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Lexus teases a wild electric car concept for Tokyo Motor Show

The Tokyo Motor Show is shaping up to have plenty of wild concepts, from Mitsubishi's turbine-powered plug-in hybrid to Daihatsu's funky mini cars. But we doubt any of these cars will top what Lexus is bringing based on the teaser image above. Not much is shown of the car, but what is visible is extreme. We can see what looks like the Lexus spindle grille taken to its ultimate conclusion with the lower section seemingly wrapping around the front corners. The edges of the grille contain the car's headlights. The nose looks quite blunt and the windshield looks to be placed far forward. Since this is an electric car concept, having the cabin close to the front is possible and makes sense for maximum cargo space. We can also make out the instruments, which appear to be rendered in concentric circles on a transparent display. Things like range, power and more are yet to be revealed. The car's unveiling will be at the Tokyo Motor Show in just a couple of weeks. With looks this dramatic, it's hard to imagine how it could translate to a production Lexus EV. But if it does, Lexus will be taking a mighty bold direction in car design.

TMG Lexus LS Sports 650 destined for production after 2015?

There's little question that Lexus has succeeded in challenging its German rivals in the luxury marketplace. And with the LFA, it has proven that Japan can build a world-class supercar. What's left blank is the space in between.
Toyota Motorsport GmbH came up with a compelling answer in the form of the Sports 650 prototype, a Lexus LS with a 5.0-liter twin-turbo V8 producing 641 horsepower and other go-fast components to challenge the likes of the Mercedes-Benz S63 AMG and Audi S8. Toyota boss Akio Toyoda was reportedly so impressed with the project that he initially ordered TMG to build ten examples - one for him and each of his nine best friends. But since the model on which the project was based has since been replaced, questions remain over the project's fate.
Georg Kacher - European correspondent for Automobile and Car magazines - recently drove the prototype and reports that "the project will now likely be transferred to the new model out in 2015." That could come down purely to speculation, but Kacher tends to get the inside line on industry news, so this particular bowl of gossip soup might not requite the usual grain of salt we otherwise might add.

China fines Toyota $12.5 million over Lexus price-fixing

BEIJING — China's market regulator on Friday has fined Japanese carmaker Toyota Motor 87.6 million yuan ($12.5 million) for price-fixing on its premium Lexus cars in eastern Jiangsu province, according to a document on its website. The decision comes as China steps up regulation over auto sales in the world's biggest vehicle market, where more than 28 million cars were sold last year. The anti-monopoly bureau of State Administration for Market Regulation said that between 2015 and 2018, the Japanese carmaker set a minimum sales and resale price for its cars in coastal Jiangsu province, which deprived dealers of pricing autonomy and harmed customers' rights. Lexus also fixed sales strategies in the region over the period, including offering customers discounts while asking them to purchase accessories at fixed prices, a sales tactic usual among individual auto dealers in China but frowned upon for carmakers. A spokesman at Toyota, Lexus' parent firm, told Reuters the firm acknowledged the penalty and respects the decision. He did not comment further. China's auto sales are declining, but Lexus' sales keep growing. It sold 180,200 vehicles in the first 11 months this year, a 21% jump from a year earlier. In June, China's market regulator imposed an 162.8 million yuan fine on Ford Motor Co's joint venture with Changan Automobile Group for violating anti-monopoly law. ($1 = 6.9927 Chinese yuan renminbi) Reporting by Yilei Sun and Norihiko Shirouzu. Related Video: