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Lexus LCs for SEMA inspired by Blue Morpho butterfly, Marvel's Black Panther

Lexus is bringing a pair of LC 500 coupes to this year's SEMA show, and they're thoroughly different vehicles to one another. The first is a production car, the Lexus LC Inspiration Series. It's a highly limited-edition car that is mostly stock except for a unique paint job. The other also has a special paint scheme, but it's a one-off show car designed around the upcoming Marvel movie, " Black Panther," in which an LC 500 will be featured. The LC 500 Inspiration Series, being a production car, should be of the most interest to consumers, but also because of its special paint. Looking at it, it's very clearly blue, but according to Lexus, there are no actual blue pigments in the paint. Instead, the blue hue comes from the way nano-structures buried in the paint reflect blue light. It works similarly to the wings of the Blue Morpho butterfly, which also lack any actual blue coloration, but the structure of the wings' surfaces reflect blue light. This paint is not easy to make, either. Lexus says it takes eight months to produce a batch, and only two cars with the coating can be built each day. So it's easy to understand why this is a limited edition car and color. Only 100 will be sold in the United States. To sweeten the deal, this Inspiration Series edition comes standard with 21-inch forged wheels, exclusive carbon fiber door sill plates, and, for some reason, a Barneys sommelier bar set with a design inspired by the LC. View 11 Photos As subtle as the Lexus LC 500 Inspiration Series is, the Black Panther LC 500 isn't. The car features an extremely widened body. It's a fairly elegant design, except for the stuck-on claws on the side mirrors that are echoed by the silver panted fender vent strakes. The paint scheme is equally absurd. The dark indigo blue paint has an enormous Black Panther mask design on the hood. Under the car is blue underglow, and the interior is finished in black leather with blue Alcantara. Lexus also lists a number of fictional features for the car, since it is meant for the Black Panther superhero. Among them are a bulletproof, self-healing Vibranium body, systems controlled by a "Wakandan B-CPU (Brain/Computer interface) creating a symbiotic relationship between the vehicle and its driver," and side mirrors with "instinctual positioning technology" to automatically move to the right position for the driver.

255-hp Toyota GR86 and other big news leaks in dealer presentation

Last month, Motor1 said it received information on Toyota and Lexus product plans for the next few years from an inside source who attended a dealer presentation. To protect the source, Motor1 didn't publish any slides or proof from that presentation. A snippet of what happened behind closed doors has found its way online, Allcarnews posting one of the slides yesterday, as well as its own recap of the Japanese automaker's plans that mirrors the Motor1 report. If all of this is true, not only is there a ton of product in the works, but Toyota and Lexus lineups will get more interesting while answering the requests of several enthusiast groups. We'll start with the 86, then go by model year after that. The next-gen coupe developed with Subaru should sit on Toyota's TNGA platform and get a rebrand to wear the GR86 name, for Toyota's Gazoo Racing division. The real hallelulah happens under the hood, where a turbocharged four-cylinder is expected to produce 255 hp, a 50-hp jump over the present model. Look for an upgraded interior, too. The debut is slated for summer 2021, possibly July.    This year: The fall season should introduce a new crossover and a new Sienna with hybrid powertrains only. The current minivan has been on sale since 2010, getting a minor refresh in front in 2018. The crossover will be a five-seat midsizer that brings back the Venza name, this model already rumored here and abroad. It, too, will only get hybrid powertrains. Both planned as 2021-model-year products, it's possible their motivations will be based on the 2.5-liter four-cylinder in both the RAV4 and Highlander hybrids. And a refreshed Camry might come later this year as a 2021MY sedan.  2021: Next year will be a busy one. ... On the Toyota side, and as TFL has reported, the all-new Tundra that's first to sit on the TNGA-F truck platform will show in December 2021 as a 2022MY pickup. Rumor has the top model powered by a 3.5-liter twin-turbo V6 hybrid with around 455 hp and 500 pound-feet of torque, perhaps distinguished by the i-Force Max name that Toyota recently applied to trademark. A few months before that, Toyota will roll out a Corolla-based crossover maybe called the Corolla Cross, and potentially built in the U.S. at the Alabama facility being constructed with Mazda. And remember, a Toyota exec teased a small hot hatch for this market as well, "an answer" to the GR Yaris sold in Europe, which Car and Driver figures will be based on the Corolla.

Refreshed 'exciting' Lexus ES takes a bow in Shanghai along with RX 200t

We were expecting a refresh and that's what we got. The 2016 Lexus ES, taken to "the next level of elegance and progressive luxury." A new front fascia design goes even bolder on the spindle grille, hiding the crossmember that separated the upper and lower sections, and rimming the whole thing with satin chrome. It's flanked by new LED projector headlights with the brand's pronounced "arrowhead" DRLs, and new triangular foglights laid into a matching sharp-edged motif. In back you'll find new taillights and chrome-tipped rectangular exhaust tips. In between those two ends, the body has been stiffened and gotten more sound-deadening material. The list of exterior hues grows to ten with the addition of Amber, Nightfall Mica, Caviar, and Eminent White Pearl. A new 20-spoke wheel joins the options list for non-hybrid models, whereas hybrids get a 10-spoke design. The cabin also broadens its tonal range in a variety of materials, with seats available in Flaxen, Parchment, Stratus Gray, and Black, and trim pieces in a choice of Illustrious Piano Black, Linear Dark Mocha Wood, Espresso Bird's Eye Maple with Shimamoku ornamentation, and matte Bamboo. Other touches include a new steering wheel, an embossed pattern on the seats, a leather boot for the gearshift, and a larger TFT display in the gauge cluster. Our engine options here won't change, but China, Russia, and Taiwan will be offered a 2.0-liter, direct-injected four-cylinder designed for China's emissions scheme. A new engine was also the news with the Lexus RX 200t rocking the dais at the Shanghai Motor Show, unveiled to the world next to its ES sibling. Available in certain international markets but not in the US, the RX 200t is powered by a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder working through a six-speed automatic transmission. Lexus hasn't released its official horsepower number, but says it's going for more than 228 horsepower; in the NX 200t it gets 235 horsepower 258 pound-feet of torque. You can check out the press release below for more details. Related Video: Refreshed 2016 Lexus ES Fuses Striking Design with Refinement and Safety at Shanghai International Motor Show Lexus RX 200t Also Makes Global Debut Active Safety Technology Integrated Into Lexus Safety System+ April 19, 2015 SHANGHAI, China (April 20, 2015) - As the best-selling sedan model in Lexus' impressive stable, the ES has come to define the very essence of near luxury sedan.