2023 LS Interior

Straight off the bat, we have to mention the new infotainment screen. The old system was a real frustration - you could only operate it via a ridiculous mousepad, which was infuriating. The new interface is a touchscreen, and thank goodness for that. The rest of the interior is superb. And by that, we mean as good as anything else in this segment. In some cases, even better.

You can tell Lexus thought about what luxury means. As we've stated before, it's about simplicity, ambiance, quality materials, and silence. The LS hits all these targets. Yes, it has several interior gadgets we'll get to eventually, but the essential functions are so easy to control: you turn the radio on by pressing the volume button. There are also two buttons for skipping tracks and another two buttons for swapping between radio and media. The climate controls are even easier to operate, and Lexus deserves a round of applause for keeping the significant controls separate and not within a silly sub-menu.

We also love the fact that Lexus embraced its country of origin. The black leather with Kiriko glass trim is an obvious homage to Japan. It's lovely to see Lexus embrace its roots rather than try and copy what the Germans are doing.

2023 LS Interior Photos

Seating and Interior Space

The interior seating and space send a mixed message. Rear passengers only get 38.9 inches of legroom and 37.3 inches of headroom, shrinking to 36.4 inches with the panoramic sunroof. This is perfectly ample for six-foot passengers but still below par in the segment. Even the Lexus ES has more rear legroom.

Perhaps this is a sign that Lexus designed the LS to be driven and not driven in. Front passengers get 41 inches of legroom and 37.3 inches of headroom, or a slightly lower 36.8 inches with the panorama glass roof optioned on. But then you get the optional Executive Package, which enables the right rear passenger to move the front passenger seat all the way forward, activating a built-in ottoman. That's lovely, but if you're buying a new car to be chauffeured in, this isn't it.

2023 Lexus LS Interior Dimensions:

Interior Colors and Materials

Even S-Class owners will be blown away by the LS interior. The base LS comes with three no-cost options, including Chateau or Black leather with open-pore Black trim or Palomino leather with open-pore Brown Walnut trim. There are seven other options, each one requiring an extra feature of some sort. The Black leather with Artwood Organic Gloss trim requires you to also add the 19-inch ten-spoke noise-reducing alloy wheels for some reason. In addition to Black, Palomino, and Chateau leather trim, you can also have White leather, either with Artwood Herringbone trim or Laser Special Black trim, but note the additional extras you'll be required to add on. We love the Black leather with Kiriko Glass trim. It looks sensational and comes with an interesting story dating back to the Edo period. Utterly magnificent. Only four of these options are available on the hybrid model, which is a bit of a letdown, though.

The F Sport only has three no-cost interior options, all of them on the sporty side. Nagari Aluminum trim is standard across all three, and the leather color options include White, Black, and our personal favorite, Circuit Red. The F Sport also has an Ultrasuede headliner and aluminum pedals.

2023 LS Trunk and Cargo Space

Oddly, cargo capacity is almost always a letdown in this segment. The rear seats don't fold flat on many of the luxury barges, and some of the fancy optional extras take up what precious little space there is. A champagne fridge is a good example.

The hybrid model has 15.2 cubic feet of cargo capacity, dropping down to 14.1 cubes with a rear cooler. The claimed cargo volume for the twin-turbo model is 16.95 cubic feet. It easily beats the Audi A8's 12.5-cube trunk, though. The latest Mercedes S-Class also has a smaller trunk at just 13.8 cubes.

As is expected of full-size sedans that may be used for families, there is enough space to store your bits and bobs. There are standard door pockets, a pair of cupholder front and back, and a large storage cubby underneath the center front armrest.

2023 Lexus LS Trunk and Cargo Space Photos

2023 Lexus LS Cargo Dimensions:

2023 LS Infotainment and Features

Features

Looking at the standard specification, you'll be left wondering why anyone would bother adding optional extras. Even the base model comes standard with 16-way power-adjustable heated and ventilated front seats, dual-zone climate control, a heated leather-trimmed steering wheel, power moonroof and rear sunshade, a parking assistant, active noise cancellation, voice control, and intelligent access with a push-button start. These are just a few of the many, many features, and there's still a host of optional extras to add, including an optional panorama glass roof, a head-up display, a surround-view monitor, and a swathe of safety features.

Infotainment

As alluded to earlier, the LS was the beneficiary of a much-improved infotainment system last year. It's a 12.3-inch touchscreen unit, and we can't thank Lexus enough for finally getting rid of the clunky Remote Touch Interface. It was an infuriating system that nearly ruined an otherwise brilliant package. The new interface is more intuitive and comes as standard with navigation, HD Radio, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a total of six USB ports, Amazon Alexa, and SiriusXM. A 12-speaker Lexus Premium Audio system is standard, but you can upgrade to a 23-speaker Mark Levinson system. It costs just $1,940 but is a must-have. This brilliant sound system is included as standard on the 500h model. The hybrid is also kitted out with a seven-inch touchscreen controller for rear-seat passengers which is an option on all other derivatives.