Facelifted Lexus RC pricing and kit announced
The Lexus RC, Japan's rival for the BMW 4-series and Audi A5 rival, refreshed for 2019
Lexus has confirmed its facelifted RC coupe will go on sale November 1st in the UK, and has also revealed full pricing and specifications for the model, which made its debut at September's Paris motor show.
The Audi A5, BMW 4-series and Mercedes C-class coupe rival will start from £38,800 in standard trim, rising to £42,300 for the F Sport, £44,300 for an F Sport with "Takumi Pack" and £45,800 for the RC Takumi.
The latter pair don't, unfortunately, allow you to defeat all comers at Mount Akina or give your RC an AE86-style "panda" livery, but do include extra equipment above and beyond an already generous tally. The basic RC wears 18-inch alloy wheels as standard, a safety package, front and rear parking sensors and a reversing camera, keyless entry, navigation, and "Tahara" upholstery.
To this you can add a sunroof, black or dark rose leather trim, and a heated steering wheel. The F Sport raises standards further with a mesh grille, 19-inch alloys hiding orange brake calipers, and a sports steering wheel, pedals and sports seats. LED headlights and Adaptive Variable Suspension are also standard. Three new paint shades join the range – Solar Flare, Naples Yellow and Azure Blue.
The aforementioned Takumi Pack brings a 17-speaker Mark Levinson audio system into the mix, along with a heated steering wheel, card key, "Naguri" trim inlays (a textured aluminium finish) and a sunroof. Takumi trim itself gets the same sound system but a different design of 19-inch alloy wheels, the sunroof, a memory setting for the driver's seat and leather upholstery.
The facelift itself comprises mostly aesthetic changes, focused on smoothing out the original car’s extroverted styling. The most obvious alteration is the loss of the old car’s distinctive split headlights, with one-piece elements including LED elements where available, and the Lexus 'tick' DRL graphic moving within the light unit. The grille has been subtly reshaped, with slimmer intakes on either side inspired by the flagship LC coupe. The rear bumpers get new ducting to improve aero at speed.
F Sport models pick up new colour and wheel options, and a more open grille mesh, but now share the same basic front and rear bumpers as standard models. The tail has also been refined, with reshaped tail lights complementing the more sculptural rear bumper. Changes inside include a brushed finish to the heater and audio control panel, revised knee pads either side of the centre console, a revised palm rest, and a new analogue clock cribbed from the LC.
The RC’s suspension has also been subtly re-tuned, with engineers replacing the shock absorbers and fitting stiffer suspension bushings.
Powertrains in the RC coupe are due to remain the same, with the UK market limited to the hybrid RC 300h, deploying the combination of a 2.5-litre four-cylinder engine and electric motor producing a combined 220bhp. The charismatic and deeply underrated RC F has yet to be revealed in facelifted form, but we imagine it’s not too far away.
