Lexus SC 430 - Why are these bizarrely rubbish?
Discussion
I'd have one, for the same reasons I own an LS. The looks can be forgiven in return for the reliability , trouble free motoring and lack of post purchase wallet emptying the Lexus brand offers. ( Fuel consumption excepted )
I'd be the first to agree the looks are shocking , the interior is plush enough though and if you really want the folding tin top experience in a V8 package it fits the bill quite nicely
I'd be the first to agree the looks are shocking , the interior is plush enough though and if you really want the folding tin top experience in a V8 package it fits the bill quite nicely
toppstuff said:
And the fact that quite a few people don't "get it" is a plus point in my book. People are like sheep when it comes to cars, usually quoting Top gear when they express their "opinions".
I prefer the road less travelled. The contrarian / awkward old git in me, instinctively feels more attracted to a car if "popular opinion" says it is rubbish.
The Lexus is clearly not a bad car. It is a well engineered Japanese take on a Mercedes SL at a fraction of the price and with much better build quality. It is not rubbish, but misunderstood.
Even Clarkson gets it right once in a while. What's the saying about monkeys and typewriters?I prefer the road less travelled. The contrarian / awkward old git in me, instinctively feels more attracted to a car if "popular opinion" says it is rubbish.
The Lexus is clearly not a bad car. It is a well engineered Japanese take on a Mercedes SL at a fraction of the price and with much better build quality. It is not rubbish, but misunderstood.
It fails as a sportscar, GT or boulevard cruiser because it. doesn't handle well, it's relatively slow and it's ugly. I could forgive one or two of those faults, but not all three.
Had one as a courtesy car for a while when I had the LS430 a while back.
Plus points:
V8 engine, although to be fair the wrong side of refined. Smoother than a smooth thing
Comfortable seats, nice interior as well, v well screwed together
Very little scuttle shake with the roof down
Reliable
Negatives
Awkward styling
Comedy rear seats
Plus points:
V8 engine, although to be fair the wrong side of refined. Smoother than a smooth thing
Comfortable seats, nice interior as well, v well screwed together
Very little scuttle shake with the roof down
Reliable
Negatives
Awkward styling
Comedy rear seats
A member of my family has one and he is on his 2nd. The first was the god awful goldy colour which he bought fairly new, his most recent which was bought new is this -
So about him - he's an older gent now and does play the odd round of golf. He wanted a folding hardtop which would be bullet proof, more comfort over sports but still ok to overtake easily etc. He hates MB and BMW and has a friend who deals with Toyota and Lexus - so this car was perfect for him.
What's it like to run - 25mpg, 0-60mph 6secs and pulls well through to 150. Absolutely bulletproof over 50k miles in two cars he has had zero mechanical problems - but beware if something does go it won't be cheap!
Interior looks bit naff as its full of wood, but minus that it's very pleasant, tons of toys and a very nice place to sit - long trips around Europe not a prob.
I borrowed it for a week when my car was being fixed up, so what's it like compared to an s2000?
It's a GT car, don't expect something you can throw around, its heavy, it's not all that firm and its just not made for it. If you come from a ford mondeo it will feel sporty - come from an s2000 and it feels like a mondeo!
In a straight line its ok, won't excite a PH'er too much but it will still pull 100mph in 15-16secs so it wont be mullered by a vectra derv. It's certainly too quiet, you can hear it, but it's very muted - again its really aimed at cruising.
Brakes - they stop you. But it's a heavy car so after a few big pull ups they start fading.
Gearbox - older models are 5 speed auto. Later models are 6 speed auto with sequential like stick - it doesnt change exactly when you ask it so it's a bit annoying but it let's you hold gears to redline. In auto mode it really is silky smooth, plenty of grunt to not have to change gear everytime you want to accelerate, but shifts down fairly quick if you push the kickdown switch.
Folding roof - great. Takes up a lot of boot when down! Otherwise it's got a surprising amount of storage space.
Rear seats - like a 911. Kids just about ok, adults wouldn't want to spend much time back there.
Looks - up to you. Colours make a huge difference as do the wheels.
It's a niche car, which in honesty doesnt fit this country. It's made for and is highly successful in the states.
If you are after a sporty cruiser and don't want a 6er or SL and you happen to like the look of these then give it a go - it's an awful lot of kit for the money and in the right scenario can be a lovely car to drive.
So about him - he's an older gent now and does play the odd round of golf. He wanted a folding hardtop which would be bullet proof, more comfort over sports but still ok to overtake easily etc. He hates MB and BMW and has a friend who deals with Toyota and Lexus - so this car was perfect for him.
What's it like to run - 25mpg, 0-60mph 6secs and pulls well through to 150. Absolutely bulletproof over 50k miles in two cars he has had zero mechanical problems - but beware if something does go it won't be cheap!
Interior looks bit naff as its full of wood, but minus that it's very pleasant, tons of toys and a very nice place to sit - long trips around Europe not a prob.
I borrowed it for a week when my car was being fixed up, so what's it like compared to an s2000?
It's a GT car, don't expect something you can throw around, its heavy, it's not all that firm and its just not made for it. If you come from a ford mondeo it will feel sporty - come from an s2000 and it feels like a mondeo!
In a straight line its ok, won't excite a PH'er too much but it will still pull 100mph in 15-16secs so it wont be mullered by a vectra derv. It's certainly too quiet, you can hear it, but it's very muted - again its really aimed at cruising.
Brakes - they stop you. But it's a heavy car so after a few big pull ups they start fading.
Gearbox - older models are 5 speed auto. Later models are 6 speed auto with sequential like stick - it doesnt change exactly when you ask it so it's a bit annoying but it let's you hold gears to redline. In auto mode it really is silky smooth, plenty of grunt to not have to change gear everytime you want to accelerate, but shifts down fairly quick if you push the kickdown switch.
Folding roof - great. Takes up a lot of boot when down! Otherwise it's got a surprising amount of storage space.
Rear seats - like a 911. Kids just about ok, adults wouldn't want to spend much time back there.
Looks - up to you. Colours make a huge difference as do the wheels.
It's a niche car, which in honesty doesnt fit this country. It's made for and is highly successful in the states.
If you are after a sporty cruiser and don't want a 6er or SL and you happen to like the look of these then give it a go - it's an awful lot of kit for the money and in the right scenario can be a lovely car to drive.
Edited by russy01 on Wednesday 20th June 15:00
rohrl said:
Boulevard cruisers like this and the SL500 are designed for fat old rich men in their sixties to drive to the golf club in. It's a struggle to make that cool.
The Lexus SC isn't cool in my eyes. It was definitely made with the American market in the mid, just looking at the interior tells you that much!The SL500 has alwys been cool though. Awesome looks, great to drive, big V8...
Baryonyx said:
rohrl said:
Boulevard cruisers like this and the SL500 are designed for fat old rich men in their sixties to drive to the golf club in. It's a struggle to make that cool.
The Lexus SC isn't cool in my eyes. It was definitely made with the American market in the mid, just looking at the interior tells you that much!The SL500 has alwys been cool though. Awesome looks, great to drive, big V8...
I believe the Lexus UK marketing team did not position the car correctly when launched. In California, Florida, Arizona, Texas and New england there are thousands of these, possibly outnumbering M-B's. The car was aimed at the driver who is over 50, successful, loves a Lexus ride but wants open top motoring. The gearbox and suspension settings don't really work in the UK and the car is a cruiser, will do over 500 miles in a day every day and is a joy to own.
In the UK the consumer wants a Jag, maybe a Merc, possibly a BMW 6 series....Lexus priced the car too highly and pitched it slightly wrongly. They are however beautifully built and will outlast anything else from the period and have an amazing ride for distance driving. I doubt Lexus care what people say in the Uk because they sell 300 cars in the US for every one here and the car buying public over there keep buying them.
In the UK the consumer wants a Jag, maybe a Merc, possibly a BMW 6 series....Lexus priced the car too highly and pitched it slightly wrongly. They are however beautifully built and will outlast anything else from the period and have an amazing ride for distance driving. I doubt Lexus care what people say in the Uk because they sell 300 cars in the US for every one here and the car buying public over there keep buying them.
jbi said:
It's not rubbish... it's a very well built machine, but it simply can't replace the gap left by the original soarer IMO
Err thats not the original Soarer thats a 3rd gen hence the Z30 bit of the Chassis codeThis is the Z20 from the late 80's, I've owned a couple of them, very pretty cars compared to the Z40 ugly duckling
The Z10 from the late 70's onwards
The 4th gen (the ugly one) was designed by the Americans allegedly, its hideous from all angles imho. Still quite a nice daily but keep the shades on just in case.
My, the SL comes in for some stick doesn't it? 
I don't like the way these Lexus SC's look, I think they look heavy and out of proportion.
The age demographic for their ownership is pretty old but I don't care about that. Who cares what age someone is in a car? If that bothers you then I don't have much patience for you.
What I will say in support of these things is that every one I have ever seen looks to have been really cherished by its owner, and those that I've seen driving around always seem to be piloted by someone who looks really cheerful. Maybe they are a well kept secret and they are joyful things to run?!
I dislike the interior and the exterior (Lexus interiors have always struck me as particularly naff), but I don't know if I dislike the car...
I don't like the way these Lexus SC's look, I think they look heavy and out of proportion.
The age demographic for their ownership is pretty old but I don't care about that. Who cares what age someone is in a car? If that bothers you then I don't have much patience for you.
What I will say in support of these things is that every one I have ever seen looks to have been really cherished by its owner, and those that I've seen driving around always seem to be piloted by someone who looks really cheerful. Maybe they are a well kept secret and they are joyful things to run?!
I dislike the interior and the exterior (Lexus interiors have always struck me as particularly naff), but I don't know if I dislike the car...
The problem with these is peoples opinions when they have no knowledge of what they were designed for.
They are definatly NOT a track car, far too much body roll, seats dont hug you, etc
There are plenty of terrible colour combo's around which dont do it any favours. You just cant compare it with a Boxster/ S2000/ MX5 etc
Performance wise though they are not slow, on a motorway there is nothing between my remapped 335D and my Dads SC430 6 speed.
Quite responsive when that power buttons pressed too, which suprised me.
I laughed when my dad bought his, and still dont like the front end, but have changed my tune since I learned a bit about them. Suspension changes, gearbox changes etc, and in black it looks quite good, it even turns heads. He has had quite a few ask "What is it?".
They are popular now as they are a fraction of new cost, and good ones sell fast.
They are definatly NOT a track car, far too much body roll, seats dont hug you, etc
There are plenty of terrible colour combo's around which dont do it any favours. You just cant compare it with a Boxster/ S2000/ MX5 etc
Performance wise though they are not slow, on a motorway there is nothing between my remapped 335D and my Dads SC430 6 speed.
Quite responsive when that power buttons pressed too, which suprised me.
I laughed when my dad bought his, and still dont like the front end, but have changed my tune since I learned a bit about them. Suspension changes, gearbox changes etc, and in black it looks quite good, it even turns heads. He has had quite a few ask "What is it?".
They are popular now as they are a fraction of new cost, and good ones sell fast.
I'll chime in here with my two cents. My one being an Irish registered Lexus SC 430 from 2002, that was recalled at considerable expense to Lexus Ireland HQ and fitted with T.T.E. springs and shocks that cured about 90% of the issues the reviewers had with the ride of the car at the launch test drives.
She still figits lightly between 80 and 110 mph, but there is a spring that clublexs says will cure it. I have the four different grades of those springs sitting in my glovebox after winging their way from America for the next time I'm under the car and feel like skinning my knuckles stripping the pre-load tensioner out of the steering rack and sampling these springs of increasing stiffness. They cost a tenner for all 4.
Many years ago I had it's father, a JDM sourced Toyota Soarer Twin Turbo aka Lexus SC300(ish), and what I like about this is I have two less turbos to worry about, similar power, better economy, a folding roof that been utterly reliable and I can get my genuine and better than OEM spares from America etc for fraction of the dealer prices.
It drives well, but since my one bit back a few months ago and turned around 170 degrees on the motorway before I recovered it via a scary series of ever decreasing fish tales, I'm a bit nervous of her. In her defense I was doing 50 mph, on slush, wearing summer tyres, so it's hardy the cars fault.
I had a twin turbo Aristo too, and also bought (still have) a W124 Merc E320 cabrio but it felt SO SO OLD like something from a previous generation of cars, a relic, and I think that I'll never willingly drive anything other than Lexus, now and into the future years afforded to me. I've had about 15 years in them so far.
She still figits lightly between 80 and 110 mph, but there is a spring that clublexs says will cure it. I have the four different grades of those springs sitting in my glovebox after winging their way from America for the next time I'm under the car and feel like skinning my knuckles stripping the pre-load tensioner out of the steering rack and sampling these springs of increasing stiffness. They cost a tenner for all 4.
Many years ago I had it's father, a JDM sourced Toyota Soarer Twin Turbo aka Lexus SC300(ish), and what I like about this is I have two less turbos to worry about, similar power, better economy, a folding roof that been utterly reliable and I can get my genuine and better than OEM spares from America etc for fraction of the dealer prices.
It drives well, but since my one bit back a few months ago and turned around 170 degrees on the motorway before I recovered it via a scary series of ever decreasing fish tales, I'm a bit nervous of her. In her defense I was doing 50 mph, on slush, wearing summer tyres, so it's hardy the cars fault.
I had a twin turbo Aristo too, and also bought (still have) a W124 Merc E320 cabrio but it felt SO SO OLD like something from a previous generation of cars, a relic, and I think that I'll never willingly drive anything other than Lexus, now and into the future years afforded to me. I've had about 15 years in them so far.
Edited by Terminator Guy on Sunday 11th May 12:07
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