Lexus News
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Already selling strongly in Japan in pre-order sales, Lexus today announced U.S. pricing for the 2010 HS 250h dedicated luxury sedan. Starting at a mere $34,200, the hybrid is firmly positioned at the entry-level sector of the luxury sedan market. The carmaker hopes to hit 25,000 sales in the HS 250h's first year. As we showed you nearly two months ago with our first drive review of the car, the 2010 Lexus HS 250h can't really be compared with its corporate stablemate the Toyota Prius, but the comparisons are inevitable. Priced at over $12,000 more than a base Prius II, the HS 250h certainly...
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Lexus shifting focus to entry-level modelsEveryone in the industry is feeling the burn of a long, slow summer, but few are feeling as keenly as Lexus. Perhaps that's because the luxury import carmaker had so far to fall, having been the dominant force in American luxury cars for most of the past decade. But there's a plan afoot to help...
Ralph Hanson -
Lexus HS 250h tops 1,500 pre-orders in JapanThough it has already been ruled out for Europe where diesel is king, the 2010 Lexus HS 250h dedicated hybrid sedan is planned for the U.S. If early sales reports out of Japan are any indication, the HS should prove a bigger hit than some might have predicted. Over 1,500 buyers have placed orders...
Kenneth Hall -
Lexus IS C production struggling to keep up with demandIn the midst of its U.S. marketing blitz for the 2010 IS C, Lexus is working hard to build enough cars to meet consumer demand. Currently about 1,200 cars are leaving the Kyushu factory each month, but according to a Lexus official, that's just barely enough. The IS-C was introduced last October at...
Ralph Hanson -
Report: Lexus IS F Convertible planned for early 2011 launchDespite there being no plans yet for an IS Coupe or a high-performance F version of the new IS C Convertible, officially, a new report has surfaced and claims that a Lexus IS F Convertible is in the works. Coupe and convertible versions of the IS-F would be welcome by fans, and it would also likely...
Ralph Hanson -
BMW edging past Lexus to become America’s top-selling luxury brandSince as far back as 2000 Lexus has been the top-selling luxury brand in the U.S., a positioned it appeared the Toyota premium division would be to hold on for years to come. Despite top marks in dependability and satisfaction surveys, Lexus has conceded its number one spot to BMW based on...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
The RX line of SUVs has been Lexus' best-selling luxury utility vehicle since its launch in 1998, and the new generation takes the vehicle into a larger, more powerful realm, while at the same time adding new efficiency-enhancing measures in the hybrid model. Currently, the RX SUV range is manufactured in Japan but it’s been speculated recently that Lexus is considering building the RX 450h petrol-electric hybrid in Canada. During a press event, a Lexus executive Paul Williamsen said the first hybrid built outside of Japan will go into production this summer in Ontario, Canada, reports...
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Lexus tops J.D. Power Initial Quality study, Porsche and Cadillac close behindWhen it comes to luxury-car quality, taste often plays as big a role as fact, but J.D. Power tries to boil the issue down to a simple metric: problems per 100 cars. The resulting ranks are dubbed the Initial Quality Study, and used to guide consumer decisions. As usual, Lexus rates at the very top...
Alex Kaufmann -
Lexus bringing LF-A, IS-F race cars to Goodwood Festival of SpeedFor the true enthusiast, there are few events that satisfy as completely as the Goodwood Festival of Speed. Both concourse and racing event, Goodwood offers the best of both worlds in an environment steeped in history and tradition. Lexus will be taking advantage of this year's Festival to show off...
Ralph Hanson -
Lorinser Treats The Lexus LS 460 To German Fine TuningFor a first try, the Lorinser LS460 is an excellent result. Of course, this is the first Lexus Lorinser has tuned, but it's by no means their first project. Typically tied up with Teutonic hardware, the Mercedes specialists at Lorinser decided to do something different this time. And it's...
Ralph Hanson -
Lexus RX crossover awarded IIHS Top Safety PickAnyone in the market for the new 2010 Lexus RX can rest assure they are buying one of the safest crossovers available as the vehicle has just earned the highest safety rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). Along with the 2009 Toyota Venza, the new RX receives the...
Ralph Hanson -
Report: Convertible Lexus IS-F greenlighted, soft-top SC possibleJust two months ago the new 2010 Lexus IS Convertible went on sale in Japan, and with it came talk of a coupe version as well. That started rumors that Lexus could make IS-F versions of both, and a new report today confirms those plans. The report also includes hints of a possible soft-top variant...
Ralph Hanson -
The supercar that almost wasn’t, and still might not be, the Lexus LF-A, was recently spotted again in prototype form ahead of a rumored debut at October's Tokyo Motor Show, and over the weekend new information about the car has emerged, confirming much of what was already suspected. The LF-A has been spotted testing on a number of occasions, so it's well past the 'pure concept' stage, but its production future still remains murky at best. The Japanese company's investment in the LF-A at the Milan Fashion Week, however, lends credence to the idea that it is in fact going to be built...
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Lexus LX 570 Driven To Victory In Tecate Baja 500In a remarkable first for driver, team, vehicle and manufacturer, Joe Bacal and navigator Paul Williamsen took their freshly-built Cancer Treatment Centers of America JTGrey Racing Lexus LX570 to a landmark maiden victory in the 41st annual Tecate Score Baja 500 over the weekend. Their win in the...
Jeremy Weber -
Lexus hoping to hit 25,000 in first-year HS 250h hybrid salesHigh sales hopes aren't exactly in fashion right now, especially in the car industry, and Lexus is following suit, eying a fairly humble first-year target of 25,000 units for its new HS 250h dedicated hybrid sedan. Total sales for the Lexus brand in 2008 rode above 20,000 per month, and even with...
Ralph Hanson -
Lexus exec hints at sporty IS CoupeWith Lexus now offering a Convertible version of its IS, the question remains: is a sporty IS Coupe ever going to be launched? Considering that an IS Coupe would likely share much in common with the IS Convertible, including most of the engineering work, chassis modifications, body work, and...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Lotus Esprit successor may feature Lexus V10For Lotus fans, the next few years should prove to be very interesting times as the company pushes ahead with its five-year plan to update its model lineup, including successors to the Elise and Esprit. Lotus has already unveiled its new Evora, but rather than sitting still with this car, work on...
Ralph Hanson -
2010 Lexus HS 250h first driveGet behind the wheel of the 2010 Lexus HS 250h, and one of the first things you'll realize is that the seemingly inevitable comparison to the Prius isn't entirely appropriate. The Lexus is certainly destined to be more expensive and exclusive than Toyota's popular hybrid, but it's also a...
Ralph Hanson -
Though over a year has elapsed since the Lexus LF-A was first spotted in testing, and it's been almost a year since it last ran the 24 Hours of Nurburgring, the crew at Lexus are prepping the perpetual prototype for yet another running of the ADAC Zurich 24h Race, and now they've released photos of the race car that'll be hitting the track. Last time around the car used the day-long race track outing to give the LF-A's systems a real stress test, to iron out the bugs in the chassis and tuning and to further develop their own technical capabilities. This year the plan focuses on the same...
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Cadillac tops brand satisfaction survey for the second year runningIn today's competitive market building reliable cars that customers are satisfied with is the key to improving sales and maintaining market share. A number of companies conduct vehicle satisfaction surveys to offer consumers a comparison between brands and specific models, and one of the most...
Jeremy Weber -
Toyota design chief gives insight into future lineupGauging the future of automotive design is a tough and tricky business. Anyone that's ventured through the winding courses of Disney's famed Autopia knows exactly how easy it is to get things wrong. But Toyota is charting its own course to the future, and it's using efficiency as its North star. A...
Nelson Ireson -
Redesigned Lexus GX SUV coming in second half of 2009The Lexus GX midsize luxury SUV has been on sale since 2003 and has enjoyed some success during that time, managing to rack up to 35,420 sales in 2004 - its best year on record and easily eclipsing the company’s annual target of 20,000 units. Demand in the midsize luxury SUV segment, however...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Lexus IS C gets F-Sport makeoverLexus recently expanded its F-Sport Performance Accessories line to include parts for the GS sedan and IS AWD, and this week the company revealed full details for new parts for the IS C convertible that has just gone on sale. Previously the performance range was only applicable for the IS 250 and...
Ralph Hanson -
Video: Lexus unveils IS C advertising campaign with four new commercialsWhen carmakers start tossing around terms like 'mischievous' and tapping into online markets for their cars, it's clear they're targeting a younger audience. And that's exactly what Lexus is doing with its new campaign for the 2010 IS C retractable hardtop convertible. Partnering with ABC.com...
Nelson Ireson