2018 Lexus LS 500h UK Price and Specifications announced

2018 Lexus LS 500h UK Price and Specifications

Lexus has revealed prices and specifications for the 2018 LS 500h Hybrid, with four equipment grades and prices from £72,595 to £105,595.

The 2018 Lexus LS 500h – the Lexus Flagship, and the Japanese take on the Mercedes S Class – was revealed at the Geneva Motor Show in the Spring, and now it’s gone on sale in the UK.

Approaching 30 years since the original LS arrived to herald the launch of Toyota’s Lexus brand, the new LS may not be as game-changing as the original was, but it does make the LS far more relevant and current.

The new coupe-ish styling works well, the trademark spindle grille is present and correct and the LS looks what it is – the new Lexus flagship.

For now, at least, it looks like the UK is getting just the hybrid take on the LS (the reveal car at Detroit was a petrol V8), but there is a choice of four trim levels – LS 500h, LS 500h Luxury, LS 500h F Sport and LS 500h Premier.

Power in all the versions comes from Lexus’s latest hybrid powertrain, delivering a total of 354bhp from a 3.5 litre V6 petrol and a pair of electric motors, a choice of rear-wheel drive or four-wheel drive and a CVT gearbox, good for 62mph in 5.4 seconds.

That tells you most of what you need to know about the new LS 500h; it’s a limousine designed to soothe a fevered brow and waft its occupants across continents, not a dynamic supersized M5.

The entry-level LS 500h comes with 20″ alloys, LED headlights with auto beam, 12.3″ infotainment with Lexus Premium Nav, Climate, 360-degree Panoramic View, and leather and power seats with integrated heating and cooling in the front

The Luxury LS adds more toys like four-zone climate with Climate Concierge, 23-speaker Mark Levinson Sound, heated and cooling seats in the back and semi-aniline leather.

If you do want an added dose of dynamism then there’s the LS F Sport with bespoke alloys and lower-profile tyres, mesh pattern spindle grille, black calipers, sills, front bumper and boot lid, F Sport combi meter, smooth leather and control of the Vehicle Dynamics Integrated Management including Gear Ratio Steering and Dynamic Rear Steering.

At the top of the tree and pushing the LS over £100k) is the LS 500h Premier with all the toys to express, say Lexus, Omotenashi, which is the Japanese art of hospitality.

So you get Shiatsu massage massage function front and back, rear-seat entertainment, the ottoman leg rest long fitted to the range topper so you can lie back and relax and the Lexus safety Sytsem+.

The new Lexus LS 500h hybrid is now on sale at Lexus UK dealers, with firts UK customer cars due in the New Year.