Overview

Well, these are two pretty similar cars we have here! It's only details that could potentially make the difference. Considering they both belong to the executive car segment and utilize the same 4-door sedan body style and the 4 x 4 wheel drive system, it all comes up to the specific petrol engine choice they offer. The first one has a Volkswagen-engineered powertrain under the hood, a 12-cylinder, 48-valves 450hp unit, while the other one gets its power and torque from a 8-cylinder, 32-valves 384hp engine designed by Toyota.

Safety

Unfortunatelly, neither of the two vehicles was submitted to the European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) testing. This makes it virtually impossible for me to pick one over the other and I'm generally against buying such cars as the safety should really always come first. That aside, let's consider some other aspects which affect safety. Both vehicles belong to the executive car segment, which is generally a fortune safety-wise, but that fact doesn't break the tie between the two cars. Furthermore, when it comes to weight, a factor that most people underestimate, the German car offers a considerable difference of 22% more metal.

Reliability

Manufacturers have been building their reliability reputation for decades now and, generally speaking, it appears that Lexus does have a slight advantage, at least on all of the models level. That's the official data, while our visitors describe reliability of Volkswagen with an average rating of 4.2, and models under the Lexus badge with 4.9 out of 5. The same official information place Phaeton 50% below average, and LS those same 50% above the first one. We should definitely mention that owners of cars with the same powertrain as the German car rank it on average as 2.3, while the one under the competitor's bonnet gets 3.0 out of 5.

Performance & Fuel economy

Volkswagen is a bit more agile, reaching 100km/h in 0.2 seconds less than its competitor. Still, it lacks the power to win the top speed competition, topping at 250 kilometers per hour, exactly the same as the other car does. When it comes to fuel economy an obvious choice would be the Japanese car, averaging around 11.4 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (25 mpg), in combined cycle. That's 27% difference compared to the German car!

Verdict

Lexus appears just a bit more reliable, although the difference is truly marginal. The most important thing when deciding between any two vehicles should always be safety, both passive and active. In my opinion, everything taken into account, the German car offers significantly better overall protection, taking the lead here. It all continues in the same direction, with Volkswagen offering somewhat better performance, just enough to call it quicker. It does come at a cost though, and that's the fuel consumption... It's not difficult to say then that if I'd need to make a choice, it would definitely be the Lexus. Anyway, that's the most objective conclusion I could've came up with and it's based solely on the information found on this website. Aspects such as design, practicality, brand value and driving experience are there for you to measure them out. Also, you could use the oportunity to find out which car, everything taken into account, would be the perfect choice for you in the eyes of the virtual adviser™, out of 12.000+ vehicles we currently have in our database.