GT vs. GT: Aston Martin DB11 V8 Takes On Lexus LC 500
Motor Trend pits the Aston Martin and Lexus grand tourers against each other on the road and on the track.
When it comes to the Aston Martin DB11 V8 and the Lexus LC 500, there are two major ways you can look at them. On one hand, you can consider them miles apart – as far as England is from Japan – from each other in terms of philosophy. One is from an English automaker known for crafting generations of large and luxurious grand tourers. The other is from a conservative Japanese company that has never previously made a car with the price tag and power to compete in the high-end GT segment. While the English car generates 503 horsepower and 498 lb-ft of torque, the Japanese machine makes do with 471 horsepower and 398 lb-ft. They’re further divided by a base price difference of nearly $110,000; the Aston starts at $201,820, which dwarfs the Lexus’s $92,995 price of entry.
On the other hand, you can view the DB11 V8 and LC 500 as being close to each other conceptually. Both have dramatic, swooping profiles. The Aston has a turbocharged V8 up front that puts its power to the ground through rear-wheel drive. The Lexus has a front-mounted, naturally aspirated V8 which also uses the rear wheels to get moving.
In the above video, Motor Trend tests both cars on the roads of Spain and the country’s Parcmotor Castelloli track. There’s no denying that both cars are remarkably different from each other. Referring to the Aston Martin, which has ample torque and better turn-in and balance than its heavier V12 sibling, co-host Jethro Bovingdon says, “If there’s gonna be a DB11 sports car, this is it.”
ALSO SEE: What Forum Members Have to Say
However, the Aston isn’t perfect. Compared to the surprisingly track-capable LC 500, the DB11 V8 is less balanced and composed, requiring more attention and work to get it to behave properly. Its brakes quickly tire of track duty. The LC does exhibit understeer, but Bovingdon and his co-host Jonny Lieberman find it easy to make the big Lexus move fluidly. Approaching the edge of its capabilities, they discover there’s no sharp drop off, just a gentle downward slope. Lieberman remarks, “This would be a great car for instructing somebody on, like, the importance of being smooth on a track. The smoother you are, the better it feels.”
It’s a close match. Lieberman finds it hard to declare a definite winner. Ultimately, he and Bovingdon pick the DB11 V8 for its on-road performance – but just barely. Lieberman says, “This Aston, it wins by, like, a smidge.”
