2006 Lexus Rx330 Base Sport Utility 4-door 3.3l on 2040-cars

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Lexus considers additional powertrains for the F Performance brand

As the European hardcore competition integrates small-displacement engines and hybrids ( Mercedes-AMG), as well as pure electrification ( Polestar), Lexus' F Performance brand sticks to eight-cylinder guns. The IS F, RC F, and GS F all use the same 5.0-liter V8, the brand's hallmark all the way back to the 2007 IS F. Things could be changing, though, to hear Lexus president Yoshihiro Sawa tell it during his first visit to the Goodwood Festival of Speed. He told Auto Express that "we cannot stick to the one solution when it comes to providing emotion." It sounds like a hybrid has the best chance of reality in the near-term. In April, Lexus said several powertrain options are "all on the table" for the primary brand, and we know Lexus is working on a more powerful hybrid system. Sawa broached the unexpected idea of "a pure F GT car, which could be a hybrid with an electric motor and a strong engine." Mention of a "pure F GT" has us wondering if Sawa means a version of the rumored LC F, or another vehicle above or beside that LC F. A trademark filing and heaps of rumor posit the LC F will have a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 pushing 600 horsepower or more. It's also possible Lexus plans to do something with the anticipated Gazoo Racing road-going supercar that reworks the hybrid powertrain from Toyota's LMP1 race car. An electric vehicle is under consideration as the F Performance brand works to "think of our own original way," and Lexus itself tries "to find a way to connect to the next era." Sawa knows performance buyers seek the feel and sound of an ICE, but says "we cannot stick to the one solution when it comes to providing emotion." The subcompact Lexus UX crossover will be half-electrified when it arrives later this year, one of its powertrains putting electric motors on the rear axle. The brand boss said "We will introduce an EV," but whatever they create needs to be both "lovable" and "have a luxury feeling," the former adjective leading us to believe the F sub-brand won't be going down that avenue just yet. The only reasonable candidate we've heard of so far as a battery electric version is the next-generation CT in Europe. Speaking of the CT, the compact hatchback has brought new buyers to the brand with a 70 to 75 percent conquest rate. Sawa said the spindle grille has done the same; sales have grown since the introduction of the polarizing face, so don't expect it to go away.

2015 Lexus NX 300h

With so much hullabaloo being made over the first gasoline turbocharged engine produced by Lexus, it's easy to forget that there's another option for those who'd rather (barely) hear the whirring of electric motors than the high-pitched whizzing of turbos. That's too bad, because we think the NX 300h is one of the more interesting hybrids on the market, due in large part to its innovative all-wheel-drive system and relatively sporty driving dynamics. We spent several hours with the brand-new hybrid crossover from Lexus, and we came away with plenty to talk about.
Driving Notes
Of course, the big thing that differentiates the 300h from the 200t is its drivetrain. In place of the 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder sits a 2.5-liter gasoline engine that runs exclusively on the Atkinson cycle to save fuel, augmented by a pair of electric motors and mated to an electronic continuously variable transmission. Lexus is no stranger to hybrids, buoyed by parent company Toyota's expertise, and the basic setup used by the NX 300h is a well-known quantity shared with the ES 300h.

Toyota wants improved crash scores with midcycle facelifts

The performances of some Toyotas in the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's (IIHS) regimen of crash tests leave something to be desired. Consider the small overlap frontal crash test: only six Toyota, Lexus and Scion vehicles have undergone the new test, yet all but one of them received a poor rating. Osama Nagata, CEO of Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America Inc., says midcycle vehicle updates are in the works to address the safety issues brought to light by the IIHS test, Automotive News reports. He confirmed that the RAV4 is getting safety updates following its crash test performance last month, but he didn't name any other models.
All three Toyotas that were tested - 2013 RAV4, 2012-2013 Prius V, 2012-2013 Camry - received poor ratings. The 2007-2012 Lexus ES 350 and 2006-2013 IS 250/350 also received poor ratings. The only other Toyota Motor Corp. vehicle to score better than poor is the 2014 Scion TC. It received an acceptable rating in the small overlap frontal crash test and is the only recent vehicle in Toyota's line-up to get the IIHS Top Safety Pick+ rating.
The small overlap front crash test measures the safety of a car when its front left corner is strikes an object during an accident, bypassing traditional crumple zones, which deform in a way to protect passengers. In 2009, automakers were alerted to the forthcoming addition of the test, which was first implemented last year, IIHS spokesman Russ Rader says. They responded with differing intensity, he says, pointing out that Subaru and Honda started incorporating design changes early on so their cars would perform well in the tests.