The front styling is dynamic, with chrome-trimmed triangular headlamp clusters and the Lexus trademark trapezoidal grille. The fluid arch of the roof leads to a rounded rear, where integrated multi-lens taillights are sculpted as triangles skewed with curves.

Beneath its beltline the SC 430 is round and plump but pleasingly so. The bold, squatty stance is emphasized by its long wheelbase, exaggerated wheel wells, and 18-inch wheels. Those wheels are pushed so far out to the corners they almost seem to stretch the sheet metal behind them.

Press a button and the lightweight aluminum hardtop quickly folds itself double and tucks into the trunk. With the top concealed below the trunk lid, the SC 430 looks fluid and fast like a racy roadster.

The optional rear spoiler further reduces the car's slick drag coefficient of 0.31 to an even slicker 0.30. available run flat tires eliminate the need for a spare tire and thus increase space in the trunk.