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Your support makes all the difference.<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nRead more<\/span><\/svg><\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nS<\/span>o, the Lexus LM350h. Very much a niche vehicle, a cross between a people carrier, a limousine and, indeed, a first-class compartment on a plane. I\u2019m not sure what to make of it, if I\u2019m honest. You can see it\u2019s designed for the chauffeur-driven market, to ferry around the top echelons in society \u2013 chief executives, visiting dignitaries, crypto tycoons, football club owners, that sort of thing \u2013 in supreme comfort. <\/p>\nIt comes as a seven-seater, which is a bit \u201cmini bus\u201d for elite transportation, or, as in the example Lexus kindly allowed me to try, as a four-seater \u2013 two up front as normal, plus two individual, fully reclining seats in the rear, modelled on the kind of thing you\u2019d find yourself flying around in if you had the money. From my experience as a pretend professional driver lugging some mates about, even the tallest and broadest of plutocrats will find sufficient room to relax. (Although there is not that much room left in the boot for their clobber; presumably, that gets sent on separately.)<\/p>\n
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open image in gallery<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>Snug in the back armchairs, you\u2019re swathed in leather and can kick back almost flat for a kip (Sean O\u2019Grady)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nIt\u2019s enormous fun, though it\u2019s supposed to be deeply serious transportation for the Forbes <\/em>magazine classes. Snug in the back armchairs, you\u2019re swathed in leather, you can kick back almost flat for a kip, and there\u2019s a wee fridge just ahead with room for a bottle of Laurent Perrier and a couple of glasses. There are nice little cantilever tables that fold out from the armrests, plus smartphone-style controls for the huge telly screen in the back, the air conditioning and full digital connectivity. <\/p>\nThe four-seater style is called \u201cOttoman\u201d, and there are indeed footrests for the weary executive, plus dimming lights and gaming options. Best of all, for those who prefer absolute privacy, the separate rear passenger compartment can be fully sealed off from the driver with an electric window divider, just as in a traditional Daimler, Vanden Plas or Rolls-Royce limousine, so there\u2019s no eavesdropping by the servants. The atmosphere is serene. <\/p>\n
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open image in gallery<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>Braking and body control are both highly progressive (Sean O\u2019Grady)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nTo drive the LM350h is a bit of a dream. Equipped with a pretty powerful Toyota engine (Lexus being the luxury arm of the business, in case you hadn\u2019t gathered, and this model is well suited to the \u201cpremium\u201d badging), it can make rapid progress if needs be, but it\u2019s fair to say it encourages a sedate style, with the \u201cactive variable\u201d suspension tuned to maximum comfort for the VIPs in the back. <\/p>\n\nTHE SPEC<\/h2>\nLexus LM350h Takumi<\/h3>\nPrice:<\/strong> \u00a3117,595 (as tested, range starts at \u00a394,950)<\/p>\nEngine capacity:<\/strong> 2.5l petrol hybrid, 4-cyl; cvt auto<\/p>\nPower output (hp):<\/strong> 250<\/p>\nTop speed (mph):<\/strong> 118<\/p>\n0 to 60 (seconds):<\/strong> 9.1<\/p>\nFuel economy (mpg):<\/strong> 39.2<\/p>\nCO2 emissions (WLTP, g\/km):<\/strong> 163<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nIt\u2019s a conventional hybrid, which means it\u2019s never going to be quite as refined as it would be as either a pure petrol or pure battery electric car, and it should really have six cylinders, but it can tootle around business districts in near-silent electric-only mode. Only when pressed hard will the transmission intrude with a bit of a low moan. Braking and body control are both highly progressive. <\/p>\n
For some reason, there\u2019s a four-wheel-drive option (with no extra ground clearance) that propels the Lexus into \u00a3120,000 list price territory, and, even in a world of conspicuous consumption, that feels a bit excessive. <\/p>\n
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open image in gallery<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>It’s a bit of a \u2018mini bus\u2019 for elite transportation (Sean O\u2019Grady)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nI\u2019m still not sure what to make of it, though. I think it reflects changing tastes in the business luxury end of the carriage trade, especially in Asian markets. For many decades now, the Mercedes-Benz S-class has sewn up this sector, with BMW, Audi running a little behind, while the Range Rover offers something slightly different, and the Bentley and Rolls-Royce models (even pricier) were in a class above even those famous marques. All are obviously spectacular places to be, and can be specced to your heart\u2019s content with the finest of craftsmanship in wood and leatherwork. <\/p>\n
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open image in gallery<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>If I were in the airport chauffeur business, I\u2019d definitely consider the Lexus for my high-end clientele (Sean O\u2019Grady)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nThis Lexus offers a different package \u2013 much more of the lounge-on-wheels, with the added advantage over the old-style limousines and the SUVs of ease of ingress and egress \u2013 no clambering out or having to hop up or step down, the electric sliding doors adding to the convenience. Thus, you almost walk in and out of the LM350h. Such things matter to some. <\/p>\n
The single practical flaw with the Lexus \u2013 and it is a significant one \u2013 is that front doors are so deep that they will easily foul any kerb more than about an inch high. I\u2019m not sure why the car has to be quite so slab-sided, but there we are. One day, the lower edges of those doors will look shabbily rusty.<\/p>\n
In the UK, this Lexus has few direct competitors. There\u2019s something called a Maxus Mifa 9, built by Shanghai Automotive, that is competitive and, from memory, equally comfy but rather cheaper; while Mercedes-Benz offers its Premium V-class, which takes a van conversion as close to an S-class Maybach as is possible and is better suited to larger groups. It\u2019s still a van, though.<\/p>\n
So, if I were in the airport chauffeur business, I\u2019d definitely consider the Lexus for my high-end clientele. I\u2019d just have to get used to that visually challenging frontal styling (again, I think attuned to emerging market fashions). The beauty of this posh motor is very much on the inside. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging. At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story. The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it. Your support makes all the difference. Read more So, the Lexus LM350h. Very much a niche vehicle, a cross between a people carrier, a limousine and, indeed, a first-class compartment on a plane. I\u2019m not sure what to make of it, if I\u2019m honest. You can see it\u2019s designed for the chauffeur-driven market, to ferry around the top echelons in society \u2013 chief executives, visiting dignitaries, crypto tycoons, football club owners, that sort of thing \u2013 in supreme comfort. It comes as a seven-seater, which is a bit \u201cmini bus\u201d for elite transportation, or, as in the example Lexus kindly allowed me to try, as a four-seater \u2013 two up front as normal, plus two individual, fully reclining seats in the rear, modelled on the kind of thing you\u2019d find yourself flying around in if you had the money. From my experience as a pretend professional driver lugging some mates about, even the tallest and broadest of plutocrats will find sufficient room to relax. (Although there is not that much room left in the boot for their clobber; presumably, that gets sent on separately.) open image in gal…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9365,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9364"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9364"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9364\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/9365"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9364"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9364"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9364"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}