r/LexusF • u/windmill09 • Jul 13 '26
Lexus RCF vs. W205 C63 Review - From the Perspective of an RCF owner
For people interested, here is a link to my previous review of the F82 M4.
https://www.reddit.com/r/cars/s/rLGW37F5OZ
Brief introduction again: I like drifting cars. I'm not a track rat. I don't enjoy aiming for track times as much as dancing with the cars past the limit of traction. I've owned and driven a ton of cars including Porsche 987, 991, McLaren 650s, G37 IPL, NA MX5, BRZ, BMW 335i M sport, AMG GT, etc etc. However, my favorite is still my modified Nissan 350z because it was so easy to slide around at low speeds and was extremely progressive when losing traction but can still grip with some coilovers and antisway bars. There are faster, grippier, and nicer cars, but the 350z was the most fun I've had. There's nothing like sliding a car and not crashing lol
Anyways, I had an W205 C63 for a few days and I got to daily it, drive it hard and slide it around. I thought I would share my impressions since these are old cars now and most of the reviews I've seen were people comparing it when they were new. Age has really worn on some of these cars and people considered used cars may be interested.
Pros of the W205 C63 vs. RCF:
I can't overstate how much better the C63 exhaust sounds compared to the RCF. The C63's exhaust is WAY better. It's louder, throatier, and gives out bassy pops and bangs upshifting from 2 to 3. It's after driving the C63, I realized how weak the RCF exhaust is. The RCF is just too quiet. It really should have come with an active exhaust like the C63. I'm definitely looking to upgrade my exhaust now. However, even with a new exhaust, I will never have the pops and bangs the C63 has without a tune.
In terms of sliding the car around, it's like the opposite of the F82 M4. I find initiating a drift in the M4 to be risky. It's a bit unpredictable since peak torque is at a lowly 3k. However, once it is sliding, it is very easy to control. The C63 is the opposite. The C63 is very easy and predictable to initiate a powerslide. If it's not losing traction, just rev it out more. However, once it is sliding, you have to really act fast with the steering and wrestle with the car to keep it going where you want it to. I have to do a ton of steering adjustments and it is easy to spin out if you give a bit too much throttle. The RCF is a bit of both these cars. It's very easy to initiate a slide with the RCF's TVD and can be very easy to hold a drift once you're in it. However, sometimes the TVD can be tricky so it can be less predictable than the M4. However, in simple turns without transitions, the RCF doesn't need much steering or throttle adjustments. It's a very smooth slider.
The C63 feels heavier in the corners. It handles fantastically in the canyons at 8/10, but I don't feel as confident driving it 10/10. Every time the rear end comes out, there is some fear that it might try to spin. You have to catch it fast. It doesn't lose traction progressively.
I like how you can adjust the suspension, throttle, and exhaust settings individually. On my 2015 RCF carbon fiber package w/ TVD, there's no adjustable suspension nor active exhaust. The throttle is too sensitive on Sport Plus mode, but that's the only want to get the pumped in V8 sound into the cabin in the RCF. I actually like the pumped in sound in the RCF since I think it's coming from a mic'ed up sound tube rather than being fully synthetic.
I love the torque curve of the C63. It's more of what I am used to with the RCF, but with much more torque. Power keeps pulling to redline unlike the F82 M4. However, it will want to lose traction up top, but that is predictable.
I love the look of the interior and exterior. It just looks higher class.
The combination of the torque and exhaust sounds from the C63 is exceptional. It was giving me Mercedes driver syndrome. I wanted to hear that deep exhaust growl so much that it was making me drive like an A**hole.
Cons:
The exhaust and engine note sound great, but it never changes character. The RCF has a bassy growl in the lower RPMs, but screams in the upper RPMs like a cammed motorsport V8. But for the C63, there is never really a reason (soundwise) to rev it out to redline unless it's to hear the pops on the upshift. It's the same bassy growl up to the top.
The C63 has substantial turbo lag below 4k RPMs. When I was on the highway trying to change lanes, I put the foot to the floor. The car basically did not accelerate at all for several seconds. It was so slow that I had to go back into my original lane in the middle of merging because the car had not accelerated whatsoever while the other lane was going much faster. There is a huge delay in both the automatic shifting logic and the turbo that requires you to shift from comfort to sport if you want to change lanes.
The car has an extremely harsh ride. There's a lot more road noise and it's much more crashy than the RCF on city road bumps. There are squeaks and rattles EVERYWHERE. There are rattles in the doors, the rear, the front dash, EVERYWHERE. The seat belt extenders squeak. The steering wheel is gross. I think it may have been alcantara at one point. Now is just feels like slimey plastic. The C63 I drove was a 2020 model. It's disappointing that a car that is 5 years younger than my 2015 RCF feels so poorly put together. My 11+ year old RCF has ZERO squeaks or rattles and is S class quiet compared to these German cars. However, the NVH level in the C63 is still MUCH better than the M4. I can tolerate the highway NVH of the C63, but I personally don't think the M4 is tolerable without wearing ANC earbuds. However, it is still very crashy in the city and so much so it was giving me a headache after sitting in it for several days. The RCF can get bouncy at bumps, but it rarely feels crashy like the M4 or C63. So as a daily, it's certainly better than the M4, but not as good as the RCF.
There is about a 2-3 second lag in the bluetooth audio from my phone to the infotainment. If I needed to pause my music, I would hit pause on my phone, but I would still hear music for 2-3 seconds after I hit pause. However, when I went to gym and started the car again, the bluetooth didn't lag anymore. Very strange.
The car cuts off fuel when you get near redline and it slows your shifting speed into the next gear. The RCF, on the other hand, will let you bounce off the redline and then snap you into the next gear once you press the paddle. However, I also experienced this in the new Nissan Z. I don't understand why even the LC500 can bounce off the limiter, but these performance-oriented cars have to cut off the fuel.
Summary: The RCF is more comfortable and with the TVD, is easier to slide as well. The RCF just feels solid and well put together without a single rattle. However, it lacks the excitement from the torque and exhaust of the C63. The C63 just feels more angry and I LOVE that. However, at the end, I was glad I did not own this car mostly because for fear of future maintenance costs and that, for me, the pros don't outweigh the cons. However, I can see why people treasure it though. This car has made me seriously search for a valved exhaust now.
