It’s possible that Lexus will never be able to make as big a splash as it did when the first LS400 made its debut at the 1989 Detroit auto show. Sure, the new LC coupe is ridiculously cool, and the RX crossover sells in big numbers, but no other vehicle in Lexus’s history has been as much a signal of intent as that original LS was. That’s the true power of a flagship, and Lexus is looking to recapture some of that same enthralling aura with the all-new 2018 Lexus LS500 sedan, debuting nearly three decades later.

To re-establish the LS’s credentials in the segment it once upended, Lexus is making this fifth-generation luxury sedan larger, more powerful, and more stylish than ever before. The front end, with its prominent spindle grille and sharply angled front headlights, is mostly in keeping with Lexus’s current design language. But beyond that, the designers have taken a few more liberties with the car’s profile, introducing a flowing character line along the side and softer, more rounded forms around the rear fenders; they’re refreshing changes from the sharper, creased aesthetic found across the rest of the Lexus lineup. The LS also is breaking tradition from its typically upright, conventional three-box shape with more rakish rear glass and a D-pillar that curves dramatically downward, both of which suggest that Lexus is keen to draw comparisons with cars such as the Audi A7 and the Porsche Panamera.

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One Size Fits All

Underneath the dramatic new sheetmetal is a version of the same Global Architecture-Luxury (GA-L) platform used in the LC, although the wheelbase is stretched by 10 inches for duty in the four-door. Lexus no longer is offering a choice between standard- and long-wheelbase versions, instead going with a single size to better align the LS with its German rivals in the U.S. market (the Audi A8, the Mercedes-Benz S-class and the BMW 7-series are sold here only in long-wheelbase form). The new LS’s overall length is up by one inch over the outgoing long-wheelbase LS, which puts the new car in the same size neighborhood as the Benz and the BMW. And the car is lower and wider now, which is said to impart it with a lower center of gravity for improved handling and responses.

The same front and rear multilink suspension setup that imbues the LC with spirited handling is employed in the LS, as is a rear-wheel-steering system. Air springs are optional; cars so equipped have an access mode that automatically raises the sedan for easier entry and exit.

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All-New Powertrain

For now, Lexus is showing only the LS500 model, which uses an all-new, twin-turbocharged, direct-injected 3.5-liter V-6. Output is 415 horsepower and 442 lb-ft of torque, numbers that put this six-cylinder somewhat in the hunt with competitors’ V-8s, including the 449-hp Mercedes-Benz S550 and the 445-hp BMW 750i. It mates with an Aisin-supplied 10-speed automatic transmission, with rear-wheel drive standard and all-wheel drive optional. A claimed zero-to-60-mph time of 4.5 seconds for the rear-drive model is impressive, no surprise given the new engine’s 29-hp and 75-lb-ft boost over the rear-drive version of the outgoing LS460 with its 4.6-liter V-8.

A hybrid model could join the lineup later on; although Lexus isn’t releasing any details yet, it likely will use the same multi-stage hybrid setup from the LC500h. There’s also no mention of an F Sport trim level for the new LS, although we suspect it will be added sooner rather than later.

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Plush, Posh, and Premium

Lexus built its reputation largely on impeccable assembly quality inside and out, and the new LS looks to carry that torch. Plush, buttery-smooth leather pervades the cabin, and a beautifully sculpted dashboard design is more daring than anything you’ll find in the current Lexus showroom. Customers can choose among several different types of wood trim, and ambient lighting is said to be inspired by Japanese lanterns. Each door panel is artfully crafted, too, incorporating a gorgeous wood inlay, a highly detailed speaker grille, and an armrest that appears to be floating. All in all, the new LS appears to rival the wow factor of the latest Mercedes-Benz S-class’s interior, at least based on first impressions.

A large, 12.3-inch central display screen is controlled by a new version of Lexus’s remote touch interface, with a new, supposedly more smartphone-like operation that should improve on the clunkiness of the current mouse-like pad. As in the LC, twist knobs to select the drive mode and stability-control setting are mounted on top of the gauge pod, a nod to Lexus’s LFA supercar.

View Photos MICHAEL SIMARI, THE MANUFACTURER

Lavishly appointed 28-way power front seats with a massage function are an option, and a rear-seat luxury package offers heating, cooling, and massage for passengers there. To ensure that the rakish roofline does not impede rear-seat headroom too much, the rear headliner is scooped out, and the sunroof slides up and out rather than retracting into the roof.

Curiously, Lexus is relatively mum on the LS’s semi-autonomous driving capability, saying only that the LS500 will offer the Lexus Safety System + array of features (adaptive cruise control, lane-departure warning, automated emergency braking, and automatic high-beams) along with an optional Advanced Safety package. The latter will include a new pedestrian-detection system that can brake and steer the car around a pedestrian.

With the size, the presence, and the lavish interior of a true flagship sedan, expect the 2018 LS’s price point to rise accordingly. It’s currently a bargain alternative to the Germans, with its starting MSRP of $73,495, but the new model’s starting cost should rise closer to six figures, as have the S550 (base price, $97,525) and the 750i (base price, $95,595). The LS500 will go on sale by the end of 2017.

MICHAEL SIMARI, THE MANUFACTURER

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