
The R was ahead of its time. Introduced at the Geneva Auto Show in 1985, it stood atop the luxury sports sedan pinnacle for a decade. The stats are mind-boggling: a 6.75 liter engine with a Garrett turbocharger (intercooled), almost 400 hp, about 560 pound-feet of torque, weighs 5,300 pounds, a wheelbase of 120.5 inches (124.5 for the longer wheelbase version). Mileage of 5 to 10 miles per gallon was the norm. Zero to sixty in about five and half Mississippis.


But in the end, 9 out of 10 R owners will tell you it's all worth it. Despite its gargantuan size, it fits like a snug yet comfortable glove with the driver. It is nimble, fast, and stops on a dime. The sedan accelerates like a dragster but carries its occupants in stately, smooth, Lexus-silent, opulence.
The S55 and S8 may have more technology and may be more reliable, but they will never possess the cachet of the R.

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