I pose a question that is similar to the one I posted over at "The Lexus Center" a few months ago. In that post, I asked a variation of the classic question "how does the LS 400 stack up against the Q45?" At "The Lexus Center," I asked for your opinion of how the LS 430 stacked up againt the next-generation Q45, due out in 2002. <br><br>This time around, I'm asking you for your opinion regarding the LS 430 against the next-generation 7-Series sedans and the next-generation Acura Legend/RL. Does Lexus have stronger competition this decade than it did at the start of the 1990s?

sorry for the previous message. Wrong reply to the wrong post...<br><br>My opinion is that the Q45 is far from a competitor to the LS430. Heck they still use fake wood in Infiniti's flagship. The only real competitor is the A8, 7 series and S class. All of which are poor values, even compared to the current LS400. On paper the LS430 seems close to perfect. A Drag coefficient of only .25. A claim of being "much quietier", considering how quiet it alread is. My biggest hope is that the sport edition comes much close to being a drivers car.<br>I live in the SF bay area and do alot of driving<br>between San Jose and San Francisco. I also consider myself bordering on Anal Retentive. Little things about my car will bother me. I love to "drive" and have fun "driving". Yet I hate "commuting", especially when the freeways here are getting much worse lately. A glass smooth ride, library quiet interior, harmon kardon audio system and massaging seats and especially that adaptive cruise control would make commuting close to enjoyable. Yet a sport edition LS430 would allow me to enjoy a twisty mountain road when the traffic clears. I look at it this way. While my 97 Accord is modern compared to what most<br>of my collegues and friends drive, the road/wind noise, thumping of the suspension, droning of that I4 engine and those cramping seats, truly do<br>wear me out after an hour drive. Being a 27 year old engineer (please don't give me any crap about a young guy doesn't deserve to buy a 60K plus luxury car), I want my cake and eat it to. San Francisco is a great place to live, when you are single straight guy. Yet San Jose offers all of jobs in my field, especially the high pay ones. But those commutes are horrendous. I hate to say it, but a car, a near perfect car like the LS430 could make a tough compromise into an easy one. I dream about the joy it would be to commute in an LS430 or even an LS400. I feel like I am the only one out in the world who truly believes a car can make a difference in the quality of life in this country. If I feel much less drained from a drive home from work, then in the end the extra $ may truly be worth it. I would love to start a discussion on how members' LS400's make their commute less stressfull.

I agree with your thoughts on the LS 430 and it's competition. I would like to throw in a new competitor to the LS 430: The Cadillac DeVille. I've been read reviews that have totally extolled the values of this car. However, I coudln't disagree with these reviews more. They claim that the styling points to a new direction of design for Cadillac. Could that design be tacky or unappealing? Also, I found the interior to be overly plasticky and tacky. And there's nothing opulent about plastic.<br><br>Anyway, I posted a reply to a similar question about making your LS 400 commute even more enjoyable. In it, I listed such little things as the joy of seeing and feeling the perfect amalgamation of technology and luxury. I also stated how I loved the ergonomics, the woodgrain, and the leather drenched cabin. The steering wheel has that nice, "I'm well crafted" feel to it. I hope the LS 430's steering wheel has heat and massage.<br><br> On long commutes, the LS 400 is a perfect dream. Sometimes, I just get out and drive. If I get lost, there's the navigational system, a must for emergencies and pure fun. The only little thing I hate is that you can't have the navigational system and the Nakamich stereo system. Seeing how I'm not much of an audiophile, the lack of the higher quality Nakamichi system isn't much of a loss to me.