What kind of vehicle is the 2025 Lexus RC? What does it compare to?
The 2025 Lexus RC is a sporty coupe with a luxurious personality. Compare it to the BMW 4-Series and perhaps high-end versions of the Ford Mustang.
Is the 2025 Lexus RC a good car?
It’s dated and suffers from a quirky lineup, but the RC offers good value for its level of performance and refinement. We like it best in mid-range RC 350 form. Overall, the RC lineup earns a 5.6 out of 10 TCC Rating. (Read more about how we rate cars.)
What’s new for the 2025 Lexus RC?
The base RC 300 and the V-6-powered RC 350 see no major changes. The RC F comes in a single, loaded-up Final Edition configuration available in one of four paint colors.
With its long hood, short trunk, and sloping roofline, the RC is a proper sports coupe in its proportions. It’s a bit muddier in its details, particularly when tarted up with RC F-specific styling bits like a carbon fiber roof, body kit, and gigantic rear wing. Inside, the RC is all business—business in 2015, that is. Its button-heavy dash is easy enough to sort through, but the whole look is just so dated by 2025 standards.
Lexus offers the RC in a wide range of configurations. Some are highly entertaining. The RC 300 comes with a grunty turbo-4 in rear-drive form, while all-wheel-drive models swap in a smooth but pokey V-6. Our money here is on the RC 350, which has a more powerful version of the V-6 that belts out 311 hp and boasts a lovely underhood snarl. Rear-drive versions have a busy, upshift-eager 8-speed automatic; those with all-wheel drive are heavier and thirstier, but we like the way their 6-speed automatic transmissions behave better.
Then there’s the RC F, which has a muscle car-grade V-8 rated at 472 hp, sent rearward via a specially tuned 8-speed automatic. It’s heavy but highly entertaining, though perhaps not the car we’d buy if we planned to spend nearly six figures on a coupe.
There’s no fuel-sipping hybrid configuration here. The RC 300’s 25 mpg combined estimate with rear-wheel drive isn’t bad, but most configurations are estimated in the 22 to 23 mpg combined range. The RC F guzzles fuel at just 19 mpg combined.
Inside, the RC may not have Lexus’s most up-to-date design, but you’ll find nice materials and comfortable, well-bolstered front seats. The rear seats are tiny and the trunk is typical for a small coupe.
The RC hasn’t been crash-tested by either the NHTSA or the IIHS. All models come with a decent amount of driver-assistance features like automatic emergency braking, pedestrian detection, and active lane control, though a surround-view camera system is curiously and unfortunately absent from the available features list.
How much does the 2025 Lexus RC cost?
The base RC 300 runs $46,445 this year, which buys 18-inch alloy wheels, synthetic leather upholstery on power-adjustable front seats and a so-so 8.0-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and Amazon Alexa compatibility.
Figure another $8,000 or so for one with the more powerful V-6 and a few nice options like adaptive dampers, a Torsen limited-slip rear differential, and a larger touchscreen.
Lexus charges $1,175 for a mandatory destination fee.
Where is the 2025 Lexus RC made?
In Japan.
