LEXUS LC 500 CONVERTIBLE ACCLAIMED BY WHAT CAR? AS BRITAIN’S NUMBER ONE LUXURY SOFT-TOP

The new Lexus LC 500 Convertible is the top choice open-top car for luxury market customers, according to What Car?

The V8-powered car, Lexus’s first soft-top model, has earned the commendation Best Convertible for Big Spenders in the What Car? Awards.

What Car? Editor Steve Huntingford said: “The LC Convertible is a delightful car to spend time in, because its swooping interior is trimmed in gorgeous materials, and you hear next to no wind or road noise. When you give it its head, though, the car transforms from a tranquil grand tourer into something that feels surprisingly playful, while its powerful V8 engine makes a terrific noise.”

Based on Lexus’s LC flagship coupe, the LC 500 Convertible has been created as a model in its own right, with meticulous attention to detail to ensure that its styling, aerodynamic performance, ride and handling are of the highest quality.

Chief Designer Tadao Mori and his team set out to create “the world’s most seductive convertible,” committing to preserve the powerful and elegant lines that distinguish the coupe. This included the design of an all-new retracting soft top with an ingenious folding mechanism that allows it to be stowed in a very compact space, without intruding in the load compartment or interrupting the car’s sleek rear-end styling. Fine-tuning of the air conditioning system, aerodynamic details throughout the car and the suppression of wind flow and noise ensure that top-down driving is exhilarating yet always comfortable.

The LC 500 Convertible is powered by Lexus’s naturally aspirated 457bhp V8 engine. Matched to a 10-speed Direct Shift automatic transmission, it enables nought to 62mph acceleration in five seconds, accompanied by a rousing engine note that, as What Car? points out, is all the more enjoyable when driving with the top down.