Video: Lexus LF-LC concept

Lexus LX 570 gets minor facelift

Lexus' GS design has been a failure in my opinion with the Japanese trying to incorporate as many as "S"s as possible, a trend that appears in the facelifted LX... 

Source: Autoblog

Lexus' stunning LF-LC concept

Simply speechless.... please Lexus produce it with just minor mods, please....

Lexus preps stunning LF-LC concept

Japanese automakers reveal from time to time some really stunning concepts, but by the time they enter production, the final product ends up completely boring and hugely toned down. Please Lexus, produce a version as close as possible to this prototype....

Lexus F Sport official teaser — IS 350

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Lexus LFA - IAA 2011

Absolutely amazing!!!!!!!!!!!

Lexus LFA achieves a 7min 14.64 sec lap time on Nürburgring!

How the all-new Lexus GS was rescued...

Probably you have read the rumours posted in the past regarding the fate of the GS successor... the one that was just presented. Toyota was apparently ready to abandon the project, but Lexus' regional management teams really fought for it! The inside story has now been published and you can read it below.

Eighteen months ago, Toyota had all but scrapped its plans for the redesigned Lexus GS 350 sedan that was unveiled here last week.

At the time, the company was pouring engineering resources into resolving its unintended acceleration crisis and was busy changing quality and safety procedures. Plus, the GS' underwhelming sales in the United States and Europe made for a weak business case against the Mercedes E class and BMW 5 series.

Toyota Motor Corp. President Akio Toyoda had put the GS on the chopping block, but a last-ditch effort from U.S. and European executives saved the car. In the process, the company overhauled the way Lexus executives report to top management in Japan -- giving the luxury brand a stronger voice at the highest levels of the company.

"I didn't want this car," Toyoda said at the debut of the GS, which goes on sale in early 2012. But Lexus' regional management teams "fought me like crazy."

Several top Toyota executives confirmed that the 2013 GS redesign had been as good as dead.

"There were some executives, including Akio, who thought, in terms of our priority list, that the GS should be delayed or canceled," said Andrew Coetzee, now U.S. vice president of Lexus Brand Development. He was a Lexus product planner in Japan at the time.

Coetzee says Toyoda's pessimism resulted from the many layers of Japanese executives through which Lexus' overseas managers reported. Only when Lexus' global team members appealed directly to Toyoda did the boss change his mind.

Company officials say Toyoda decided there was a flaw in the system. As part of the company's management reorganization in April, he created a new reporting structure that gives Lexus more influence.

Previously, at least four layers of r&d, sales and marketing executives in Japan separated Toyoda from overseas executives responsible for the Lexus brand. But a new Lexus Product and Market Planning Division was formed with a direct line to Toyoda.

The division is headed by Japan-based executive Karl Schlicht, who reports to managing officer Kiyotaka Ise. Ise, whose only responsibility is Lexus, reports to Toyoda.

Coetzee admitted that "things were not done well" with the current bland and bloated GS, and that the lineup was "missing something" between the entry-luxury ES and IS sedans and the flagship LS. The GS needed to represent "a premium car with premium chassis technology ... a step up in dynamics and status."

The GS has been a continual underachiever compared with the 5 series, E class and Audi A6. The current generation's sales peaked at 27,390 units in 2006, tapering off to 7,059 last year.

But the redesigned 2013 GS displays the sheet metal and interior design cues that will carry across the brand for the next several years.

"The GS may be low volume [in the past], but it is symbolic of the new Lexus," said Yoshi Inaba, CEO of Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A.

[Source: Automotive News]

New Lexus GS: Driving Performance Video

Lexus officially reveals all-new GS

Lexus has finally revealed today the all-new GS at Pebble Beach. The design language applied is what you will see also on future Lexus models and I have to admit that a lot of details have been toned down compared to the concept. The rear end seems to me as the most conservative part of the design, but apparent from that, it's dynamic, yet it remains elegant.

The chassis is all new and power comes from a 3.5-liter V6 engine producing 306 hp. The driver can select between three different driving modes - ECO, Normal and Sport S/S+. The Sport S+ mode tightens also the steering, loosens the stability control and stiffens up the suspension. In terms of dimensions, the new model hasn't grown up.

Interior of all-new Lexus GS revealed

The all-new Lexus GS is only a few weeks ago, as it's going to make its official debut in August. Until then, the interior has been fully revealed. It looks now closer in design philosophy to the one of the CT. 

Latest rumours about new Lexus LS - it comes in 2014

Initial reports suggested that the all-new Lexus LS (earlier post) will be introduced in 2013, but BC claims now that the new model will be introduced in 2014 instead. BC published also this rendering, which looks completely different compared to the previous ones.

The LS 600h will use a 5.0L V6 engine plus the latest-gen hybrid system, which will enable it to achieve a fuel efficiency of 15.0 km/L. Well, it's not bad at all considering that it's a really big car and it has 400 ps + 55.0 kgm of torque! An 8 gear automatic transmission will be fitted.

The article mentions that an LS F Sport will be also introduced, powered by a 3.5L V6 engine. In terms of performance, 320 ps and 38.5 kgm of torque are the estimated numbers.

Get ready for Lexus LFA II!

Lexus' plan was to produce 500 LFAs, 450 standard ones plus 50 with the Nürburgring Package, but latest rumors coming from Japan suggest that 100 more LFAs will be produced.

To be more precise, Best Car claims that the extra 100 LFAs, mentioned as LFA II, will use the 570 ps version of the V10 engine.

Video: LFA vs GT-R, ZR1, 911 GT2 RS and F430 GT3 (Best Motoring)

Video: Lexus LFA - UK exclusive

Video: Lexus LFA vs Lexus IS-F - flat out!

Video: LFA lap at Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach

New Lexus LFA promo video!!!

Tony B Drifts the Lexus LFA in Sonoma

… Another rendering of new Lexus GS coming from Japan

Following the unveiling of the LF-Gh concept (earlier post), I reckon that this rendering shouldn't be far from the real thing, although I would expect the grille looking a bit different.

Merc's upcoming compact models

This post may seem a bit bizarre to many of you, but the compact car segment is a vital one for all manufacturers and especially for luxury brands, since they need strong sales in order to develop their bigger models. So, since I got a copy of the latest Auto Motor und Sport issue yesterday, which has some interesting renderings of Mercedes' new models, I thought it would be nice to share some photos with you.

Lexus has already introduced the CT (earlier post) and I spotted one today. I have to admit that I wasn't really impressed. There is nothing exciting about it at all...

Infiniti on the other hand is more promising with the ETHEREA concept (earlier post) and I believe their new compact model will stand out from the crown, although it won't be easy "stealing" customers from the top three German makes. 

Although the other two German luxury brands are preparing also their rivals, I consider the new Mercs being of a greater interest, since there is a completely new approach and 5 models (A-Class, B-Class, GLC, CLC and CLC Shooting Brake) will be introduced in total. I have to admit that Mercedes had a disappointing lineup for around 10 years, but this has started to change and I am really impressed with the new CLS, E-Class Coupe and SLK.

BMW will introduce the new 1-Series later this year and it will be slightly bigger than the current generation and in terms of design, expect to see an evolution of the current one. Although the new "1er" will certainly be a very nice car to drive, it will look similar to the previous one, plus BMW's interiors have ended up being boring since the same theme is applied over and over again...

In terms of the new Audi A3... don't expect anything great in terms of exterior design. I am big Audi fan, but all the latest models look the same.... A4, A5, A8 (A4 on steroids) etc. Even the new Q3 looks almost identical to the Q5. Nice LEDs though...