Lexus MPG By The Numbers VS. BMW

Lexus GS 350 VS BMW 535i

Mid-sized luxury vehicles are very enjoyable to drive around when you have a small family that you want to be able to transport comfortably. While these vehicles don't normally strive to get a great fuel economy, there is something to be said for a vehicle that is better on gas.

We'll take a look at the fuel economy numbers for the Lexus GS 350 and the BMW 535i over a five year period. Both of these vehicles have a 6-cylinder engine and an automatic transmission to keep the test as fair as possible.

GS 350 - 6 Cylinder (Automatic)

2009 - 19/26

2010 - 19/26

2011 - 19/26

2012 - 19/28

2013 - 19/28

The GS 350 doesn't improve its fuel economy in city driving conditions at all and stays at the same 19 mpg in 2013, that it has in 2009. As far as highway driving is concerned the car has improved by two points, from 26 in 2009 to 28 in 2013. This isn't a dramatic improvement, but it is certainly something that you would notice.

It is clear that Lexus hasn't put as much effort into improving the fuel economy of their GS 350 as they have some of their other vehicles such as the IS that has seen greater efficiency improvements, but at least they are making improvements, and they aren't moving in the opposite direction.

BMW 535i - 6 Cylinder (Automatic)

2009 - 17/26

2010 - 17/26

2011 - 19/28

2012 - 20/30

2013 - 20/30

Over the last five years BMW has improved the in-city economy of their 535i from 17 to 20 and their highway economy from 26 to 30. These are drastic improvements that give the car a slight edge over the Lexus GS 350.

It is clear that BMW has made a commitment to boost the efficiency of their 535i and future improvements should also be expected. 

If you are after a vehicle that has all of the latest tech gadgets then the GS 460 is probably the car for you, but the BMW 535i is being improved upon in the fuel efficiency department more for those who are interested in that.