2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport AWD First Test: The Last of Its Kind?
An aging V-6 works for and against the RC350 F Sport.
Pros
- Good performance value
- Still fun to drive
- Great-sounding V-6
Cons
- Could use more power
- Not as fuel efficient as competitors
- Smallest trunk among rivals
What's to become of the Lexus RC luxury coupe? The current generation practically qualifies for an automotive AARP card, having been around since 2014 and last receiving a refresh for 2019. Premium two-door cars are generally more about brand prestige than market share, but in this SUV-first world, there's no doubt little motivation to reinvigorate a product that doesn't sell in huge numbers.
Even so, the RC remains special because of its non-turbo V-6, the only such engine in the class and the model's most popular powertrain by a large margin. It sits in between the entry turbo-four and the stonking RC F's V-8, and we recently had a chance to run a 2023 RC350 F Sport AWD with the V-6 through our testing regimen. Here's what we found.
How Quick Is the 2023 RC350 F Sport AWD?
The tried-and-true methodology of simultaneously matting the throttle while releasing the brakes gave the quickest straight-line times. That said, our RC350 was still 0.1 second behind Lexus' 0-60-mph estimate of 5.8 seconds. It also couldn't equal the pace of the significantly more powerful BMW M440i xDrive, which boasts an additional 71 hp and 84 lb-ft of torque. A 2021 version of that turbo inline-six AWD coupe sprinted to 60 in just 4.0 seconds.
Chalk the poky pace up to output. Although the RC's V-6 displaces a half liter more than the Bimmer's straight-six, lacking forced induction and a mild hybrid system means it's simply not as strong.
Additional grunt could liven up this drivetrain and chassis. Even on the street, when you give it the stick, it takes a moment to gather itself before it tears out. But that will matter only to people who are looking for ultimate performance, in which case they should shop elsewhere. Most will find the power here suitable for day-to-day driving, plus this V-6 simply sounds glorious at full throat, and the RC has other things to recommend it—as well as some additional issues.
What’s It Like to Drive?
Being an F Sport trim, our RC had standard adaptive dampers and a firmer, sportier suspension tune; the latter isn't an issue in terms of ride on smoother pavement, and it's certainly a welcome feature at the test track. The ride can be somewhat brittle on broken roads, however, so it might be a good idea to test drive the RC on surfaces similar to your daily commute.
Stopping distances from 60 mph varied little, though the shortest stop we measured is long-ish for a sporty car, and was accompanied by a bit of rear end squirm. (The car never felt out of sorts.) The RC's steering also required a lot of inputs—more than we felt acceptable—during our handling assessments.
But for all that, this Lexus still draws you to it, and none of our handling and performance assessments is a true deal breaker. There are sharper, more rewarding cars available, but the RC remains an acceptably sporty and rewarding car.
How Efficient Is It?
The RC has the oldest powertrain among its chief rivals and the biggest six-cylinder engine, both of which explain its lackluster fuel economy. It does get more range on a full tank than the 2023 Audi S5—385 miles compared to 367—but that's only because the Lexus has a tank that holds 2.2 more gallons of juice.
What’s the Cabin Like?
Relative to its two primary luxury compact coupe rivals, the M440i and Audi S5, the RC350 offers the most front passenger legroom—in the case of the S5, 4.1 inches more. But rear passenger legroom in this four-seater suffers for it. And the transmission tunnel seems huge, extending farther into the driver-side footwell because of the AWD gearbox's transfer case than on the passenger side.
The F Sport package's features that came with our RC350 include aluminum pedals, a power tilting and telescoping steering wheel column, heated and ventilated power front seats, and an attractive dark gray Streamline trim with yellow contrast stitching.
Our car also had the optional 10.3-inch infotainment screen, but even the smaller 8.0-inch version is acceptable now that the RC has joined its Lexus brethren in adopting touchscreen functionality. The trackpad is still in the center console for the time being, but you now have the choice to completely ignore it, which you should.
How Big is the Trunk?
It's a compact coupe, so the rear cargo hold is predictably small, at 10.4 cubic feet. Both the Audi and BMW competitors offer more room, though the A5's trunk is only larger by 0.5 cube.
Optional Equipment
Our RC350 F Sport featured the optional special appearance package ($1,200), which combines Incognito (gray) exterior paint with a black roof and hood and black 19-inch Enkei wheels. It's a good look, but some will wonder why Lexus didn't use carbon fiber for the black body bits.
The coupe also came with the available Mark Levinson 17-speaker audio package ($2,725), power sunroof ($1,100), and parking sensors ($500).
Bottom Line
Buying the 2023 RC350 F Sport will be a decision of the heart or of brand loyalty. As a driver's car, it's not the quickest, and it also feels heavy even though it's about the same weight as its competition. It gets no points for practicality, either, returning below-average fuel economy and providing not a lot of space behind the B-pillar for people or things.
But skip the nearly $6,400 in largely unnecessary options on our test example, and the RC350 F Sport becomes a more compelling proposition. The 2023 S5 costs about $1,300 more than the Lexus' base price, and BMW asks for an additional $9,000-plus for the 2024 M440i xDrive coupe.
And numbers and ultimate fidelity be damned, this thing is still fun to flog. We don't know how much longer this V-6 will be around, but whatever succeeds it surely won't feel as raw. There's a good chance any follow-up will go hybrid, given parent company Toyota's penchant of late. Whatever happens, this Lexus RC350 F Sport AWD delivers on luxury coupe fun for those who are fine with trading some performance for a more palatable price.
2023 Lexus RC 350 AWD F Sport Specifications
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Front View
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Engine
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Badge Grille
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Headlamp
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Front View
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Interior Door Sill
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Central Console Interior
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Central Console Interior
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Steering Wheel Interior
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Door Interior
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Air Vent Interior
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Steering Wheel Interior
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Display Interior
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Central Console Interior
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Rear Seats Interior
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Side View
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Motion Front View
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Rear View
2023 Lexus RC350 F Sport Taillight
My dad was a do-it-yourselfer, which is where my interest in cars began. To save money, he used to service his own vehicles, and I often got sent to the garage to hold a flashlight or fetch a tool for him while he was on his back under a car. Those formative experiences activated and fostered a curiosity in Japanese automobiles because that’s all my Mexican immigrant folks owned then. For as far back as I can remember, my family always had Hondas and Toyotas. There was a Mazda and a Subaru in there, too, a Datsun as well. My dad loved their fuel efficiency and build quality, so that’s how he spent and still chooses to spend his vehicle budget. Then, like a lot of young men in Southern California, fast modified cars entered the picture in my late teens and early 20s. Back then my best bud and I occasionally got into inadvisable high-speed shenanigans in his Honda. Coincidentally, that same dear friend got me my first job in publishing, where I wrote and copy edited for action sports lifestyle magazines. It was my first “real job” post college, and it gave me the experience to move just a couple years later to Auto Sound & Security magazine, my first gig in the car enthusiast space. From there, I was extremely fortunate to land staff positions at some highly regarded tuner media brands: Honda Tuning, UrbanRacer.com, and Super Street. I see myself as a Honda guy, and that’s mostly what I’ve owned, though not that many—I’ve had one each Civic, Accord, and, currently, an Acura RSX Type S. I also had a fourth-gen Toyota pickup when I met my wife, with its bulletproof single-cam 22R inline-four, way before the brand started calling its trucks Tacoma and Tundra. I’m seriously in lust with the motorsport of drifting, partly because it reminds me of my boarding and BMX days, partly because it’s uncorked vehicle performance, and partly because it has Japanese roots. I’ve never been much of a car modifier, but my DC5 is lowered, has a few bolt-ons, and the ECU is re-flashed. I love being behind the wheel of most vehicles, whether that’s road tripping or circuit flogging, although a lifetime exposed to traffic in the greater L.A. area has dulled that passion some. And unlike my dear ol’ dad, I am not a DIYer, because frankly I break everything I touch.
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