The Lexus RC has always been a piece of automotive eye candy, with its exaggerated curves, squat stance and sporty profile but for 2019 the two-door coupe has been endowed with a few styling cues from its big brother, the LC.

Gallery1

The changes are subtle – it’s not as if the RC was starting to look dated, after all – and include a revised front bumper that flows down from the headlamps and a grille mesh whose changing shapes create a fluidity, a sense of motion, and visual elasticity. There are now three tiny vertically-stacked LED headlamps and L-shaped LED daytime running lights too.

Round the back air ducts have been added to the corners of the bumper that, as well as adding greater visual intrigue, improves handling stability and delivers sharper handling responses, something that I’ll put to the test later in this review.

Lexus’s engineers have invested a great deal of time attempting to enhance the RC’s driving dynamics with changes to the car’s aero, suspension and powertrain. The new 19in wheels are fitted with higher grip tyres while behind them new shock absorbers and stiffer suspension bushings are tasked with providing a flatter and more stable ride quality, while also improving responsiveness and agility.

There are just two engine choices, the 2.5-litre petrol engine that’s coupled with an electric motor driven here and a naturally-aspirated 5.0-litre V8. The hybrid produces 220hp and sends power to the rear wheels via a CVT automatic transmission. It can, for short distances, waft along silently in electric-only mode.

It takes a respectable 8.6 seconds to reach 62mph – if you want performance that matches the looks the V8 is your only options – and, like the firm’s other hybrids, if you floor the throttle the engine revs redline and stays there until you relax your right foot.

It wouldn’t be a big deal apart from the fact that the engine note is coarse and intrusive and in no way sporty so it’s unlikely that you’ll want to put the straight-line performance to the test too often. There are steering wheel-mounted paddles that you can use to manually cycle through the six simulated ratios, but the response is languid, so leaving the transmission to its own devices is usually preferable.

The ride is quite firm, but the payback is excellent body control. It’s quite a heavy car carrying, as it does, an additional battery pack as well as that combustion engine under the bonnet, and that extra mass makes itself known when you try to slow the car down quickly or carry some speed into corners and the front end will start to run wide with very little prompting. And if you’re a keen driver hoping to balance that understeer with a dab of the throttle, forget it, because there’s just not enough grunt through those rear tyres.

For the 2019 model year a brushed finish has been applied to the heater control and audio panels to further enhance the premium ambience of the cabin, while the knee pads either side of the door have been moved higher and enlarged, improving the sense of space.

The driver’s palm rest has been redesigned and a stitching pattern added to the surface. When it comes to luxury cars, it’s always the little things that matter, the attention to that one, final detail, and this is an excellent example of that philosophy. There’s also a new analogue clock, identical to the one in the LC Coupe.

Build quality is excellent but if you’re the sort of person who likes to poke and prod around you’ll probably come across some plastics that feel a little out of place but by and large, everything that you’ll see or touch during normal driving is precisely what you would expect to find in a luxury coupe.

The sculpted front seats are firm, but supportive, and very comfortable. There’s plenty of flexibility in the position of both the seat and the steering wheel so finding the right driving position should be easy. For a low-slung coupe visibility is generally quite good except out the back, where the shallow windscreen makes it difficult to see very much. Fortunately the door mirrors are a decent size and front and rear parking sensors are standard across the range.

Rear seat passengers don’t fare particularly well, something that’s not unusual in a car of this ilk. Even if you are lithe enough to squeeze through the slender gap between the front seat and the door frame you’ll find little reward in making the effort. You’ll be forced to sit with either your legs splayed or your knees tucked up under your chin and, thanks to the sloping roofline, with your head pressed down to meet them.

The infotainment system consists of a 10.3in screen controlled by a laptop-style clickable touchpad. Some might find it a little tricky to get used to, even with the haptic feedback that alerts you when you drop the cursor on an icon, but after a while I certainly don’t find it any more difficult to use than many other input methods I’ve encountered.

Boot capacity is pegged at 340 litres – a figure that’s a touch on the low side for this class – and 30 litres less than the RC F. The folding rear seats split 60:40 to improve practicality, a feature that doesn’t appear in the RC F. The boot is deep, with a decent shape, but it does have quite a high lip that could make loading and unloading heavier items more difficult.

The RC has always stood out from the crowd – as does pretty much evert model that rolls off the Lexus production line – and the latest exterior revisions sharpen up the looks without spoiling what is without doubt a deliciously distinctive profile.

The cabin feels every inch a premium product and is very well equipped but space is limited with rear seats that will seldom find a use and a small boot. The hybrid version doesn’t deliver the performance the aggressive looks promise either – you’ll need to opt for the V8-engined RF for that – instead erring towards GT territory with a comfortable ride, excellent refinement and decent economy.

Lexus RC300h

From: £38,805

Engine: 2.5-litre 4-cylinder turbocharged

Transmission: E-CVT

Power (engine): 181hp

Torque (engine): 221Nm @ 4,200 – 5,400rpm

Power (motor): 143hp

Torque (motor): 300Nm

Max power: 223hp

Acceleration (0-62mph): 8.6 seconds

Max speed: 118mph

Combined (WLTP): 40.9 – 45.5mpg

Emissions (CO2): 114g/km

For more information visit www.lexus.co.uk