Lexus GS450h CAR review

Looks like a limo, but I suppose if David Cameron has one, it must be green…

We’re not sure how much Tory-boy’s ‘celebrity’ endorsement is worth, but the Lexus GS450h is probably the most technically advanced ‘green’ car currently available as a standard-production model. It’s a big executive saloon with a premium badge and is priced accordingly, from £38,068. But that high price allows Lexus to include one of the most sophisticated powertrains offered in any car, at any price. Lexus doesn’t make much profit on these. The GS450h will hit 60mph in just 5.9 seconds (BMW 550i: 5.6 seconds) yet return a claimed 35.8mpg and emit just 186g/km of CO2 when most of its rivals are off the company car-tax dial.

But it’s just a posh Prius, right? What’s so special about it?

Yes, it’s a hybrid. But even without the help of the electric motor, the 3.5-litre petrol V6 (with 292bhp and unique twin direct-injection ports in each cylinder) has the lowest NOx and hydrocarbon emissions of any internal combustion engine. Fed by a 288V nickel metal-hydride battery pack behind the rear seats, the electric motor has its own two-speed gearbox and gives 197bhp and an instant 203lb ft of torque. Like the Prius, it can propel the car silently and unaided at low speeds and light throttle openings. Working together, the petrol and electric motors make 341bhp. Sadly, you can’t just add the two power outputs together.