Ever determined to dominate territory formerly associated strictly with the Germans, Lexus, Toyota’s luxury division, has announced two new models to enter the fullsize luxury sedan market. They include the 2007 LS 460 and LS 460 L, a long-wheelbase model, which happens to be a first for Lexus.

Power is courtesy of an all-new 4.6-liter V8 driving the rear wheels through an eight-speed automatic transmission. Interestingly, the engine’s valve timing chain is driven via an electric motor in a system Lexus calls VVT-iE, said to improve top-end performance. This equates to a 0 to 60mph dash of only 5.4 seconds for the big Lexus and with an Ultra-Low Emissions Vehicle II rating to boot.

Inside the car gets a heated steering-wheel, hard-drive based navigation system with Bluetooth activated voice control of your mobile. Audio is taken care of with a high-end Mark Levinson system featuring a 19 speaker surround sound setup. The new LS also comes with a parking assist program utilising a camera, parking sonar sensors and an electric power steering system which guides the car automatically.

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