One Owner Lexus Certified Navigation Backup Camera Awd Leather Sunroof on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2019 Lexus UX 200 and UX 250h: Full details and specs from Geneva

Lexus is perhaps overdue to produce a small luxury crossover, in the vein of the hot-selling Buick Encore (which is a tiny bit smaller). And like the Buick Encore, it has a lower-tier brand counterpart: the Toyota C-HR, which is to the UX as the Chevy Trax is to the Encore. But enough about the Buick. What's the 2019 Lexus UX all about? For one, it is almost as outre as the C-HR, which is perhaps more radical because it's a lowly Toyota. Graced with a spindle grille and interior fixings that are influenced by, Lexus says, traditional Japanese crafts, it appears to be every contemporary Lexus trope combined into one compact vehicle — just 177 inches long in total, or about 5 inches shorter than a contemporary Corolla. That'll be good for the urbanites the UX is intended to woo, who need to park in tight spots. For wider, more open spaces, there are two powertrain choices. The 2019 Lexus UX 200 is one of the first applications of the new Dynamic Force Engine, a 2.0-liter inline-four with extreme thermal efficiency: 40 percent, Toyota claims. Read more about that engine (and the Direct Shift CVT, which the UX 200 also utilizes). The bottom line is, for the driver, the engines will be more fuel efficient and produce 168 horsepower, which represents an increase of 24 horsepower over the C-HR platform-mate, a sizable jump. The Direct Shift CVT should prove to be a more important improvement, offering more natural response when starting off from a stop. Anyone with CVT experience knows that this isn't a strong suit of that transmission type, even with years of attention paid to refining the experience. It's nice to see the sort of clever, driver-focused engineering that created the bizarre Lexus LC "10-speed" found in the LC 500h, which uses an e-CVT and a conventional automatic. It sounds strange and complex, but it works beautifully. We expect Direct Shift CVTs to be a serious improvement over the company's e-CVTs, and can't wait to test this aspect of the UX 200. The UX 250h snags the Dynamic Force engine and slaps a new hybrid system into it. Lexus expects the total output to be about 176 horsepower, which takes into account a rear axle electric motor (which makes the UX 250h all-wheel drive). That rear motor can accept up to 80 percent of available power at up to 43 miles per hour. It's not clear from the specs provided if the gasoline engine output differs from the UX 200.

Volvo, Kia and BYD duke it out in the finals for World Car of 2024

Three electric vehicles — none produced by an American manufacturer — will compete next month for the title of 2024 World Car of the Year, it was announced Monday. The finalists are the Kia EV9, the Volvo EX30 and the BYD Seal (shown above). The latter two are built in China. The three top finalists in five other categories were also named at the Geneva Motor Show in Switzerland. The winners in all six categories will be revealed live during an awards ceremony at the New York International Auto Show on March 27. This year marks the 20th year of the World Car Awards and the partnership with the New York show. Besides car of the year, the other finalists are: Electric vehicle: BMW i5, Kia EV9, Volvo EX30; Luxury car: BMW 5 Series/i5, Mercedes Benz E-Class, Mercedes Benz EQE SUV; Performance car: BMW M2, BMW XM, Hyundai Ionia 5 N; Urban car: BYD Dolphin, Lexus LBX, Volvo EX30; World Car Design: Ford Bronco, Ferrari Purosangue, Toyota Prius. Only Ford among U.S. companies has an entry in the final selections, and only in one category, design, for the Bronco. BMW has four vehicles in the finals, Volvo has three, Kia and Mercedes have two each. BYD from China has two entries as well. The Seal went on sale in in its home market in 2022 and is now available in most of the rest of the world. The BYD Co. (which stands for Build Your Dreams) has surpassed Tesla to become the worldÂ’s biggest maker of electric vehicles, and has its sights set on the U.S. The selection process for World Cars involves 100-plus automotive journalists from 29 countries who vote, as they review and test-drive the eligible vehicles for the 2024 awards. Their journey is captured virtually on World Car TV. Design/Style Geneva Motor Show BMW Ferrari Ford Hyundai Kia Lexus Mercedes-Benz Toyota Volvo Best Cars World Car of the Year

Genesis, Kia, Lexus EVs earn spots on the IIHS Top Safety Picks+ list

A trio of 2023 electric vehicles — the Hyundai Ioniq 6, Lexus RZ, and Genesis Electrified GV70 — have just earned the Top Safety Pick+ rating by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The prestigious award from the IIHS requires that the cars and SUVs achieve top scores in a number of crash tests and that they have an “Advanced” or “Superior” front crash avoidance system that activates to help inattentive drivers prevent vehicle or pedestrian crashes. Previous selections for the award among EVs have included the Rivian R1T/R1S, Kia EV6, Hyundai IONIQ 5, and Tesla Models 3/Y. To earn the “+” designation, the agency stipulates that headlights rated “Acceptable or Good” must be standard across all trims, and that a front crash prevention system that earns Advanced or Superior ratings in both the daytime and nighttime vehicle-to-pedestrian evaluations be available. The GV70 earned “Advanced” ratings in both the daytime and nighttime vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention evaluations. The Ioniq 6 and the Lexus RZ earned “Superior” ratings in these two tests. “To be environmentally friendly, our vehicles and our cities also need to be pedestrian-friendly,” said IIHS President David Harkey. “All three of these vehicles have standard front crash prevention systems designed to protect pedestrians both during the day and at night, when most fatal pedestrian crashes happen.” Overall in its latest list, the IIHS named 51 cars in the “Top Safety Pick+” grouping, and 25 in the secondary Top Safety Pick tier. ThatÂ’s down from 101 total award-winning models last year, likely because the organization has implemented its tough new side-impact test and is also testing for night-time pedestrian detection for collision warning and prevention systems. The IIHS is one of two major automotive safety rating organizations, along with the federal government's National Highway Transportation Safety Administration. IIHS is a private organization funded by insurance companies. By the Numbers Genesis Kia Lexus Green Automakers Insurance Safety Electric