A first-generation Lexus SC400 coupe, as seen in Shanghai in 2014 by Antoine Chalendard. The SC400 looks great in dark red, with a gold Lexus logo and black Shanghai license plates.
It has frameless doors, thin chromed window frames, ultra-shiny seven-spoke alloy wheels, and a spoiler on the boot lid. The SC400 was a slippery car with a drag coefficient of 0.31 Cd.
The first generation Lexus SC400 was made from 1991 until 2000 with a facelift in 1997. Our Shanghai car is a post-facelift example. It was the first Lexus-branded coupe. The SC400 wasn’t officially sold in China so they are very rare here. This dark red car is the only one I know about.
The interior looks great too for its age. Cushy beige leather seats, brown wood trim, and a super cool space-style gear lever. The center stack is loaded with buttons and switches. The audio system has a cassette deck and a radio, but no CD player. The handbrake has an interesting design, and it is located almost on the driver’s seat.
This particular car appears to be a US-market example. The gold badges and shiny wheels are typical for US-spec cars, and the license plate area is too narrow for the Chinese license plate. The Lexus SC400 had a 4.0-liter V8 engine under the hood.
The output of the post-facelift SC400 model was 290 hp and 407 Nm. The transmission was a five-speed automatic or a five-speed manual, sending horses to the rear wheels. It was a fast car. Zero to one hundred took just 6.1 seconds and the top speed was 240 kilometers per hour. Lexus also sold an SC300 model, with a 3.0 six-in-line with 225 hp and 298 Nm.
The famous black license plates were issued to foreign-owned companies from the 1980s to the mid-00s. These companies could buy a car locally or import one. There were no limits on the number of cars or price or engine type. The numbering started at A·00001 and then up.
So the lower the number the older the car. Each province and municipality had its own black-license plate program. This Lexus has 沪A·05189, so it is an early Shanghai black license plate car. The character 沪 refers to Shanghai. It is an ancient alternative name for the city, named after a nearby river.