Lexus LC 500 VS BMW 8 Series
Lexus LC 500 2018 VS BMW 8 Series 2018
2018 Lexus LC 500 VS 2018 BMW 8 Series
2018 Lexus LC 500 :
The LC 500 is the production version of the LF-LC concept car shown in Detroit in 2012. It is a big-boned, rear-drive coupe, slightly shorter than a Mercedes E-class coupe but wider and lower. The Lexus uses its size to make a definite impression, athletic and purposeful. It fills a parking spot commandingly. The company was able to pull off this trick because the LC 500 isn't based on any other Lexus or Toyota vehicle. It's a clean-sheet design on an all-new platform that will also underpin the next LS sedan. The LC is the first Lexus to wear the spindle grille as a resplendent crown rather than a design oddity. With its extra-long hood, two-plus-two seating, and an interior that uses expensive materials playfully, the LC 500 comes off as upscale and potent, a shiny toy in the best of ways. The details are a marvel. The mesh on the grille is tight near the hood and then loosens as it waterfalls down the nose. The lines along the sides dance in sunlight. The rear is a cheeky reinterpretation of the nose. The cabin has beautifully designed grab handles on either side of the passenger, and the seats, with origami-inspired bolsters, beg you to climb into them. And we do, setting off on a day that begins in Seville, the cultural capital of Andalusia, and takes us to a racetrack and miles of weblike roads. The car comes in two varieties: one a V6 hybrid and the other a naturally aspirated V8—the same engine found in the RC F coupe and the GS F sedan. The hybrid, with a combined 354 hp, is balanced and likable but can't keep me from spending most of the day with the V8. (Lexus estimates 85 to 90 percent of customers will make the same choice.) The 5.0-liter V8 produces 471 hp and 398 lb-ft of torque and delivers all the happy sounds one expects from a naturally aspirated V8. An attentive driver can tip in and out of the throttle in a nuanced manner that a turbo engine just won't accommodate.
2018 BMW 8 Series:
What It Is: BMW’s upcoming 7-series-based 8-series coupe, covered in camouflage and penned in among other BMW prototypes. Expected to be larger than today’s two-door 6-series (the 6 can also be had in four-door Gran Coupe form), the 8-series will serve as BMW’s flagship coupe, just as its eponymous forebear did before it was discontinued in 1999. An interesting history note: When the original 8-series debuted in 1990, the smaller, less expensive 6-series went out of production—only to return a few years after the 8-series, which only survived for a single generation, faded from BMW showrooms. History will not repeat itself this time, however, as we anticipate BMW will add the 8-series to the lineup, keeping the smaller 6-series around to do battle with Mercedes-Benz’s upcoming E-class coupe. Why It Matters: Mercedes-Benz is moving back into the mega-upscale, mega-expensive two-door space with its gorgeous S-class–based coupe and cabriolet, and BMW must think there’s room for two Germans at that table. We think that a successor to the original 8-series, if it is somewhat sporty in the BMW vein, would make for an interesting alternative to the cushy, unabashedly comfort-oriented full-size Mercedes two-door, not to mention Bentley’s Continental or the next-generation Maserati GranTurismo....
http://www.caranddriver.com/news/2018-bmw-8-series-spy-photos-news
