2025 Lexus LC

Luxury, power, exclusivity, and top Lexus quality are just some attributes of the 2025 Lexus LC. With a choice of body styles and drivetrains, the LC represents the finest Lexus has to offer. It’s a flagship car with two doors, the kind of machine known traditionally as a Grand Tourer.

The LC can be swift or sedate, a pleasure for four senses (we don’t recommend licking it), prestigious, and it comes with the unassailable Lexus reputation for reliability. One small thing to keep in mind is that the LC 500h hybrid isn’t available as a convertible. Otherwise, dive into one of the most sensible of automotive indulgences, comfortable in the knowledge that the LC is indeed special.

We’ve logged hundreds of hours driving and evaluating this generation of luxury coupes and convertibles, including the Lexus LC.

Coupe versions gain underfloor bracing front and rear, improving body rigidity. The Sport package offered with the LC 500h now includes scuff plates made of carbon fiber. And Iridium joins the list of exterior paint choices.

The LC has been around since the 2018 model year. This might be its final year of production.

We like the straight-ahead LC 500 with its refined yet still stirring V8 engine. Hardtop or soft-top? That choice is yours.

A couple of alternatives are the Mercedes-AMG SL, starting higher than the priciest LC. Or the BMW 8 Series, which comes in below the LC — although with less power. Of course, the opportunity is there to spend much more on these German rivals to acquire higher levels of equipment and muscle.

Before buying a new LC luxury coupe or convertible, check the Kelley Blue Book Fair Purchase Price to know what you should be paying. Resale values may not be a major consideration at this level, but the LC performs respectably here. Recouping more money when selling a vehicle can mean a bigger down payment and lower monthly payments on the next one.

The LC 500 is energized by a 471-horsepower V8. Sprinting from a standstill to 60 mph happens in an impressive 4.4 seconds, and the engine sounds glorious in the process — yet never obnoxious. To compare, the BMW 840i Coupe with a 335-hp 6-cylinder engine is 0.3 of a second slower. The hybrid LC 500h’s 354 hp is still capable of doing the run in 4.7 seconds.

As a grand tourer rather than a true driver’s machine (like a Porsche 911), we’ve found that the LC definitely has its own fine qualities. It’s based on the same platform as the LS flagship luxury sedan, after all. The LC is reassuringly stable at high speeds. Plus, the standard brake-based torque vectoring, where the inside rear wheel goes around a corner slower than its outside counterpart, helps the car stay tidy through the curves.

We think the car’s heft (each variant weighs over 4,000 pounds) tends to discourage more aggressive driving. For journeys through scenic areas, however, the LC can be a perfect companion. The comprehensive array of standard safety features, meanwhile, is both confidence-inspiring and helpful on freeways and in cities alike.

Fuel Economy

LC 500 versions achieve 18 mpg in combined city/highway driving. There isn’t a direct BMW 8 Series rival to compare. For example, the 840i is rated at 24 mpg combined but is less powerful than the LC 500. The BMW M850i xDrive gets 19 mpg combined, yet has 523 horses and all-wheel drive (AWD) as standard.

The hybrid LC 500h manages 29 mpg combined. Both LC drivetrains require premium gasoline.

It’s a Lexus, so the 2025 LC is predictably brimful of quality materials put together with wonderful attention to detail and a high degree of craftsmanship. The dashboard houses an analog clock, the driver’s footwell has aluminum pedals, and the passenger side of the center console morphs into a grab handle.

Space is plentiful up front, although the two rear seats are better for weekend bags than they are for humans, especially since the trunk’s volume is only 5.4 cubic feet at best. The hybrid makes do with 4.7 cubic feet and the LC 500 convertible has only 3.4 cubic feet — barely enough for one set of golf clubs.

A Bespoke Build program applies to both coupe and convertible models, with a blue/white color scheme exclusive to the convertible.

It might just be that 2-door cars invariably look a bit special. Or perhaps the Lexus design philosophy has found its perfect vehicle of expression in the 2025 LC. It’s available as a coupe with a fixed metal roof or a convertible with a power-operated soft-top (which takes only about 15 seconds to open or close and can do so at speeds up to 31 mph). The coupe’s roof doesn’t have to be all metal. The alternatives are glass or carbon fiber.

The new paint color this year is Iridium, a kind of silver that has a slight blue tint in bright light. Atomic Silver has been discontinued.

Panoramic View Monitor
One of many standard features, this provides a bird’s-eye view of the LC and its surroundings — invaluable when maneuvering.

Intuitive Park Assist
Another standard feature, this rather flashy term means parking sensors at both ends.

Connected Services
The 2025 LC offers several remote functions, such as locking/unlocking, starting, stolen vehicle location, fuel tank levels, and guest driver alerts.

Mark Levinson audio
One of a few options, but worth having, in our opinion. This 13-speaker/915-watt surround-sound system was developed especially for the LC. It even knows when the convertible’s roof is down and recalibrates its settings accordingly.

Dynamic Handling package
Even though the LC is not a precision sports machine like some Porsches, we would still say this options bundle is worth considering. In addition to a limited-slip differential and a sportier rear suspension, it also includes rear-wheel steering and variable-ratio steering — both of which enhance the driving experience at high speed and maneuverability at low speed.

Head-up display
Projecting information onto the windshield means the driver’s eyes don’t have to stray from the road ahead to pick up crucial information. We also think this optional feature seems fighter-pilot cool.

The LC 500 coupe and convertible employ a naturally aspirated 5.0-liter V8 developing 471 hp and 398 lb-ft of torque. This power goes solely to the rear wheels through a 10-speed automatic transmission.

The coupe-only 2025 LC 500h hybrid has a 3.5-liter V6 augmented by two electric motors. One motor acts as a primary generator and starter, the other helps the V6 drive the rear wheels. These motors run off a lithium-ion battery. A special hybrid-specific automatic transmission is deployed here. Total system output is 354 hp.

4-Year/50,000-Mile Warranty

The Lexus new-vehicle warranty of four years or 50,000 miles, whichever happens first, is usual for the luxury sector. The 6-year/70,000-mile powertrain warranty is a little better than most. The hybrid batteries are covered for a typical eight years or 100,000 miles. The first two scheduled services (six months/5,000 miles and 12 months/10,000 miles) are also free.

Safety

The LC hasn’t been crash-tested by any independent agencies in the United States, but in light of the usual Lexus build quality and safety features, we don’t think this should deter any potential buyers. Standard equipment includes forward collision warning with automatic emergency braking and pedestrian/cyclist detection, intersection assistance, and blind-spot monitoring with rear-cross traffic alert.