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Lexus reportedly debuting a trio high-performance, V8-powered F models

The V8 engine may not be long for this world, but before it disappears forever Lexus may give it a proper sendoff with a trio of eight-cylinder F cars. If reports out of Japan are true, Lexus is working on high-performance F variants of the IS and LS sedans, as well as the LC flagship coupe. The story comes form Japan's Best Car magazine, which claims the Lexus IS F will soon be making a return. Based on the updated 2021 Lexus IS, it will run an up-tuned engine that puts out 474 horsepower and 395 pound-feet of torque. That's a 58-horse and 24-lb-ft increase from the last IS F. To be honest it would be a bit surprising to see an IS F at this point, as the previous, third-generation IS skipped an F version. And since the 2021 IS sedan is based on that same platform, it seems Lexus would have introduced an IS F successor much earlier if one was in the cards. As much as we would love to see the IS F return, we won't hold our breaths for this one. Still, an IS F would be nothing, shock-wise, compared to what comes next. Best Car says Lexus will introduce an LS F to go up against the Mercedes-AMG S 63 and BMW M760Li. Power would come from a new 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 making 661 hp and 480 lb-ft of torque. If true, this would drastically counter the LS's mission of smooth luxury that's been its raison d'etre since 1989. Out of the three, the car that makes the most sense to us is the LC F. It's been rumored for quite a while. We even saw spy shots of the car testing in 2018, but then came chatter that the car was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. According to Best Car, it's back on (or was never canceled) and will share a mill with the LS F. The report also says that all three cars have sport suspensions and chassis improvements that properly harness the power of these engines. Lexus has proven it can build compelling high-performance cars like the IS F and GS F, which were far better than what their sales numbers indicated. Furthermore, the Lexus V8s themselves are machines of engineering beauty, amazing throttle response and glorious sound. Naturally, we'd welcome any of these cars, even as we take the article with a massive grain of salt. Related Video:

Toyota settles first wrongful death suit related to unintended acceleration

Toyota's sales seem to have rebounded from the unintended acceleration issues from 2009 and 2010, but the automaker is far from done dealing with this situation. Following a settlement worth up to $1.4 billion for economic loss to affected vehicle owners, Toyota has settled rather than going to trial in a wrongful death lawsuit stemming from an accident in Utah in 2010 that left two passengers dead. This isn't the first case in which Toyota has settled, but it was the first among a consolidated group of cases being held in Santa Ana, CA.
According to The Detroit News, this case was scheduled to take place next month, and it was for a November 2010 incident in which Paul Van Alfen and Charlene James Lloyd were killed in a Camry when, based on findings by the Utah Highway Patrol, the accelerator got stuck causing the car to speed out of control and hit a wall; the terms of the settlement were not announced.
The article says that while Toyota will settle on some cases, it doesn't plan on settling on all of them as it still wants to be able to "defend [its] product at trial." This will probably be the case in suits claiming that software for the drive-by-wire accelerator was the cause of an accident in a Toyota or Lexus vehicle. The question of whether or not the electronic accelerator played any role in this problem has been a hot-button topic since the beginning. Toyota has issued recalls in the past to attempt to prevent unintended acceleration caused by trapped floor mats and faulty accelerator pedals, but it also says driver error was to blame in some instances.

2019 Lexus LX 570 Drivers' Notes Review | Long in the tooth

Body-on-frame SUVs like the 2019 Lexus LX 570 might have ruled the market a couple decades ago, but the old-school form factor has given way to smaller, more efficient car-based crossovers. That said, there's still a big market for models like this. Just take a look at the success of the Toyota 4Runner or other luxury SUVs like the Cadillac Escalade or the Ford F-150-based Lincoln Navigator. Crossovers may be more popular, but nothing beats an old-school SUV's chops when it comes to going off-road or towing big cargo. The Lexus LX is available in two flavors: a five-passenger two-row model and a seven-passenger three-row model. We had a chance to drive both, the first in Michigan and the latter in Oregon. There's a $5,000 difference between the base price on the two models. Both models had the $1,190 Luxury Package (upgraded leather, heated and ventilated front seats, heated second row and LX puddle lights). The three-row came with quite a few more options, including a heads-up display, a cool box in the console, a Mark Levinson audio system and a dual-screen rear entertainment system. All in, our two-row tester came out to $88,195 while the three-row would set you back $99,710. Senior Editor, Green, John Beltz Snyder: I like the design of the LX, and I can even overlook the giant spindle grille. I love the behemoth's boxy proportions, rounded out just ever so slightly, though I do think Toyota's version looks even better, and the Lincoln's Navigator even better yet. Inside, the LX is comfortable and roomy, with really nice materials everywhere you look and touch. It's still got that mousey Remote Touch interface for the infotainment system, though, which leaves much to be desired. On the road, I noticed immediately that its adaptive air suspension is better than the more conventional setup in the Toyota Land Cruiser. It's just slightly less eager to see-saw when coming to a measured stop. Coming to a measured stop, though, is the problem. The brakes in this thing are super touchy, like an on/off switch. It makes every stop feel like an emergency, whether you mean to or not. Then, no amount of suspension tuning can keep a beast like this from taking a nosedive. The amount of concentration it takes to keep this thing from panicking any time you use the brakes is mentally exhausting over time. I'm just glad I didn't have anyone in the passenger seat. Lastly, this thing guzzles premium fuel.