As we spent more time behind the LS's wheel, however, our admiration shifted to dissatisfaction, back to the days of December 2007. Complaints ranged from minor grumbles ("Side mirrors are too small") to major grievances ("If you're a driver, you'll just find the whole experience numb and uninvolving. There is no emotion to this car. None"), all of which made us wish Lexus had produced more of a driver's car than a curtailed limousine. "Too soft" and "floaty" were common notebook entries, as was, "more wind noise than I expected." In fact, at highway speed, the LS seemed to suffer from more wind clatter than the lower-level GS 460. And lest we forget, the LS's gimmicky Advanced Parking Guidance system -- you know, the one in which the car parks itself -- was deemed clever when trying to impress friends, but frustrating to use ("I've tried it twice and it's either scared me a little or just refused to work at all") and unrealistic in purpose ("The real-life practicality of this feature is non-existent").
From the logbook
"When dodging in and out of traffic, the LS 460's relatively loose steering and softened suspension made me feel quite detached from the road."
- Mike Suggett
"I never thought eight gears were necessary until I had them, and then I realized that more is merrier, more is smoother, more is luxury -- especially when Lexus is doing the engineering."
- Brian Vance
"My mileage for the round trip to Arizona was 25 mpg and the range is simply extraordinary -- it appears to be about 530 miles on the highway."
- Kim Reynolds
"The eight-speed auto noticeably hunts between ratios if you drive it in power mode. It's not smooth, and if you come off the gas, then get back on it lightly, you can fool the transmission into making an unseemly thump."
- Angus MacKenzie
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