When Concept Meets Reality

Lexus’ New Coupe Points The Way Forward.

- Jonny Lieberman

The Lexus brand thundered onto the automotive scene nearly 30 years ago with the LS 400 flagship sedan, which sniped the German brands with the concept of affordable, reliable luxury. But it was the first Lexus coupe that announced the brand possessed style and panache.

The stunning 1992 SC 400 was born of its Newport Beach, California, design studio, which gained inspiration for its concept model by pouring gloppy plaster into balloons and seeing how they jiggled and wobbled. The resulting coupe was a sleek, stealthy sensation. We named it our Import Car of the Year.

However, the follow-up coupe that arrived in 2001 was the portly, stubby SC 430, a vehicle few under the age of 65 ever coveted. When it quietly went out of production in 2010, no one noticed or even cared. That seemed to be it for big four-seat Lexus coupes.

Then, at the 2012 Detroit auto show, Lexus showed the radical LC-LF concept car—and what I saw looked like a Braun electric shaver. I remember standing on the stage, staring at the concept, and thinking there was no way Lexus would ever build the thing.

Well, here it is. And unlike most concept cars, which get neutered between auto show stage and the street, the LC 500 has kept much of its original design. To pay further compliment to the design, once again penned in Newport Beach, the production version looks as unhinged as the concept.