Lexus RC F vs BMW M4
BMW goes turbo, Lexus sticks with a big V8 - is the fast coupe world order going topsy turvy?
But clear your minds of all preconceptions. And follow us around winter B-roads, and to a slithery Bedford Autodrome. Let's settle this.
Slide into that distinctly Japanese cockpit of the RC F and you're already being pushed into decisions about your allegiances. It's very techy, and steadfastly not European in feel. Some of the black plastic could have been lifted straight from an Avensis. But the RC F is blessed with some satisfyingly cool touches, like the wonderful LFA-inspired multi-function display. Yet cursed with a touchpad interface from the 90s, only reliably operated while driving on bowling greens and billiard tables. Oh, and an indicator stalk that plays tricks on you.
LFA influence evident in the Lexus
Flick the dial to ECO mode and the squishy throttle pedal and seamlessly smooth shifts remind you of traditional Lexus. In this mode the RC F is almost perfect for cruising through the urban jungle, the fixed rate dampers just unhappy enough to remind you this is a car built for faster speeds. Vertical motions are fast and choppy, only just contained. Steering is still feelsome, brakes are wonderfully accurate, but the sensation of pent-up force is undeniable.
Japan does old school tech? Role reversal!
There are still some niggles though. The eight-speed 'box is quick enough to shift when asking for one gear at a time. But it struggles to stack those changes. And the final drive ratio is just far too long. Why have so many ratios if the first five aren't packed nice and short? Instead, the rev limiter in third gear is enough to have you picking up rubbish, looking after the elderly or even playing "don't drop that soap" for a couple of weeks.
RC F's trick diff doing its job
Yes, those GS underpinnings and mandatory automatic gearbox are both incongruous and weighty for a car as overtly sporty as this. While rivals shed pounds in 2015, this 2+2 coupe is actually a bit of a porker. Nowhere is it felt more than in cornering transitions and braking into tighter corners. The torque vectoring diff does a sterling job in hiding this most of the time. In pure Top Trumps terms, it's a superior unit to the Active M Differential of the BMWs.
But it's only on track that the trick diff really start to shine.
Bedford South is the chosen venue for Lexus to take on Bavaria's finest. It's a cold day at the Autodrome, a little damp around the edges. A good mix of low- and high-speed turns will give each car the chance to prove itself. Both cars shod with identical Michelin Super Sport tyres.
The RC F is the underdog. From sales predictions to spec sheets. It's an easy car to cheer for, but the M4 just picks it apart. Blow by blow, stitch by stitch, tenth by tenth, the RC F can't resist the onslaught.
Yes, this happened quite a lot
The amount of shove is dangerous enough with the driver aids turned off, but couple it to that to a sharp DCT transmission and the M4 is an animal. Every shift, every squeeze of the throttle, the BMW is just looking for trouble. This harder, faster, sharper mentality continues to the handling too. With the aids turned on, both cars are easily as capable as each other.
Character, yes, but is it of the likeable type?
No such worries in the slightly more sluggish Lexus though. You have to push the RC F hard to make it oversteer, and the results can sometimes be a little unpredictable as that super-clever differential finds grip you didn't even think was there. Corner exits should be the domain of the M4, but more often than not it's the RC F that's deploying all of its torque more easily.
Only in the second gear hairpin does the 'disconnect' in the automatic gearbox of the Lexus really become an issue, the lock-up disappearing somewhat randomly to leave you coasting to the apex bereft of engine braking.
Special enough inside the BMW?
Ultimately it's the BMW that sets the faster time against the clock, scoring two laps in the 1min 6sec range. But there are plenty of 8s and 9s too when the back end breaks away. The Lexus? A best of 1min 7.1sec but this was repeatable all day long.
Much has already been said about the M4's sister car on these pages. Unconvincing aurally, and a disappointingly bland at sane speeds. These are fair complaints, but worth re-iterating in this test of the M4 too.
It's not quite as clear cut as it seems
The BMW is a brilliant car in so many ways. The cabin is infinitely superior to the RC F in everyday use, with the dials and sat nav knocking the Lexus clean off its perch. Then there are the optional LED lights, which turn night into day and burn wildlife back into the bushes. But that fake engine noise soon begins to grate. And the stereo isn't a patch on the Lexus.
Messing with the economy modes and driving sensibly will honestly net you around 33 per cent more miles for your gallon than equivalent speeds in the bigger RC F too. Low 30s being possible for the M4, but a pipe dream for the RC F.
But mess with the settings too much, soften that suspension, embrace the eco mode too often and the big M car just becomes a well-appointed 335i. It's like going to bed with a Page 3 model and waking up with her mum. Only in fleeting moments of insanity will the BMW force you to remember the vicious speed it can display on track. By comparison, there's a little bit of magic to the RC F that never lets you forget its potential.
Down but my no means out for the Lexus
We wanted a clear winner. But neither car can be fully commended, not yet.
The F in RC F is supposed to stand for Fuji circuit, remember? And the team behind this car spend weekends racing and spannering at the Nurburgring just as much as the BMW M guys and girls. Yet while their brief allowed such delightful extravagances as the M-humbling, twin-motored, torque vectoring differential, it also left them lumbered with a GS chassis 300kg too heavy and a gearbox some focus group probably said was essential for brand values.
So Lexus did a mighty fine job, but the BMW was never hobbled by such inherited problems, being a whole new car. Though there's still something slightly incoherent and otherworldly about its technology and fakery. The noises, the feedback of the steering wheel and a Jekyll and Hyde character can be the only true objective criticisms of this likewise very good car.
Foregone conclusions, biased or not, are actually very necessary. Pick the one you liked first, and you'll be happy. But the M4 is fastest. But the RC F has a V8.
C63, the stage is yours...
LEXUS RC F
Engine: 4,969cc V8
Transmission: 8-speed automatic, rear-wheel drive
Power (hp): 477@7,100rpm
Torque (lb ft): 391@4,800-5,600rpm
0-62mph: 4.5sec
Top speed: 168mph (limited)
Weight: 1,840kg (EU, including driver)
MPG: 26.2mpg (claimed)
CO2: 252g/km
Price: £60,995 (£65,790 as tested including £3,500 for Torque Vectoring Differential and £1,295 for cruise control)
BMW M4
Engine: 2,979cc 6-cyl twin-turbo
Transmission: 6-speed manual/7-speed dual-clutch auto (M DCT), rear-wheel drive
Power (hp): 431@5,500rpm
Torque (lb ft): 406@1,850-5,500rpm
0-62mph: 4.3 sec/4.1 sec M DCT
Top speed: 155mph (limited)
Weight: 1,595kg/1,635kg M DCT (EU, with driver)
MPG: 32.1mpg/34mpg M DCT (NEDC combined)
CO2: 204g/km/194g/km M DCT
Price: £55,235 (£73,770 as tested including £545 for Advanced Parking package, £2,645 for M DCT gearbox, £6,250 for M carbon ceramic brakes, £175 for 19-inch black wheels, £265 for Sun protection glass, £155 for extended storage, £140 for front sliding armrest, £395 for Interior carbon trim, £1,600 for Adaptive LED headlights, £440 for Lane change warning system, £370 for Driving Assistant, £500 for Surround-view, £825 for M head-up display, £675 for Harmon/Kardon stereo upgrade, £95 for Internet, £325 for Online Entertainment and £220 for Speed limit display.)
Photos: Anthony Fraser
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Personally I'd have the Lexus both for the joy of hearing a big V8 rumble into life every time I drove it and for the confidence that it will be engineered like almost nothing else on the road.
Of course that's a total pipe dream because I can't afford to buy or run either of them
Good article-enjoyed reading it. Personally, if I had to choose between the two, I'd opt for the Lexus. That V8 does sound special,(rather like the Ferrari V8 in the Maserati 4200)I think it looks quite good and there won't be that many of them about. I wager residuals would therefore remain strong, so it would be an all round better proposition for me.
I've seen and heard the M4 in the metal, and it doesn't do it for me -it does look bloated as mentioned above and the engine does sound odd. I would hate the 'enhanced/fake' sound through the speakers too.
I think on the road the RC F is a fantastic car, despite its supposedly "track" pretentious. personally I find the cabin better than the BMWs too, which looks too much like every other car in the range. Same goes for the exterior. The RC just has presence I don't think the M4 can muster.
I sort of wanted it to feel like a bigger, more powerful and expensive GT86, and to a certain degree it did. Upcoming C63 will probably be a good compromise between both, but I'll take a red RC F.
Its like that kid we had in highschool, the one that does everything well and scores really well but comes off as a t
t. Thats the M4.The RCF is a loveable big guy, plenty of soul, big heart and can dance despite the weigh advantage.
For me the Lexus wins.....it looks different, is beautifully built, will not break as easily as the BMW and the dealer network will look after customers where BMW dealers just want your money. As an ex BMW M5 owner I won't be going back to the Germans again.
I suspect the RCF will be the better car to own at higher mileages with (what should be) superior build quality and reliability? And from what I've read on here, their dealership network trounces BMW's.
Thinking about this from an ownership perspective, and when they do depreciate so poor people like me can afford one.
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