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Watch the mysterious Lexus F Sport model live reveal here today

Lexus has a mystery F Sport reveal for us coming up this Monday morning. Turn your dials to the YouTube video above at 11 a.m. ET today to see what new performance model Lexus has to offer. The teaser image is exactly the same as it was a week ago. There’s a simple F Sport badge sitting proudly on an engine cover, but no exact indication of what the car is. We picked the engine cover out as the same cover found in the RC F, suggesting that the car weÂ’re going to see has the 5.0-liter V8 under its hood. However, the F Sport badge contradicts this, as the only cars with the performance V8 in LexusÂ’ lineups are full F models (without the Sport moniker). WeÂ’ll certainly be tuning in at 11 to see exactly what Lexus has for us. Could it be the IS 500 that we wondered about a week ago? Or is it some other mysterious F Sport model? All will be revealed in short time.

Lexus gets new boss, and he's a designer

A reshuffle in the uppermost ranks of Lexus could see the Japanese luxury brand further energize its recent focus on design. Tokuo Fukuichi, Toyota's global design boss, is the new head of Lexus International.
Fukuichi will retain his role as the overall head of design for Toyota, Lexus and Scion, and will assume his new position at the head of Lexus and on its board on April 1 (no fooling). This is going to be an interesting move for fans of design to watch, as Fukuichi has repeatedly been mentioned as a designer that enjoys pushing the edge of the envelope and experimenting. He is, after all, the man responsible for designing the most awesomely odd minivan of the 1990s, the mid-engined, rear-drive Toyota Previa, and more recently, he signed off on the controversial Lexus LF-NX concept, which is said to presage a new production small crossover.
"Regarding changes in design, no one has 100 percent confidence," Fukuichi told Forbes back in January 2013. "No one can really say with pure certainty that, 'In two years, this will sell well.'" As Akio Toyoda continues to demand more assertive, edgier designs, it's that point of view that should make Fukuichi a valuable addition to Lexus, as it continues to challenge the competition from Germany.

Optimistic Lexus bumps US sales target higher

Last year Lexus sold 244,166 cars in the US, slotting into third place in the luxury segment behind BMW and Mercedes-Benz. Earlier this year Lexus said its target was 260,000 units in the US (which would still put it behind BMW's and Mercedes' numbers from last year), but Automotive News reports that it has raised its upper outlook to 270,000 cars.
The half-year pace hasn't been enough to make either number, but Lexus is gunning for a 15-percent gain in IS sales behind the arrival of the 2014 model, and this is also the first full year of sales of the new ES and LS. Lexus will most likely end the year in third place in the luxury segment behind BMW and Mercedes again, even if it does sell 270,000 units, but has said its prime directive is "good, steady growth."