2018 Lexus LC 500 VS Porsche 911 TARGA 4 GTS

Lexus LC 500 VS Porsche 911 TARGA 4 GTS
Lexus LC 500 2018 VS Porsche 911 TARGA 4 GTS 2018
2018 Lexus LC 500 VS 2018 Porsche 911 TARGA 4 GTS

2018 Lexus LC 500:
The LC 500 is the production version of the LF-LC concept car shown in Detroit in 2012. It is a big-boned, rear-drive coupe, slightly shorter than a Mercedes E-class coupe but wider and lower. The Lexus uses its size to make a definite impression, athletic and purposeful. It fills a parking spot commandingly. The company was able to pull off this trick because the LC 500 isn't based on any other Lexus or Toyota vehicle. It's a clean-sheet design on an all-new platform that will also underpin the next LS sedan. The LC is the first Lexus to wear the spindle grille as a resplendent crown rather than a design oddity. With its extra-long hood, two-plus-two seating, and an interior that uses expensive materials playfully, the LC 500 comes off as upscale and potent, a shiny toy in the best of ways. The details are a marvel. The mesh on the grille is tight near the hood and then loosens as it waterfalls down the nose. The lines along the sides dance in sunlight. The rear is a cheeky reinterpretation of the nose. The cabin has beautifully designed grab handles on either side of the passenger, and the seats, with origami-inspired bolsters, beg you to climb into them. And we do, setting off on a day that begins in Seville, the cultural capital of Andalusia, and takes us to a racetrack and miles of weblike roads. The car comes in two varieties: one a V6 hybrid and the other a naturally aspirated V8—the same engine found in the RC F coupe and the GS F sedan. The hybrid, with a combined 354 hp, is balanced and likable but can't keep me from spending most of the day with the V8. (Lexus estimates 85 to 90 percent of customers will make the same choice.) The 5.0-liter V8 produces 471 hp and 398 lb-ft of torque and delivers all the happy sounds one expects from a naturally aspirated V8. An attentive driver can tip in and out of the throttle in a nuanced manner that a turbo engine just won't accommodate.

2018 Porsche 911 TARGA 4 GTS:
If you’ve driven along the edge of Donner Lake in Truckee, California, anytime in the past 15 years, you’ve noticed that turbocharged, all-wheel-drive automobiles parked along the side of the road aren’t exactly an uncommon sight. The Euer Saddle, marked as Donner Summit on I-80, sits at an elevation of 7239 feet and the lake itself at 5936. To the south, Echo Summit on Highway 50 reaches 7382 feet, while the Carson Pass on State Route 88 hits 8574. Even Reno, just down the mountain—and the former home of Porsche’s North American arm—lies at a 4505-foot elevation, not a whole lot lower than Denver. Up there, forced induction is a must to maintain performance in the thin air. Donner Pass also holds the distinction of being one of the snowiest places in the country, at least when California isn’t suffering from a drought. Until recently, the only Porsche 911 perfectly suited to the high-altitude sports-car mission was the extra-spendy 911 Turbo, which has featured four driven wheels since the end-of-the-aircooled-era 993 generation. Now, of course, every 911 except for the GT3 has a pair of charge-enhancing snails bolted to its flat-six engine. We predict a lot of 997 and 991.1 Carrera 4 models will find themselves listed on Reno/Tahoe’s Craigslist in short order, with a number of them, undoubtedly, replaced with a 2018 911 Targa 4 GTS...
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/2018-porsche-911-targa-4-gts-first-drive-review