Lexus RC 350 (2014-2026)

A refined luxury coupe with an old-school motor – Main competitors in this space include BMW, Mercedes and Audi. These types of cars represent the old-school aspirations of those looking for a sporty car that can also allow you to commute to your job as a business executive, while providing both daily comfort and a bit of flair for the weekend drive. Lexus’ best foot forward is its build quality and high attention to detail. This is an essential part of Lexus’ success in the luxury car market, and it's certainly a highlight in the RC. The panel gaps are kept to a minimum, reflecting the high attention to detail on the outside. There’s a considerate use of quality paint and materials that impress you before you even step inside. The interior of the RC is the absolute highlight of this car. The craftsmanship found throughout the cabin is divine, with the quality and accuracy of the stitching being the biggest giveaway. The doors are trimmed with what feels like an art installation of leather with flowing stitches that just leave you gawking at the door trim. No squeaks or rattles can be heard even when cruising over the bumpier surfaces.

The whole cabin allows the front passengers to almost be in a reclining position, never really having to lift an arm past their reach. All of your controls are easily reachable and found when driving, without having to strain yourself to reach for buttons or a distant touch point on a screen. There’s an infotainment display far off into what feels like the distance. In reality, it's a non-touch full colour display that possesses all the information you’d expect in a car like this (navigation, audio controls, DAB, and Apple CarPlay/Android Auto).

Controls for the screen are found just in front of the arm rest, and you operate this system like you would a laptop. Swiping on the Lexus branded trackpad is greeted with a haptic response, to help confirm your input.

It was priced from $70,739 before on roads, which was a fair price back then.

I say fair, as even though this is a relatively special engine in today’s world, not many people are going to appreciate the V6 over the similar performance they might get from a 2.0L turbocharged four-cylinder motor. Therefore, if you’re not looking for a unique power plant, you might find a better deal on either the cheaper RC200t ($67,990) or even some cheaper European variants.

Lexus offered a strange ‘in between’ warranty of 4 years/unlimited kilometres, which is more than the European 3 years, but less than others offering 5 years or more.

I was astounded at the level of sound isolation the RC was capable of. You really are in your own world when driving around in an RC. There’s minimal bleed of road noise and no wind noise intruding on the cabin’s ambiance.

The RC’s powerplant is able to remain at low revs when cruising, even under mild acceleration. The gearbox does its job effectively to ensure that the V6 delivers a premium sound experience when you don’t want to be listening to it roar. When listening to music, you’re engrossed in whatever you’re playing thanks to absolute clarity, depth and minimal amounts of distortion of this audio system. Adjusting the balance of the system, you’re able to get ridiculous levels of bass - enough to rattle your mirrors and shake your core.

There’s enough brake feel in the Lexus to give you the feedback to come to a complete stop seamlessly. There’s no need for a jerky initial brake bite, instead, you’ll have a buttery smooth stop at the lights - how elegant. This is a heavy car, weighing in at over 1700kg. This means under heavier braking you will start to feel the mass of this vehicle.

As I’ve alluded to already, the RC350 possesses a 3.5L naturally aspirated petrol V6, producing 232kW and 380Nm. As per a few publications, 0-100km/h times are claimed to be in the low 6-second range; around 6.2 seconds to be precise. Despite lacking a turbocharger, the V6 has plenty of get-up-and-go, as the engine rewards you when revving through to the redline, where you’ll access all of this motor’s power.

The 8-speed automatic used in the RC was a perfect pairing with this engine and platform. Similar to the brakes, you’re able to get the RC to perform with relative smoothness and precision when driving around town or out on the highway. What really sells the driving experience in the RC is its suspension and handling. This suspension setup is one of the best I’ve been in a while. Almost magic in its performance, you are kept in total comfort travelling down a bumpy street- you glide over speed-bumps, and traverse driveways seamlessly. I’ve been in plenty of cars down my own street, but none have performed quite as well as the Lexus RC did. It surprises me, as in tighter corners, you’re able to have the RC show off its performance chops as it can become direct in its handling. This is all thanks to possessing adaptive suspension, which changes depending on which drive mode you’re in. This allows for that duality of comfort and cornering performance.

Unfortunately, a unique motor like this is not long for this world due to its ability to guzzle petrol. This V6 was able to return some respectable consumption figures, but not without its moments. There’s a claimed consumption of around 9.1L/100km, but I just don’t think many city-dwellers will see this figure. Most of the time I was in the realm of 16L/100km, and only after some more conservative driving and highway stints, I saw that figure rest at around 10L/100km.

You’re greeted with 374L of boot space when you open the boot of the RC350. The boot is manual in its operation, however you can release the boot from either the key, the latch or from inside and it’ll ‘spring’ open. There isn’t a bunch of room back there, as the opening for the boot space is limited, unlike some vehicles that possess a hefty trunk. Rear seats can fold down in a 60:40 split, even though the second row houses only 2 seats. There’s enough space in here for a couple of suitcases or golf bags, but not quite enough for more than 2 people to head away on a long trip.

The RC offers you, the buyer, a financially more palatable version of the drop-dead gorgeous LC. For that, you get a car with style and plenty of substance.

I’d certainly recommend you go out and buy an RC against its current competitors for these reasons. If that fuel bill concerns you, I’d then skip any hybrid options and move onto getting an EV instead.

*Disclaimer - I work for ProductReview as their independent car and motorbike expert. I borrow new cars and motorbikes from manufacturers and owners to review. I am not paid or incentivised by these brands to post reviews. I write and create content to provide insight and information about any new or used vehicle I can get my hands on.

Lexus RC 350 f sport. Loads of fun. Who needs a V8? – This is my fifth Lexus and I’m never disappointed. With a rush of blood to the head I traded the IS 350 on the two door RC model. Two engines, the 5 litre V8 or the venerable 3.5 litre V6. Mine has the V6 but feels to be a totally different engine to the one in the IS. It has been remapped to provide totally different delivery characteristics despite putting out the same 233 kw. It also has a limited slip diff AND 4 wheel steering. I had never driven a car with 4 wheel steering and am now hooked. This is a beautiful designed and engineered car and a gem to drive. All the grunt you need without a V8. If you want to have fun and turn heads this is the car for you.