What’s New For 2026?

For 2026, the LC 500 Convertible gets only very light changes. The main one is a new Inspiration Series, limited to 350 North American units, with a new Wind exterior color, a brown-and-silver soft top, Saddle Tan and White semi-aniline leather, blacked-out trim, and special console badging. Lexus also says the Bespoke Build package returns for 2026.

Looks

A large glass panel and blacked-out rear pillars create a floating roof appearance. Chrome-plated moldings along the edges “echo the lines of a traditional Japanese sword,” says Lexus. That’s pretty accurate. You could cut a bagel with its sharp lines. One of its more unique and stylist assets, too, is its rear lights, inspired by the glow of a jet’s afterburners in the back, and ultra-compact, triple-projector LED headlamps up front.

Inside

It’s a tight but luxurious squeeze, not so good for the big and tall. The low instrument panel position, hood line and narrow pillars give you a sweeping view of the road, and the flowing lines of the door panels serve as an extension of the exterior lines. These are the kind of sweet touches the casual observer won’t notice, but when they are pointed out, it illustrates one of the reasons the vehicle’s so pricey.

There are precious few nooks and cubby holes and the one cup holder is chintzy, but the center door will hold your phone. The back seat doesn’t even pretend to be big enough for a human, but my Gibson Blues King fit just fine.

All models come standard with a Panoramic View Monitor combining images from the front, rear, left and right-side cameras of the vehicle and displaying them on the center display. These are a godsend, and they worked perfectly.

The 2026 LC 500 is equipped with Lexus Interface, letting users interact with the system through intuitive touch and voice activation controls.

With an active Drive Connect5 three-year trial, drivers and passengers have access to Intelligent Assistant, Cloud Navigation and Destination Assist. With Intelligent Assistant, simple phrases like “Hey Lexus” awaken the system for voice activated commands to search for directions, find Points of Interest, adjust audio controls, change the cabin temperatures and more. The system itself is rich and full. Pricing for the convertible is $116,540 with all options and destination charge.

Engine

You’ve got a 5.0-liter V8 engine with 471 horsepower and 398 pound-feet of torque mated to a 10-speed automatic transmission. That’s a lot of juice, and you only need 4.6 seconds to get to 60 mph. Mileage is about 18 MPG city, 21 highway – but you won’t get that much because you’ll be stepping on it a lot.

The Drive

The drive was as smooth as a straight razor despite my back tires whap-whap-wapping over any damp road when accelerating. They weren’t “skids” per se - just a little reminder to take it easy in the wet. The body roll is minimal and curves were suitably sharp up and down Mulholland Drive. The brakes are tight but not grabby. It really took no time to get used to the driving characteristics. Magnesium paddle shifters are a great touch, and work well. You’d never know you weigh 4345 pounds. It is not a car made for snow.

The available LC 500 sport package includes numerous performance elements, including Torsen limited-slip rear differential with a performance damper, performance brake pads, and Alcantara-trimmed seats.

Safety

Safety features include a forward collision warning with automatic braking and lane departure warning and intervention as well as any possible safety feature you can think of or name.

Conclusion: the LC 500 does what it does very well, and I would put it up near the German convertible in style and driving characteristics.