MaximaPower

very nice looking! jus dont like the rear at all

phile

I don't think cars are necessarily getting more expensive, it's just that Lexus has been slowly creeping up the price range. Remember when Lexus first came out...a Lexus LS400 was what, $35,000? I bet if you adjusted for inflation, that would still come out as one helluva deal! The same with Acura...how much was the Legend...now an RL starts at barely below 50K.

phile

I'm going to take a stab in the dark and say the Lexus would probably feel better than the other two. There are up close pics of the M's interior on Nissan's media site and I see what looks like soft touch materials throughout the cabin, but not as much padding as the other two. Look closely and you'll see that the RL and GS both have leather lining the sides of their center consoles...the M does not. And if you look at pics available for the GS on clublexus, there's a shot of the rear cabin with the doors open...the leather on the seats extends further down until it visually disappears...in both the RL and M, you can clearly see where the luxury ends; the leather seats sit on top of the fuzzy interior floor lining that is visible when the doors are open. But I do see that the RL has perforated leather seats...not sure about the GS, and the M doesn't appear to have them. Gauging with my buttocks, perforated seats in general are more comfortable than regular leather seats.

I'm not really knocking the RL or the M's interior...the stuff they bring is pretty much the industry norm, which is fine...but it's Lexus who's upping the ante with these subtle touches that I'm bringing up.

titan

Ditto, 100% I'll give GM credit for having the balls of implementing the changes at Caddy (especially the styling/design dept.), which amounted to a do or die situation, for that division's turnaround. But it also has to do with the recoginition that RWD is necessary and performance versions of it's models can only help. Caddy's been the only bright spot. When the said that they would make Buick a viable alternative to Lexus, I was happy as hell. I have alot of fond memories chillin' in the back of my dad's Regal... but coming out with underpowered FWD SUVs (Rendevous) and sad looking Minivans' posing as SUVs (Terrazza) is no way at meeting that goal. Of all the automakers, GM's vast resources should have truly meant a revitalization.

heyitsme

Kinda a blanket statement, considering this isn't the typical Infiniti interior.

bird

Anyone has a 7th generation Accord like me?

Dem1K

iTrader: (1)

dream on, bub

gocubsgo55

the GS's exterior looks awesome in white and black, as does the RL's. The M looks great in almost any reasonable color. As for interior, all of them have their strong points. Once you get to technology, though, the RL owns all.

So, in my view...

M/GS> RL (exterior)
RL=M=GS (interior)
RL>GS/M (technology)
M>GS/RL (sportiness)
RL/GS>M (luxury)

I love all 3 of these cars, but I wonder who the press will take. Should be an awesome fight.

Beltfed

Not really, just that small disgusting looking section next to the steering wheel tells me not much has changed......its still a Nissan product.

I like Nissans and Infinitis, but most of their new interiors have been on the crappy side (quality wise).

titan

I agree to an extent. Until recently, the interiors of both brands remained subpar in comparison to the other cars in there class, but not anymore. The Altima and G35 has recieved new and improved dashes/etc., with better materials, correcting critics' one glaring complaint. The FX's interior was on point from the start, and the M will definitely be the same way.

Beltfed

I'm actually not that impressed with the FXs interior, its ok.....some nice aluminum trim and has a good layout. But I still think the overall feel is not up to Lexus standards imho.

And the upgrades to the G35 is no great shakes.

cusdaddy

I disagree... I think the M45 interior looks nicer than the GS interior. From the pitcures, I believe RL>M45>GS (in interior design).

I'm going to Detroit for the car show and hopefully I'll be able to sit in all 3 (RL, M45, GS) and report back how the material quality feels in all 3.

Beltfed

If the M45 is anything like the FX, the Lexus wins. Not one Infiniti product to date has had the same level of refinement as a Lexus.

I'm not biased, never owned an Infiniti or a Lexus.

Maximized

My mom has a RX330 and the interior is beautiful. The only company that does interiors better is Audi. My dads A8 has one of the nicest interiors I have ever sat in. Anyone know the MSRP or the GS430 and when it comes out? Merry Christmas to all!

gavriil

Buick's turnaround has not started yet. It has been going on for 2.5 years on paper only. The first results of that effort will show in the next 1-3 years.

cusdaddy

I agree that the current Infiniti interiors are inferior to Lexus, but from the looks of it, the M45 is greatly improved. I'll report back from Detroit in a few weeks to give my assessment after actually sitting in each

importtuner

I think the quality of the materials in the Lexus far surpass that of Acura and Infinity combined. Acura uses alot of cheap plastics and one thing I hate seeing in the Acura line-up is the joints of panels. I absolutely hate seeing that. When it comes to luxury Lexus wins hands down. When it comes to features, Acura all the way. Now if Acura had the refinement of Lexus in the interior department and if you were to tag that along to the features the Acura has, Acura would win hands down!

titan

I hope you're write. The sooner the better... and what they truly need is real product blitz like Caddy did. STS,XLR,SRX,STS... all coming to market in rapid succession and all on target (pretty much).

titan

Going to Detroit? Lucky man... have fun.

cusdaddy

It's become an annual guys weekend away event.. 3 friends and I drive from NYC to Detroit through the night, get a few hours rest and then attend the show on Saturday... I'll post pics and my impressions when I get back

titan

Looking forward to it. Have fun.

phile

What joints of panels are you talking about? I don't think Acura uses a lot of cheap plastics...granted, on the RSX the quality of materials could use a revamp, and the older models did cut corners. But I think Acura has realized that in order to be perceived as luxury, it must increase the quality quotient and IMO the newer models (TSX, TL, RL) have all done that. I can't speak for the RL, but I know for a fact that the plastics in the TSX and TL look and feel pretty decent to me.

Maybe you're confusing quality with craftsmanship, as I think that's one area where Acura could also use some improvements. The panel gaps in the center console and glove box in that pic of the RL's interior is what I'm talking about. They just shouldn't be there.

chungkopi

they all look good, but i'll RL's dash and GS's white leather.

titan

The white leather is just for the show car... the M show car had a similar awesome white leather and two toned wheel... looks great but won't make it to production; to impractical.

gavriil

The only Acura using cheap plastics is the RSX. You're exaggerating.

The latest Acuras use absolutely the best materials and have the best git now. They are par with Audi almost. Comparing the TSX with the IS, the TSX wins hands down for example. Lexus is not what it used to be when it comes down to interior quality, fit and finish any more. The new RX330 proves that.

gocubsgo55

more pics of the 2006 GS 300 (both exterior and interior)..






(some pictures were already posted, but here are the ones not posted yet of the exterior..)







never did i expect this from Toyota. Aggressive, refined design. The interior is great, but it lacks the character (i really don't know how to explain it) the M and RL have. You can see the sportiness of the M and refined luxury of the RL in the interiors. Here, I see an aggressive design, but is it sporty or luxurious? I think it lacks enough wood/aluminum. The dash just looks boring (although if you see all of it in one picture, it looks clean and gorgeous). sorry, i just don't know how to explain it. I don't hate it, I just think the RL and M have nicer interiors. My opinion on these 3 cars changes everyday, so don't worry..

gocubsgo55

2006 GS INTRODUCTION BROCHURE

(I'm going to post only the better/more informative pictures)

gocubsgo55

guys, here comes Toyota (in the form of Lexus). They stated they were going to become a true power house and modernize their designs, and they're finally coming through. This is the GS, the IS, LS, and VX are coming soon. When browsing these pics (on clublex) I saw a spy pic of a candy red GS standing next to an RX330-like car (grill only) that look a lot better than what they have right now. Lexus is about to tear up a storm, and Acura and Infiniti are going to be blown away even more. BMW and MB better get ready, because now that Lexus has clearly defeated Acura and Infiniti over the past years (I think we can all agree both are still putting up a fight, and it's working fairly well), they have had their eyes set on the big 2. This is going to be fun.

titan

I like this car the more I see it, even though I still think they played it to safe with the exterior... great car, though.

gavriil

I agree about the "lack of character" in the case of the GS. I remember that was the main reason my wife declined the GS when we were looking 3 years ago and went with the RX.

Minch00

gavriil

Again, this car looks great from up close. It flows real nicely.

phile

I don't know what car this came from, but wow look at what Toyota's capable of doing:

charliemike

So this 3.0L is a new engine?

What happened to the 3.3L?

CGTSX2004

iTrader: (1)

Looks kinda like the next-gen Avalon

The GS looks pretty decent, but I'll wait until it goes on sale and I drive it before I make a judgement on mechanicals.

gavriil

The new GS is posted on the Japanese Lexus site here:

http://lexus.jp/

It's all flash so click on the models link, then GS, then the rest for photos and specs.

Interestingly, Japan gets the 3.5 liter 6 cylinder engine and it calls it the GS 350.

What's up with the deficient engine we got this time?

gavriil

Source: Autospies

Gilgamesh

Nice...but they need to work a little more oomph into their motors...

goldmemberer

I can't imagine that their Jap 3.5L puts out anything under 260hp. That's plenty of oomph, I say.

phile

I think we're getting the 3.5L too.