Automotive Reviews
Posts tagged Lexus
North American International Auto Show 2012
Jan 16th
It’s practically a tradition that the North American International Auto Show in Detroit is accompanied by the worst weather of the season. The second week in January in Detroit is rarely a pleasant place, but this year’s show was preceded by unseasonably warm and sunny weather. All thoughts of global warming aside, it seemed to indicate a subtle change in the climate of the automotive industry as well. No-shows included Mitsubishi, Suzuki and Jaguar/Land Rover, but all of the major industry players were present.
Several years of economic hardship (and more than a few casualties) have left the auto industry cautious; the wild abandon that characterized auto shows past is long gone. In its place, there’s a pragmatic realism–but for 2012, that realistic outlook is also optimistic. In addition to the upcoming products that are useful refinements of existing vehicles, Detroit also saw the debut of some honest-to-goodness concept cars, showing that the industry may have scaled back on the wildest flights of fancy, but it hasn’t forgotten how to dream. More >
2011 Lexus RX 450h
Oct 31st
Appreciating the Lexus RX 450h requires a keen sense of the subtle. What Lexus has done with this vehicle is taken the relatively simple process of propelling a car down the road, made it impossibly complex, and then refined it so that it seems simple again.
Confused? Just check out the power-flow display on the dash, a prominent feature in all of the Toyota/Lexus family hybrids. The complicated dance of electric and gasoline power, battery charging and regenerative braking as well as engine shutoff and re-start, is evident only in the constantly changing power-flow arrows of the display. Without it, you’d never know what this luxury hybrid crossover was up to.
2011 Lexus CT200h
Feb 17th
I first met the CT200h at the New York Auto Show last April; it was part of a lavish display that said much about it being the “dark side of green” and its sporty nature, but very little about its underpinnings, or about why it existed. Sure, the “h” means hybrid in Lexus slang, but were Lexus buyers really clamoring for a sporty five-door? The IS300 SportCross vanished without a trace, remember.
Take away that distracting hybrid-ness, and the CT200h makes somewhat more sense. The premium compact market is still a limited one, but with cars like the Volvo C30, Audi A3 and now the BMW 1-Series running about, there’s definitely a place for a smaller and more efficient luxury vehicle in the hearts of a few American buyers. Lexus has just chosen to sweeten the pot on its new entry-level car by making it an extremely efficient hybrid. More >