IT HARDLY LOOKS different from its predecessor, but then the familiarity and relative anonymity of the new LS430 are probably intentional. Walk around the car and you might just notice that the front end is a mite less brutish, thanks to sleek new headlight clusters and a grille that's been stretched and curved to create a friendlier - or, as the Lexus people might say, 'sporty' - look. Otherwise, it remains pretty much the same barge-like beast as last year's model, its heftiness partially explained by the fact that, from the A-pillars back, the LS430 is a dead-ringer for the previous S-Class Mercedes-Benz, itself no svelte beauty.
So ignore the bland and derivative exterior styling if you can and instead admire the beauty that lies under the skin, for it's there that the big new Lexus truly shines. For there can be few cars on the road as complete as the LS430.
The standard specification is awesomely comprehensive. There is one engine only: a superb, 4.3-litre V8 that produces in excess of 280bhp and a thumping 417 Newtons-per-metre of torque, yet does it all so silently and so unobtrusively that I doubt there's a smoother motor this side of Rolls-Royce. It's hooked up to a six-speed electronic automatic box, which shifts so imperceptibly that you only notice when glancing at the rev-counter.
Mercifully, Lexus has resisted the urge to require us to re-learn how to drive, as the BMW 7-Series has, so the gear selector is, as it should be, a lever located on the console. This permits tiptronic-style semi-manual changes in Drive, achieved via a nudge either forward or back. The suspension's a beautifully sorted arrangement of double wishbones, coil springs and gas-filled shocks, which allow the Lexus to hug the road like a sports saloon yet waft serenely like a boulevardier. There's also the usual list of active electronic safety acronyms, and four whopping ventilated disc brakes that can really haul this 1.85-tonne machine to a halt. A smart key that lets you not only get into the car but start it without having to use a slot is a neat, hi-tech touch, although not one that adds greatly to the driving pleasure. For that, there's the interior, gleaming with polished walnut and heady with the rich aroma of expensive leather, and the ergonomic instrument layout. Seats, front and back, are adjustable every which way, and have a three-position memory, as well as cooling and heating, while those at the rear have a massage function, which I found disconcerting in a car with such a smooth ride. The split air-conditioning can be controlled from the rear passenger's console, as can the glorious 11-speaker, 350-watt Mark Levinson audio system. Miles Davis's Kind Of Blue sounded sublime.
But comfortable though it is, sitting in the back seat of the LS430 really misses the point, for this big, luxurious saloon is not only surprisingly easy to drive, it's also both involving and satisfying. Thanks to the combination of superb handling, quick steering and an amazingly responsive powertrain, the car rarely feels its size, so you quickly acquire the confidence to punt it along like a much smaller machine.
Spot a gap in the traffic, jab the throttle and the big Lexus gathers up her skirts and surges gracefully forward, those massive disc brakes shaving off the speed again when it's time to slot back into the flow. Admittedly the handsome, wood-rimmed steering wheel is slightly unwieldy when slicing through traffic, but something smaller would hardly suit the opulent surrounds of the Lexus's cabin.