2018 Lexus LS 500h Hybrid heading for a Geneva Motor Show debut

The hybrid version of the 2018 Lexus LS – the Lexus LS 500h – is heading for a debut at the Geneva Motor Show as the second version of the new LS.

Last month we got our first proper look at what is effectively the 2018 Lexus LS (by the time it goes on sale), as the Japanese take on the Mercedes S-Class arrived in its latest iteration at the Detroit Motor Show.

That LS was powered by a new 3.5 litre V6 petrol engine delivering 409bhp and 442lb/ft of torque – enough for a 0-62mph in 4.5 seconds – but now we’re going to get what we’re guessing could be the first of two hybrid versions of the new LS – the 2018 Lexus LS 500h.

Lexus are keeping details of what exactly will power the new LS 500h, but perhaps the clue is both in the name and in the stunning new LC 500h.

Instead of a new LS 600h – which we might have expected top replace the current LS 600h – the Geneva debut will be a new LS 500h which could well get the same hybrid powertrain as the new LC 500h.

That would mean a new multistage hybrid with a 3.5 litre Atkinson Cycle V6 working with the electric motor to deliver 354bhp.

That may seem a bit paltry, but in the LC 500h it does manage to deliver a sub-5 second 0-62mph and strong official economy numbers.

If the guess is right, we could then see a range-topping LS 600h (and, no doubt, an LC 600h too) with far more power and performance further down the line. 

We’ll discover more as Geneva approaches and Lexus reveals what will power the new LS 500h.