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2022 Lexus IS 500 F Sport Performance brings back the V8

The 2022 Lexus IS 500 F Sport Performance revives the dormant IS F formula, bringing V8 power back to the compact luxury Japanese sport sedan for the first time since 2014 and confirming rumors of a new series of V8-powered performance (small p) cars from Lexus. Very little surprises us these days, especially in the luxury segment, but if you'd told us a month ago that we'd be confirming a V8-powered Lexus IS and a new, all-four-cylinder lineup for the Mercedes-Benz C-Class in the same week, we'd have called you crazy. Parent company Toyota's presence in Texas may have rubbed off on Lexus, though, because after a years-long hiatus, the V8-powered IS sedan returns. That's right. A V8. In a brand-new compact sport sedan. In 2021.  The new sport sedan will pack a 472-horsepower, 5.0-liter V8 with 395 pound-feet of torque, making it the spiritual successor to the discontinued Lexus IS F. For those keeping track at home, yes, that's the same V8 Lexus has utilized elsewhere in recent years. It currently powers the RC F coupe and, until last year, was also found under the hood of the larger GS F sedan. Like the BMW M3 it matches for power, the Lexus will come standard with rear-wheel drive and a limited-slip differential, making it a true performance machine. Power will go to the rear end by way of the same eight-speed automatic Lexus uses elsewhere as well. Sorry, folks, there's no stick, but hey, the IS F didn't have one either, so let's not get too picky. The original IS F also offered just 416 horsepower and 371 lb.-ft. of torque, so remember, this is all upside here. The original also launched without the LSD, if you'll remember; that came later.  2022 Lexus IS 500 F Sport Performance View 26 Photos The other significant edge the IS 500 F Sport Performance will have over its two-generations-removed predecessor will be the benefit of almost a decade's worth of interior development. While the IS platform was not significantly overhauled for the 2021 "re-imagining" (as Lexus puts it; we prefer the term "remodel"), the interior was, and the IS 500 F Sport Performance will benefit from all of the base sedan's upgrades, including a thoroughly overhauled infotainment system, which is night-and-day better than what was offered previously.

Lexus exploring PHEV, full EV and fuel cell versions of LS flagship

After four years of rumors about a Lexus LS powered by a hydrogen fuel cell, the chief engineer of the flagship sedan says the carmaker's working on even more options. Toshio Asahi told Australia's GoAuto that three alternative powertrains — plug-in hybrid, full electric, and hydrogen — are "all on the table" for consideration. Asahi wouldn't give any timeframes, but whenever they arrive, additional drive options would fill out the LS range to better contend with the Germans. Years of reports predicted this fifth-generation LS would get hydrogen power. A Motoring article at the end of 2014 forecast a fuel cell LS to arrive by 2017. In 2015 Japan's Nikkei newspaper reported that Lexus was considering a fuel cell option to arrive in 2020, around the time of the Tokyo Olympics. Later that year, at the Tokyo Motor Show, Lexus showed off the LF-FC concept, powered by a cell and stack arranged for "optimum front-rear weight distribution for a sporty saloon." GoAuto said that during that show, a Lexus executive said an FCEV powertrain would end up in production "sooner than you think." The following year, Autocar reported we'd see a production version of the LF-FC "on sale before 2020" as a replacement for the LS, and last year, Lexus trademarked the name "LF-FC Concept." The intel gets murkier regarding plug-in hybrid and full electric versions. We now know Lexus is working on a more powerful hybrid system. The current hybrid produces a total system 354 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque using the same 3.5-liter V6 in the standard car as a base, though the standard car adds two turbos for 415 hp and 442 lb-ft. The coming hybrid will likely use the twin-turbo setup and could achieve two important ends: Smoothing out noted issues of powertrain refinement, and at least matching the power specs of Mercedes-Benz and BMW flagship plug-in hybrids. That hybrid LS would still miss out on the all-electric driving of its rivals. If there really is an LF-FC coming in the next two years, it would seem a perfect time to retire the conventional hybrid and introduce a plug-in version embodying the velvet sophistication Lexus is known for. The battery electric LS is a big question mark outside of Lexus HQ. Last year Toyota announced a breakthrough in solid state battery technology, the carmaker announcing it wanted such batteries on the market by 2022.

Lexus is legitimately releasing a 60,000-hour version of its 'Takumi' documentary

In an age when many people determine expertise and authority by a blue check next to a Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram account, the idea of a true expert at his or her craft has been somewhat washed out. It is no longer an expectation, it's a rarity, and Lexus is honoring those who show true dedication to the art and science of practice. On March 19, Lexus will release a documentary about reaching takumi status, the highest level an artisan in Japan can attain by putting in 60,000 hours of work. Lexus first debuted this documentary, "Takumi – A 60,000-Hour Story on the Survival of Human Craft," at the DOC NYC film festival in New York. The film, which Lexus calls a character-driven study, has two forms. The feature version will debut on Amazon Prime and other streaming services, but that's technically a cut from the full-length 60,000-hour version. Yes, 60,000 hours, that's not a typo. The elongated cut will feature loops and repetitions of various skills as a way to imitate and display what it takes to become a takumi craftsman. (In case you're wondering, 60,000 hours translates into 7,500 eight-hour workdays, or more than 20 years if the artisan never took a single day off. Twelve-hour days would achieve true takumi mastery in under 14 years. To watch the full-length documentary, running nonstop 24 hours a day without bathroom breaks, you'd need 2,500 days, or nearly seven years.) The timing of the Clay Jeter-directed (Chef's Table) documentary is no coincidence, as manufacturing and production has been hit hard by machinery and artificial intelligence. Paired with the idea that everybody now wants things instantly, there is legitimate worry that the art of human craftsmanship is dying. There are four subjects in the movie: Lexus craftsman Katsuaki Suganuma, carpenter Shigeo Kiuchi, paper artist Nahoko Kojima, and chef Hisato Nakahigashi. Each has an inspiring mentality and story regarding a principle we've all been hearing since we were children: "Practice makes perfect." But a real takumi knows there is no such thing as perfection, only the path toward it. Watch the trailer for the documentary above.