The Lexus LC 500 Convertible is undoubted one of the most beautiful convertibles around but it’s not all style and no substance. In typical Lexus fashion, it’s not only intricately put together, it’s almost over-engineered one could say.
Lexus has released a video of the LC Convertible in an industrial scale freezer for 12 hours to show that its quality goes far beyond its looks.
Read about the RM1.35 million Lexus LC 500 Convertible in Malaysia, with 470 hp and 540 Nm here!
In pushing the car’s build quality to its limits in sub-zero conditions, Lexus even folded down the LC Convertible’s four-layered roof, exposing the cabin to the brutally cold temperatures.
The test was performed at the Climatic Chamber at the Millbrook Proving Ground, Bedfordshire. The 649 sq ft unit is large enough to accommodate two double-decker buses and can maintain temperatures between +85°C and -60°C. The facility is regularly used to test the endurance of defense equipment as well as road vehicles of all kinds.
Specifically for the LC Convertible, the oversized fridge was set to -18°C; a temperature cold enough to freeze rubber and is also the standard for vehicle defrosting assessment. Water was also sprayed onto the LC Convertible for a sheet of ice to form over its body.
Once inside, it took about an hour for the freezer to reach the preset temperature before the car was left untouched inside overnight.
“Exterior surfaces contract in extremely cold conditions and manufacturers need to ensure their vehicles can withstand this without damage to parts and will still be able to start and get moving,” said a senior engieering at the test facility.
He added, “With the roof down, the interior components will be in an extremely stressed condition and it will not be a nice place for anyone to be – the hope is that the air conditioning system, the heated seats and steering wheel will still operate as they should.”
Even the film crew had to take precautions due to the extreme temperatures; operating a “buddy system” to ensure immediate response if any member of the team began to suffer adverse effects from being in the freezer.
The next day, the LC Convertible was subjected to testing at a test track and seemed completely unfazed by its 12-hour deep freeze. The naturally-V8 engine fired up at first crank, while the displays and gauges came to live immediately – showing no negative effects from a night in the freezer.
“I am asked to do a lot of crazy things in my job and this was one of them. I wasn’t really nervous until I turned up and saw the car sitting in the freezer looking really cold. I thought “Am I going to have to sit in that?”, said test driver, Paul Swift, son of the infamous Russ Swift.
“Thankfully it was great, I was really impressed.”
GALLERY
