexus performance coupe stand on its own four wheels?Â
Let's find out.Â
| Safety rating | |
|---|---|
| Engine Type | 3.5L |
| Fuel Type | Hybrid with Premium Unleaded |
| Fuel Efficiency | 6.7L/100km |
| Seating | 4 seats |
Audi RS5
Audi's A5 Coupe and Sportback have always been good looking cars. Yes, yes, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and all that, but seriously, just look at one and tell me it's not handsome.
Happily, the just-updated RS5 doesn't just build on the looks of its more sedate sibling, but on the performance, too, adding near-supercar speed to those supermodel looks.Â
Sounds like a pretty good match, right? Let's find out, shall we?
| Safety rating | — |
|---|---|
| Engine Type | 2.9L turbo |
| Fuel Type | Premium Unleaded Petrol |
| Fuel Efficiency | 9.4L/100km |
| Seating | 4 seats |
Verdict
Lexus LC500H7.8/10
A truly fuel-efficient performance car, who’d have thought? There are some obvious trade-offs for trying to exist in two seperate worlds, but the Lexus LC 500h largely handles its dual roles with aplomb.
Audi RS58/10
Good looking, good to drive, and good to simply sit in, the Audi RS5 range ticks plenty of premium boxes. Whether you can live with the practicality pitfalls of the Coupe is up to you, but if you can't, might I suggest taking a wander over to our RS4 Avant review?
Design
Lexus LC500H7/10
It's a little curious, the LC 500h. For mine, it's stunning from a distance. All gleaming alloys and bulging rear arches and sharp snout angled downward like its caught the scent of its prey.
But weirdly, it can start to look a little less impressive the closer you get to it - a little swollen and vague in its lines. It's very likely it's eye-of-the-beholder stuff (fellow CarsGuide scribe Richard Berry adores it from every angle, for example).
Inside, the front of the cabin is a busy but stylish space, with multiple textures layered on top of each other to produce a premium-feeling, sporty space. The low-feeling dash juts out, giving the front passengers an ensconced, cockpit feel.
Everything is predictably leather-wrapped and lovely, and while it's not as streamlined as, say, an Audi interior, it's not without a genuine sense of Japanese charm in the cabin.
Audi RS59/10
I defy anyone to describe the RS5, and especially the Coupe, as anything but stunning. Seriously, the near perfect proportions and swept-back styling make it look fast even when it's parked.Â
Up front, there's a new-look black-mesh grille that's been given a 3D effect, like it juts out over the road in front it, while the thing headlights have been carved back into the body work like they're been windswept under hard acceleration.
The 20-inch darkened alloys fill the arches, too, with a sharp body crease that runs from the front headlight all the way back to the bulging shoulder lines above the rear tyres accentuating the curves.
Inside, the RS5 is a sea of black Nappa leather and sporty touches, and we particularly like the chunky, flat-bottomed steering wheel, which both looks - and feels - great.
Practicality
Lexus LC500H7/10
It's not really. Especially in the backseats, which would make more sense if they were painted on. I'm no giant, but even my 175cm-tall head was pushed into the ceiling, and while there’s ample shoulder space for two adults, you’re unlikely to be able to convince two to get back there.Â
Lexus has included something called the "Easy Access" function for 2020, which sees the front seats slide forward automatically to help with accessing the rear seats, and they do lower the Cirque du Soleil antics required to get back there, but this realistically not a car for carrying more than two adults, save an emergency. There are two ISOFIX attachment points in the rear, so child seats can be locked in there.Â
That's not necessarily a drawback, though. This is a two-door sporty coupe, after all, and elsewhere, the sizeable dimensions (4770mm length x 1920mm width x 1345mm height) provide plenty of space for up-front riders.
You'll also find hidden cupholders, bottle holders in the doors, and all the power and connection points you need.Â
A word on the tech, though. The LC 500h is crying out for a touch screen, though the brand's traditional mousepad system is improving.
Audi RS57/10
We only tested the Coupe, and I can tell you that the practicality perks on offer largely depend on where you're sitting.
Up front, you're spoiled for room in the two-door Coupe, with the two spacious seats separated by a sizeable centre console that's also home to two cupholders and a variety of cubbies, with extra bottle storage in each of the front doors.Â
The back seat, though, is a little, or a lot, tighter, with come acrobatics required to even climb into it, given the Coupe only has two doors. The Sportback offers two more doors, which will surely make the process a little easier.Â
The Coupe measures 4723mm in length, 1866mm in width and 1372mm in height, and will deliver a decent 410 litres in luggage space in the boot. The Sportback measures in at 4783mm, 1866mm and 1399mm, and boosts your luggage space to 465 litres.
Either vehicle has your tech needs sorted, with an abundance of USB and power outlets serving both front and backseat riders.
Price and features
Lexus LC500H8/10
Value is all about perspective, of course, and viewed the right way, the $195k sticker price of the Lexus LC 500h does provide a certain amount of value.
Yes, it's a lot of money. But Lexus' flagship coupe doesn't just get a performance-focused hybrid setup (pairing with a thumping V6 engine), but also just about every high-end feature the brand has in its deep bag of tricks.
It starts outside with giant 21-inch alloys, a glass roof with a sun blind, Â LED headlights with cornering lights, hidden door handles, keyless entry, and rain-sensing wipers.
Inside, you'll find leather-accented seats, a colour head-up display, a 10.3-inch multimedia screen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, another 8.0-inch screen in the driver's binnacle, a heated steering wheel, heated and cooled front seats, DAB+, satellite navigation system with live traffic, and a killer 13-speaker, 918-watt Mark Levinson stereo.
Audi RS58/10
It's available as a Coupe or a Sportback, but either way, the RS5 commands a $150,900 asking price. And that's not chump change, but Audi's performance model does come with a lot of bang for those bucks.
We'll get to the engine and safety stuff in a moment, but in terms of fruit, you'll find 20-inch alloys outside, as well sportier RS body styling, sport brakes, Matrix LED headlights, keyless entry and push-button start and heated mirrors, a sunroof and privacy glass. Inside, there's Nappa leather seats (heated in the front), illuminated door sills, stainless steel pedals and ambient interior lighting.
Â
The tech stuff is handled by a new 10.1-inch central touchscreen that gets both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, as well as Audi's Virtual Cockpit, which replaces the dials in the driver's binnacle with a digital screen. There's also wireless phone charging, and a killer 19-speaker Bang and Olufsen sound system.
Under the bonnet
Lexus LC500H7/10
The LC 500h is powered by a hybrid setup that combines a 3.5-litre V6 engine with a 650-volt "Lexus Hybrid Drive" system and a lithium-ion battery. That setup delivers 264kW of power, and somewhere north of 350Nm in torque when the engine and motor outputs combine.
That power is sent to the rear wheels via a CVT automatic, and will produce a sprint to 100km/h of around 5.0 seconds.Â
According to Lexus, 10 clear improvements were made the way the 2020 LC 500h drives, including a new transmission tune, more structural bracing added for rigidity, new suspension components and spring rates, and altered stabiliser bars.Â
Has it made a difference? Read on.Â
Audi RS58/10
Its a terrific engine, this - a twin-turbo 2.9-litre six-cylinder TFSI that will deliver 331kW at 5700rpm and 600Nm at 1900rpm, sending it thundering to all four wheels (because quattro) via an eight-speed tiptronic automatic.
That's enough, says Audi, to deliver a 0-100km/h sprint time of 3.9 seconds in the Coupe and the Sportback. Which is very, very quick.
Efficiency
Lexus LC500H8/10
Lexus says the LC 500h will sip 6.8 litres per hundred kilometres on the combined cycle - very impressive for what is ostensibly a performance coupe - and emit 152g/km.Â
The LC 500h is equipped with an 82-litre fuel tank.Â
Audi RS58/10
The RS5 Coupe will sip a claimed 9.4L/100km on the combined cycle, and emit a claimed 208g/km of Co2. It's fitted with a 58-litre fuel tank.Â
The RS5 Coupe will the same 9.4L/100km, but emit 209g/km of Co2.
Driving
Lexus LC500H8/10
There’s something very strange about hitting the start button in what is ostensibly a sports car, and being greeted not by the bark of an exhaust, but by the gentle whirring on the car’s electronics coming to life.
But then, the Lexus LC500h is not your average performance car.
It essentially trades the out-and-out grunt of its V8-powered sibling (which produces a monstrous 351kW and 540Nm) for a kind of best-of-both-worlds approach that pairs the punch of the V6 engine with the fuel efficiency of a hybrid powertrain.Â
If that sounds like an compromised approach to pure performance, you're right. But reframe the way you look at the LC 500h and it all starts to make a bit more sense.
Remember, this isn't a track-attack weapon, but a potent on-road bruiser, and the flow of power on offer always feels ample, and you never want for too much more off-the-line pace on public roads.Â
Among the biggest selling points of the LC 500h is the sheer distance between its various personalities. Engage Eco, or even Normal, drive modes, and it’s a quiet, mostly very comfortable (though it can be unsettled by bigger bumps) kilometre-eater, but engage Sport or Sport Plus and it rightly transforms into something significantly angrier.
It might not be the absolute sharpest tool in the performance car shed, but the LC 500h does bristle nicely when those modes are engaged, the hybrid factor seemingly replaced by a satisfyingly meaty exhaust note and an accelerator that’s suddenly far more sensitive to the touch.
The steering feel is nice and the inputs direct, but there is something about the car’s 1980kg weight that doesn’t inspire the deepest of confidence, at least not on the rain-slicked roads we were travelling along .
A pure performance coupe? Perhaps not. But a sporty, stylish and, when you want it to be, comfortable cruiser with the ability to turn the volume up when you come across a twisting road? Bingo.
Audi RS58/10
With our time behind the wheel limited to the RS5 Coupe, we can only really report on how the two-door feels on the road, but given the prodigious power on offer, it's unlikely the addition of two doors is going to make the Sportback any slower.Â
In short, the RS5 is thunderously fast, collecting speed with utter nonchalance thanks to this thick and endless-feeling supply of power unleashed whenever you plant your right foot.
It makes even the most ham-fisted attempts at cornering feel fast as lightning, with the power flow able to make up for every slow entry and exit by simply piling on pace between bends.Â
But that's what you expect from an RS model, right? So perhaps more impressive is the RS5's ability to transform back into a relatively sedate urban cruiser when the red mist subsides. The suspension is firm, especially over rough road surfaces, and you do need to be a little careful with the accelerator to avoid that lurching feeling at every green light, but driven calmly, it doubles as a everyday car quite nicely.
Like in the RS4, we did find the gearbox felt a little quick to change at pace, shifting up or down at strange moments on the way into or out of corners, but you can reclaim control via the paddle shifters.
Safety
Lexus LC500H9/10
The Lexus LC 500h is yet to be ANCAP tested (the price would likely prove a sticking point), but the Japanese brand has fine form in attracting top marks, and there's certainly no shortage of safety features on offer here.Â
There's a total eight airbags and a reversing camera and parking sensors, as well as a host of high-tech kit like AEB, Lane Keep Assist, Blind Spot Monitoring, active cruiser control and a bonnet that will sense pedestrian and pop up before impact in an attempt to minimise injury.Â
Audi RS59/10
The safety story begins with six (Coupe) or eight (Sportback), and the usual suite of braking and traction aids, but then climbs into the tech-savvy stuff from there.
You get a 360-degree camera, adaptive cruise with stop and go, active lane assist, front and rear parking sensors, AEB with pedestrian detection, rear cross-traffic alert, an exit warning system, blind-spot monitoring and turn assist, which monitors oncoming traffic when making a turn.
It's a lot of gear, and it all contributes to Audi's five-star ANCAP safety rating, awarded in 2017 to the A5 range.
Ownership
Lexus LC500H8/10
So, to ownership. Let's start with the basics first, before we move onto the new Encore Platinum benefits.Â
The LC 500h is covered by a four-year/100,000km warranty, and servicing (capped for three years at $595 a pop) is required every 15,000km.
You will know already the Lexus's stellar Encore ownership program includes handy features like valet (pick-up and drop-off) servicing, but the new Encore Platinum level for owners of its more exclusive models unlocks some seriously cool stuff.Â
One is a new On Demand service, which allows owners to book a different style of car when heading off on a holiday or business trip. So, say you own the LC 500h, but want to take the family to the snow and need a seven-seat 4WD like the RX L, then Lexus will lend you one at no charge, which you can keep for eight days.
The loans are available in your state or somewhere else in Australia if you're travelling, with your car waiting for you at Qantas Valet for you when you arrive.Â
The One Demand service is available on four occasions over your first three years of ownership (which is also the length of the Encore Platinum membership).Â
The Platinum level also provides eight examples of free valet parking at select shopping centres, as well as hotel and restaurant benefits, and invitations to Lexus' drive days around the country.
Audi RS57/10
Audi vehicles are covered by a three-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty, which is feeling more than a little underdone when compared to some competitors.
Services are due every 12 months or 15,000kms, and Audi allows you to pre-pay your service costs for the first five years, at a cost of $3,050.