Quick Drive: 2020 Lexus RC F

Sounds like if you want a ricer racer, then this car would be for those fans, otherwise pass as it is under powered, over priced and over all a bit of a let down.

Be interesting to see if the traditional Lexus Fit n Finish is there as my Aunt loves Lexus, but seems in years 3 to 5 you start seeing stuff fall off like the head lining over the rear seats, knobs, etc.

@William Maley Over all Fit n Finish on this car? What about big people?

I think your review is spot on.  I actually sort of like these cars, that said, I look at it as more of a Toyota than a Lexus competing with the BMW and Merc's.  I like the showy looks and especially in yellow.  Why I wouldn't get one, an interior dash, that is right there in line with the dull blocky Japanese car dashes of the 80's and 90's....it's like not a day moved on since then.  The v8 seems to be impressive, even if its hp is down compared to others.

At the end of the day, a well loaded v8 Camaro, way more desirable even.  

I mean, a 2020 Corvette can be had for same money btw.....

Interesting car...kind of like it, not in this color combo though...looks much better in blue or red w/ red interior trim, IMO.

My son kloves this car. I want a vehicle that can go off road....but this is still cool. 

4k lb. hog. That's ridiculously heavy for a modern Coupe in this class, shows how far Lexota has fallen behind, real R&D is a thing of the past at TMC. That Lexus front-end just keeps getting worse, that spindle grille just keeps getting more defined in a bad way. Looks likes it belongs in a GTA video game and nowhere else. For $90 grand I'd much rather have a C8 Vette or even a fully loaded Camaro ZL1 with much more power like others mentioned above. The Alfa Giulia Quadrifoglio with a TT V6 smokes this Lex. on looks alone.  

467hp in a 4000lb car is underpowered? It weights ~130-180lb more than a Mustang GT and Camaro SS and I don't think people say those are underpowered. 

I think some were reacting to the torque, but at 389, it's still fine. You just expect a number there that begins with a '4' nowadays (Mustang GT : 420).

Classic in a way, but also...nothing like these. Not underpowered. Not underbuilt. And a beast day to day, that will, I don't know, keep going for 500,000 miles too...

Add in the service experience, and buttery operation and...yeah. Worth it.

The interior is where the IS and RC really fall short.  I feel like it hasn't changed in 10 years and I don't think it was that good 5-10 years ago either.  That interior is a lot of plastic and Toyota switchgear.  

The engine sounds good in the video, but it too is really dated.  You can tell Lexus is just letting their sedans die on the vine, like they did with the GS.  The IS/RC will probably be gone in a year or two and they'll keep the ES around since it is an Avalon/Camry and they will probably keep the LS even if it doesn't sell just to have a flagship.

I think the M440i might even outperform the RC F at this point.  Probably why Toyota went to BMW to make the Supra.  

17 hours ago, balthazar said:

I think some were reacting to the torque, but at 389, it's still fine. You just expect a number there that begins with a '4' nowadays (Mustang GT : 420).

Ehhhh that's not such a significant difference it would be something to complain about. 

Also, this is what I'm seeing elsewhere for a 2020 RC-F.

" The 5.0-liter V-8 carries over essentially unchanged from the 2019 model, but now it makes 472 hp and 395 lb-ft of torque, which is 5 horsepower and 6 lb-ft more than before."

14 hours ago, smk4565 said:

The interior is where the IS and RC really fall short.  I feel like it hasn't changed in 10 years and I don't think it was that good 5-10 years ago either.  That interior is a lot of plastic and Toyota switchgear.  

The engine sounds good in the video, but it too is really dated.  You can tell Lexus is just letting their sedans die on the vine, like they did with the GS.  The IS/RC will probably be gone in a year or two and they'll keep the ES around since it is an Avalon/Camry and they will probably keep the LS even if it doesn't sell just to have a flagship.

I think the M440i might even outperform the RC F at this point.  Probably why Toyota went to BMW to make the Supra.  

 

Or it could be because there is no business case for Toyota to go all in on a niche car (Supra) and it makes it more cost effect to partner up with another company for it. Again, that Benz bias coming through that keeps you from seeing the obvious reasons why Toyota went that route.

19 hours ago, ccap41 said:

467hp in a 4000lb car is underpowered? It weights ~130-180lb more than a Mustang GT and Camaro SS and I don't think people say those are underpowered. 

They won't because the price of those two is FAR lower than the Lexus which doesn't even compete well with its actual competition at that price point. The Lexus is also three inches shorter than the average Stang, adding slightly to the heft factor when you are down on torque. 

17 minutes ago, surreal1272 said:

They won't because the price of those two is FAR lower than the Lexus which doesn't even compete well with its actual competition at that price point. The Lexus is also three inches shorter than the average Stang, adding slightly to the heft factor when you are down on torque. 

Are these underpowered then, because they weigh more? 

https://www.motor1.com/reviews/242383/compare-chevy-camaro-ford-mustang/

https://www.motortrend.com/cars/ford/mustang/2019/2019-chevrolet-camaro-ss-vs-2019-ford-mustang-gt-convertible-comparison-test/

• I like this car despite this car being a Toyoter
• I dont have an issue with the horsepower and torque figures for this car
• Despite what I said above, Id rather any V8 versions of the Challenger and Mustang. Actually, Id rather any versions of a V8 Challenger and Mustang over ANY 2 door sport coupe available on the market today...
• I almost forgot, a C8 Corvette is sweet too. A shout out to it is necessary. Id seriously consider a C8 as well. 

The problem of this car is the price.  $65k for that V8 seems like a decent deal, but not $89k.  There are more powerful, faster, better equipped, more modern cars for that same money.  

But this car will probably be gone in a year or two because car companies aren't investing in sports sedans and sports coupes anymore, or V8s anymore.  I was just thinking the other day how the VW Passage had a W8 option before, the Bonneville had a Northstar V8, the Impala had a 5.3 V8 option, and this was all about 15 years ago.  Now you are lucky to even find a V6 in a front drive car, they are mostly all turbo 4.  And look at how the Sky/Solstice, Camry Solara, Accord Coupe, Altima Coupe, Monte Carlo, Scion tC, and more coupes have been killed in the past 10-15 years.

It is all about FWD, 4-cylinder crossovers now.   Lexus will soon replace this with that LCX-Limiteless crossover thing, that will probably have a 3.5 V6 plus hybrid combo making about 400 hp pulling 5,000 lbs, and they'll want $95k for it and position it as the flagship Lexus performance vehicle.  Because that LC will be dead by then due to no sales.

Kinda wonder if that car is out being tested....saw one in that car driving around today!

I do like it in yellow.....

On 1/1/2021 at 9:10 PM, smk4565 said:

The problem of this car is the price.  $65k for that V8 seems like a decent deal, but not $89k.  There are more powerful, faster, better equipped, more modern cars for that same money.  

But this car will probably be gone in a year or two because car companies aren't investing in sports sedans and sports coupes anymore, or V8s anymore.  I was just thinking the other day how the VW Passage had a W8 option before, the Bonneville had a Northstar V8, the Impala had a 5.3 V8 option, and this was all about 15 years ago.  Now you are lucky to even find a V6 in a front drive car, they are mostly all turbo 4.  And look at how the Sky/Solstice, Camry Solara, Accord Coupe, Altima Coupe, Monte Carlo, Scion tC, and more coupes have been killed in the past 10-15 years.

It is all about FWD, 4-cylinder crossovers now.   Lexus will soon replace this with that LCX-Limiteless crossover thing, that will probably have a 3.5 V6 plus hybrid combo making about 400 hp pulling 5,000 lbs, and they'll want $95k for it and position it as the flagship Lexus performance vehicle.  Because that LC will be dead by then due to no sales.