The Passionate Pursuit - Lexus News & Information

Fox Marketing Lexus IS-F in Dallas this weekend

krew — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 18:16:58 -0500

The orange modded Lexus IS-F by Fox Marketing/Artisan Performance will be making an appearance at the Hot Import Night in Dallas this Saturday. Here's a brand new photo of the car along with some other details:

[Brian Fox will] have the car at the Dallas HIN on Saturday, and from there he plans to take it to his buddy Kenny Strickler, who will install a Turbonetics GTK350 twin turbo setup. After that the next stop is the Lexus booth at SEMA!

[Source: Car Domain]

Lexus IS 250C Showing at Australia International Auto Show

krew — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 21:41:06 -0500

Fresh from its debut at the Paris Auto Show, the Lexus IS 250C is now making an appearance at the Australia International Auto Show. When asked about the new convertible, Lexus Australia GM John Roca had this to say:

"For the first time in Lexus history we can now claim we have an IS range...[it] will join the soon-to-be-launched IS-F and new IS 250 sedan to form a very strong backbone for the brand,” Mr Roca said.

"IS 250C has been developed to strict Lexus standards. Its superior NVH suppression, wind turbulence characteristics, ride comfort, interior space and versatility will set a new benchmark for convertibles in its class. It will also arrive at a time when practicality and versatility are driving purchase decisions. IS 250C consumers will not have to choose between sedan versatility and convertible enjoyment."

Lexus is extremely excited about the addition of IS 250C to the local model line-up in the later half of 2009," Mr Roca said.

Seems the IS 250C will be taking its time making its way to Australia, but even more than that, Lexus fans down under still don't have the IS-F?

[Source Japanese Sports Cars]

2001 Lexus IS 300 Commercial: Sufficiently Radical

krew — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 20:35:13 -0500

With all the economic doom & gloom, let's indulge in some stress of an entirely different sort:

Joe's a little too risky, if you ask me. His little move has backfire written all over it.

Lexus Global Sales Slipping

krew — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 20:26:54 -0500

Responding to a report that Toyota may be unable to achieve its projected global sales target, Senior Managing Director Yoichiro Ichimaru shared some details about the current state of Lexus sales worldwide.

According to Market Watch:

...[Toyota] will open a showroom in Tokyo for its upscale Lexus brand vehicles that is designed to draw in customers from countries outside of Japan.

At the new showroom, located in the center of one of Japan's fashion districts, the company will offer services to explain Lexus products and Japanese traffic rules in English and other languages.

Lexus is currently struggling to boost sales of its luxury vehicles with sales for the first nine months of this year falling 25% from the same term last year.

Due to the brand's reliance on the American market, the 25% drop in global sales is understandable, but that doesn't make it any less shocking. Certainly, the number one focus for Lexus management has to be increasing the profile in Europe, if only to insure that similar drops don't occur in the future.

Europa Press Interviews Lexus Europe Vice-President

krew — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 21:10:11 -0500

Some interesting facts came out of a Europa Press interview with Lexus Europe vice-president Andy Pfeiffenberger -- from the translated text:

...the vice president of the European subsidiary of Toyota said his company expected its sales this year on the European continent will be reduced by about 11%, to about 48,000 units, due to economic weakness, which has resulted in a sharp decline in car registrations in the region, particularly in the markets in Spain, Italy, Britain and Germany.

The new vice president of the company on the European continent stressed that "probably in the future" Lexus brand will become a "fundamentally hybrid," in which the highest sales volume for this technology.

Pfeiffenberger explained that the subsidiary of the Toyota group is considering making a new compact model in order to compete with cars like the BMW 1 Series or the Audi A3, which are in a segment in which the Japanese firm is not present at present.

An 11% drop certainly isn't good news, but at least it's lower than the projected US number. It also gives us some insight to the overall brand growth in Europe, where statistics are far and few between.

As far as the Lexus competitor to the 1-Series or the A3, I've gone from one extreme to the other, where it's now to a point where it's probably the vehicle I'm most looking forward to in the Lexus lineup.

[Source: Europa Press via AutoblogGreen]

Lexus Canada September 2008 Sales Report

krew — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 21:02:09 -0500

Lexus Canada saw sales soar 37.6% in September, bucking the direction of country's softening auto market and marking the ninth straight record month.

Overall, the brand sold 1,351 units, and although Lexus Canada doesn't publish it's full model-by-model breakdown, there were a few choice tidbits in the press release:

Lexus IS sales jumped 51.9%
The Lexus RX 350 pushed up 55.1% to 501, and even more impressive, the RX 400h jumped 172.7% for a total of 120 units sold

This makes for a dose of good news following the company's USA September numbers, and just goes to show that there's room the world over for the brand to grow.

[Source: Lexus]

Collection of Live Lexus IS 250C Video Clips

krew — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 20:09:37 -0500

I thought it would be good to post up all the different video segments of the Lexus IS 250C I've come across since the convertible's introduction last week:

Update: More videos:

Have you seen any others? Post it in the comments and I'll update the page.

Lexus IS 350C confirmed for North America

krew — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 20:50:29 -0500

According to both the Lexus USA press release and a post on Toyota's Open Road Blog, there will be an IS 350C (at least in North America):

Powered by the same powertrain as the IS sedans, the IS 250C features a2.5-liter, 204-hp V6 mated to a six-speed manual or six-speed automatictransmission; the IS 350C contains a 3.5-liter, 306-hp with a six-speedautomatic.

Hardly surprising, but at least this clears up any confusion. (The reason for the IS 350C's omission from the Paris Auto Show is due to that engine configuration not being offered in Europe.)

[Source: Lexus]

Lexus confirms Prius-based Hybrid (Plus a Second Hybrid Bonus!)

krew — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 18:11:14 -0500

Details are sparse, but there's news today regarding the upcoming Lexus hybrids. Yes, that's correct, there's two hybrids in the works!

Of course, this has been rumored for some time, but now we have something more in the way of facts:

Fact #1: The first Lexus dedicated hybrid will be based on the new Toyota Prius, though it's expected to have slightly more CO2 emissions due to its emphasis on performance. (The new Prius will have CO2 emissions of 92g/km.)
Fact #2: The second Lexus hybrid will be larger and entirely new, and will not be available for sale in Europe due to the C02 emssions.

The first thing that springs to mind when reading about the larger Lexus hybrid is the ES. After all, the ES isn't available in Europe with its conventional engine, and even further, you can't buy a Camry hybrid in Europe either. Pretty much spells it out for me...

[Source: Automotive News]

Lexus IS 250C Convertible Details

krew — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 17:43:10 -0500

With the video and the photos out of the way, let's get into the details of the new Lexus IS 250C:

Scheduled for a late-spring 2009 release in the US, summer 2009 in Europe
Features an aluminum three-panel roof that opens in just 21 seconds (currently the world's fastest three-panel roof)
Shares hood, headlamps, door handles and mirrors with the IS sedan, all other body panels have been reworked to blend with the retractible roof
Features the same powertrain as the IS sedan
Suspension and body structure have been revised to maintain the expected Lexus noise levels
The convertible has a drag Coefficient is 0.29, the sedan is 0.27
Features a new fog-lamp design
Rear overhang has increased 2 inches to improve trunk space (Two golf bags in coupe config, one in convertible)
Front doors have been extended 11.8 inches compared to the IS sedan
Quick one-touch automatic mechanism allows easy access to back seats

My initial impression? Love the overall shape, with the exception of the front/rear balance. The trunk lid is bulky, sure, but the thing that's most noticeable to me is that two extra inches in the rear overhang. It makes the front end look really stubby.

What do you think?

Video of the Lexus IS 250C Convertible Roof

krew — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 16:59:05 -0500

I've dug up the video that's currently being displayed with the IS 250C at the Paris Auto Show, which shows the new Lexus IS 250C's roof in action! What's more, it's a substantial 15 minutes in length, more than enough to satisfy even the most diehard retractible roof fans ~~(my apologies with the autostarting video, I couldn't seem to disable it)~~ videos have been replaced:

(I think I'm in the minority when I say I like the IS 250C with the roof up more than down.)

(Thanks Thierry!)

Lexus IS 250C Photo Gallery

krew — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 16:11:06 -0500

Well, that will teach me to get sick!

The Lexus IS 250C was unveiled early this morning at the Paris Motor Show, and with it came plenty of interesting information. First thing's first, there's a ton of official photos, more details in my next post:

Lexus USA September 2008 Sales Report

krew — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 18:29:26 -0500

With a 27% decrease overall, September was the worst month-to-month percentage drop in US automotive sales since 1991. Lexus certainly wasn't exempt from the ill effects, with sales down 33.4%. Here's the model-by-model breakdown:

	2008	2007	% Change
IS250/350/F	3,044	3,757	-15.6
ES350	4,042	6,491	-35.1
GS350/460/450h	977	1,668	-39.0
SC430	129	297	-54.8
LS460/600h L	1,238	2,918	-55.8
Total Cars	9,430	15,131	-35.1
RX350/400h	4,639	7,841	-38.4
GX470	1,329	1,964	-29.5
LX570	647	177	280.8
Total Trucks	6,615	9,982	-31.0
Total Sales	16,045	25,113	-33.4

The LX 570's success isn't just the anomaly at Lexus, but across the entire industry. In fact, by my quick scanning, the only comparable vehicles out there are the Audi A5/S5 with a 525.2% increase and the Nissan Rogue with 507.5%. However, neither of those vehicles weigh over 8,000lbs. and get a combined city/highway of 14MPG.

Lexus & The Global Brand Study 2008

krew — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 19:11:07 -0500

Interbrand's annual Best Global Brands study has been completed, and Lexus has ranked 90th overall, and 10th among automotive brands:

When compared to last year's study, Lexus is moving up the ladder, climbing two spots. The value of the brand, calculated from combination of analysts’ projections, company financial documents, and qualitative and quantitative analysis stands at $3.588 billion, up from $3.354 billion. The automotive brands ranked as follows:

1. Toyota - $34B

2. Mercedes-Benz - $25.6B

3. BMW - $23.3B

4. Honda - $19.1B

5. Ford - $7.9B

6. Volkswagen - $7B

7. Audi - $5.4B

8. Hyundai - $4.8B

9. Porsche - $4.6B

10. Lexus - $3.6B

[Source: Interbrand]

Car And Driver Reviews the Lexus LX 570

krew — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 18:56:16 -0500

Car And Driver has posted a short and sweet review of the Lexus LX 570 which might very well sum up both the good and the bad:

Never has it been more politically incorrect to sing the praises of a passenger vehicle that weighs 6180 pounds, attains observed fuel economy of 14 mpg, and costs $75,465. Poor Toyota. A perfect trifecta of bad timing.

Which is a little embarrassing for us because every C/D editor who drove the new LX570 came back to the office, looked sheepishly at his shoes, then said in a small voice, “Holy crap, I love that thing.”

Drive solo in this behemoth and enviro-conscious citizens give you the stink eye, as if you’ve fired up an unfiltered Camel in the produce section of Whole Foods. Which is a shame because the LX570 may well be the most desirable SUV on the planet.

There's no doubt that with the current oil crisis plus the economic climate, the LX dips alarmingly into the obscene. The fact that it's so brilliantly executed certainly confuses the issue, but in all honesty, the LX as it exists now won't be able to last. (Personally, I'm going to enjoy it for as long as I can.)