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Lexus will reportedly usher in new design language with global EV

Lexus took its first steps in the electric car sector when it released the UX 300e, a compliance car developed for the Chinese and European markets. It's planning to launch a follow-up model in 2022, and the yet-unnamed EV will represent a much more serious attempt at capturing a slice of the segment in global markets than its predecessor. British magazine Autocar reported that the next electric Lexus will take the form of a crossover built on the e-TNGA platform developed to underpin a large number of Toyota and Subaru models. It will be about the same size as the NX, one of the firm's best-selling models, but it will receive a specific design inspired by the LF-Z Electrified concept (pictured) introduced in March 2021. It will retain the spindle grille, though the feature will become more of a trim piece than an air vent, and the design study's wide rear light bar is expected to make the transition from the drawing board to the showroom floor. Some of these defining styling cues will permeate other models in the 2020s.  What the low, hatchback-like body will hide remains to be seen. Autocar believes the crossover will be closely related to the production version of the Toyota bZ4X concept, which will also ride on the e-TNGA architecture. All-wheel-drive seems like a given, and Lexus will undoubtedly put a greater focus on performance and handling than its parent company. We're expecting to see some degree of automated driving, though not full autonomy. Interestingly, a steer-by-wire system may come standard, allegedly to provide a more engaging driving experience. Lexus could introduce the EV before the end of 2022, meaning it would arrive in showrooms as a 2023 model. If everything goes according to plan, it will launch a total of 10 new electrified models (including hybrids) by 2025. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Production Lexus RZ 450e leaked ahead of official debut

The Lexus RZ 450e isn't supposed to debut until April 20, but some screenshots from Japan may have revealed the production EV's look. Unsurprisingly, they look pretty close to the official concept images we've seen before. In some ways toned down for production, in other ways amped up. The images appear to have been leaked in a Japanese Discovery Channel promo, which users at RZforums.com screen captured. The screenshots show a burnt orange-colored RZ driving on a test course in Japan. The inescapable dress-up comes in the form of a black hood that emphasizes the Lexus spindle grille. Though it's been in use for over 10 years now, it remains a controversial piece of Lexus design. It works better on some cars than others, but in the case of the RZ the company seems to want to double down on accentuating its lines. On the other hand, the concept's body-colored nose seems to have been replaced with a black section where the grille might have resided on a internal combustion car. This lets the RZ maintain a semblance of grille without actually having one. The result is a more traditional-looking face than the Mirai-esque concept schnoz. It should be noted that the production car wears a black roof as well, which the concept does not. Overall, the Lexus RZ's styling departs further from the Subaru Solterra and Toyota bZ4X upon which it is based. While those two are nearly indistinguishable from one another, the Lexus has unique sheetmetal as evinced by its surfacing, C-pillar treatment, and more. Perhaps as the biggest relief to some, the RX eliminates the black cladding on the front fenders for body-colored wings. The Toyota bZ4X is powered either by a single electric motor with 201 horsepower or a dual-motor, all-wheel-drive configuration with 214 horses. Both choices use a 71.4-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery that gets, in the Japanese testing cycle, 310 miles of range in front-drive and 285 miles in all-wheel-drive. The Lexus might get a performance boost, but we won't know until April 20 at the latest. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

2022 Lexus NX touchscreen infotainment review

The all-new 2022 Lexus NX’s most important change, improvement and missed opportunity is its equally new Human Machine Interface infotainment system. It also has implications for the entire Lexus brand, because it signals the demise of the unloved Remote Touch tech interface. That such an important development arrives on one of the brand's cheapest vehicles may seem surprising, but it's consistent with the brand's product cycle: Remote Touch's first major upgrade, the infernal touchpad, actually debuted on the original NX. We didn't like it 2014 and that never changed. The new "Human Machine Interface" touchscreen isn't perfect, but it's still a vast improvement. Or rather, both touchscreen choices are vast improvements: a 9.6 unit base unit and a 14-inch widescreen upgrade included in Luxury and F Sport trims. Both share a common, all-new interface developed in the United States that will spread throughout the Lexus lineup. Regardless of size, the screen's lowermost portion is devoted to the climate controls, with physical temperature knobs sticking around along with defroster buttons. The touch icons are large enough, don't omit frequently used choices and always remain on the screen. So does the row of menu icons on the screen's left side, making it easy to go back and forth between screens. Unusually, though, there is no home screen, nor the ability to split the screen to show two sources – for instance, Google Maps on the left and radio information on the right. This would be one of the aforementioned missed opportunities, especially on the 14-inch unit, as split-screen functionality is usually a key benefit of a widescreen format. Not only do rival brands like BMW and Genesis offer this, so do the widescreen displays of Lexus Remote Touch and some Toyotas. According to Technical Communications Lead Chris Pedregon, the decision to only show one thing at once was to highlight the new natural voice command functionality and to "minimize the touch-touch-touch" of using a touchscreen. She also noted that people did not like that the old Lexus NX only had a split screen. Another Lexus representative noted that secondary information, say that radio information, can be shown in the instrument panel. That's the argument, here's the refutation. First, saying "Hey Lexus" followed by a command can be just as frustrating and/or futile as it is with any other voice recognition system.