THIS IS THE way to commute. I've my feet on the ottoman, and am having a robust shiatsu massage in the back of this Lexus LS460L. Other cars' massage machines shake and heat your booty, but the Lexus 'rear seat relaxation system' hits the spot outside the Luk Kwok Hotel. By the time we reach The Excelsior, this LS460L's back mat and seat vibration assembly has loosened the lats, set the ego aglow and kneaded at my mental knots about Lexus' new executive stretch.
Critics say its predecessors, the 1989 LS400 and the 2001 'Lexusgate' LS430, were quiet rides and looked too much like Mercedes-Benzes. So what? The executive Lexuses have a cult following in Hong Kong because they've proved dependable in our humidity and make their owners look important and feel good in commutes, as I do now.
Indeed, the look and finish of this LS460L stretch (HK$1.23 million) and its standard LS460 version (HK$1.063 million) could quash old sniffs that Lexus is Toyota in Prada.
This LS460L isn't boxy or boring for the Japanese marque has put its new executive ride through the 'L-finesse design' mill for a welcoming, elegant sass that will impress in any Hong Kong car park.
Lexus is proud of the Audi-like 'arrowhead' lines along the bonnet to the front bumper, and critics might debate whether the new LS's rear hints at the BMW 7-Series (HK$1.398 million) and the muscular profile of the bling-bling Chrysler 300C.
Indeed, the LS460L's interior is sufficiently pimped for an r'n'b video, and could tempt rappers from the Maybach 62 (HK$7.29 million). Lexus has declunked the LS460L's doors, softened the carpets and installed an air-conditioning system that adapts to your body heat through 13 sensors and 20 outlets. A DVD screen flips from the ceiling to distract the driver, and pumps sound through 19 speakers, while sunshades and rear pillars ensure privacy.
