WHEN ENOUGH IS PLENTY; If a six gives you 300 hp, who still says only an eight is enough?(News)

Byline: KEVIN A. WILSON

When Lexus rolled out its latest GS, all the headlines went to the hybrid edition, the GS 450h, a rear-drive model with performance pretensions. This go-round, though, we sampled an all-wheel-drive model with the new V6 that makes 303 hp. It's essentially the same engine that's in the hybrid (don't let the 450 nomenclature fool you-the 430 is the V8) but without the power boost from the electric motors that comes with the hybrid.

This car has a base price about $8,000 less than the hybrid, weighs 300 pounds less despite the mass of the awd hardware (those hybrid batteries and motors are heavy) and comes up only 37 hp short. Lexus says the GS 350 awd gives up 0.6 second to the hybrid from 0 to 60 mph (5.8 seconds versus 5.2), and-for now, at least-this new direct-injected six actually outpowers the 290-hp V8 in the GS 430.

The new six is supremely quiet and plenty powerful. It doesn't shut off at stoplights as the hybrid does, but we're not sure we'd notice if it stalled-it's that quiet. Our observed fuel economy of 23.3 mpg isn't up to the hybrid's EPA 26 mpg, but it's not bad for a spacious luxury car. The power rating is the big thing for a six, of course, but Lexus hasn't really outdone BMW's 535xi with its 300-hp twin-turbo 3.0-liter inline-six or Cadillac's latest direct-injection 3.6-liter V6 in the STS and the upcoming CTS. The Lexus does want premium fuel (as does the BMW). With sixes now making power on par with V8s offered a few seasons ago, it's worth considering how much engine you need in this world of unpredictable gasoline prices.

A six also gets some weight off the nose compared with an eight, which could be a handling advantage if you spec your car right. That wasn't evident in this example, though, with its awd system adding in what the smaller engine may have saved.

Some of our drivers loved the exterior styling of ...