KansasCity.com's view

The first Lexus LS 400 was a groundbreaking car when it appeared in 1989, and the luxury segment hasn’t been the same since.

The 2007 LS 460 is the fourth generation, and in many ways it is just as significant as the first car in terms of defining the brand.

In the past, Lexus was criticized for designing cars that lacked panache. That has changed. The new LS has bold, muscular styling that evokes performance as well as elegance. Lexus calls the look “L-finesse,” and the GS, IS and ES all use the same design language. Some of the body’s contours, such as the front fenders, are amazingly complex shapes that reflect the ‘inherent contrast between simplicity and elegance,” according to Lexus.

The standard LS has a 116.9-inch wheelbase, while the LS 460L has a 121.7-inch wheelbase. The long wheelbase provides extra length for a reclining rear seat that “transports its rear-seat passengers in an environment whose luxury features closely resemble those of a private jet,” in the words of Lexus press materials. The standard car starts at $61,000, and the longer model begins at $71,000.

As you would expect from a car in this segment, the LS 460 is loaded with technology. The butter-smooth V-8 cranks out 380 horsepower, and it’s mated to the industry’s first eight-speed automatic transmission. The LS can also be equipped with a self-parking system, but more on that later.

The engine is all-new, and it combines both port and direct fuel injection. Electric motors control the variable valve timing and electronic intake cam. Lexus said it is the first to use such a design. To reduce friction and vibration, parts of the crankshaft are polished mirror-smooth. During assembly, the engine is cranked by an electric motor as technicians measure for vibration.

According to Lexus, the paint process is a story in itself. The company invented six-axis robots, capable of three-dimensional movements, to polish the body before paint is applied. It took six months just to devise the software to make them work. Then, as successive layers of paint go on, the car is hand-sanded twice.

Attention to detail is evident when you slide behind the wheel. Out on the road, the LS is as quiet as a football stadium on Monday and as serene as Queen Elizabeth. It rolls so smoothly you would swear the wheels are hardly touching the ground.

But don’t let the smoothness fool you. Stamp the throttle and the LS accelerates with authority, more like a sports car than a luxury sedan. That level of performance is certainly different from earlier models that were spirited, but not quite like this.

The LS 460 is capable of accelerating to 60 miles per hour in 5.5 seconds. The engine meets Ultra-Low Emissions Vehicle standards and is rated at 19 miles per gallon in the city and 27 on the highway. That’s excellent for a car of this size and with this much horsepower.

Look for a hybrid version at some point in the future that will have performance on par with a V-12.

Inside, the cabin’s elegance is as understated. The leather seats are deep and cozy, and they have a wide range of adjustment. They are, of course, heated and cooled. The optional power rear seat is heated and has a memory setting.

Since the first LS in 1989, Lexus gauges have been beautifully simple. This car continues that. The white luminescent numerals seem to float in a pool of blackness that makes them readable at a glance.

The voice-activated navigation system is part of a $6,340 luxury package that also includes a Mark Levinson surround-sound stereo and the self-parking feature.

Self-parking seemed like a gimmick until I tried it. I practiced in a sparsely populated parking lot. The car can either back into a parking space, or complete a parallel parking maneuver on its own.

The system needs some input from the driver, to be sure. Once you are in a position to park and select reverse, a grid appears on the image of the backup camera on an LCD screen in the center of the dash. You adjust the position of the grid by touching the arrows on the screen.

Once you have the grid in place, you ease off the brake, the steering wheel turns as if by magic and the car backs into the parking place.

Other comfort features include a heated steering wheel, power rear-door closer and a powered trunk lid.

Lexus’ vehicle stability system uses numerous sensors, electronically controlled brakes, electronic power steering and anti-lock brakes to help the driver maintain control in emergency or accident-evasion situations.

Price

The base price of the test car was $61,000. Options included the navigation system, Mark Levinson stereo, self-parking feature, heated rear seats with memory, side airbags for the rear seat and XM satellite radio with real-time traffic updates. The sticker price was $72,901.

Warranty

Four years or 50,000 miles, with a six-year, 70,000-mile powertrain warranty.