2009 Lexus Gs350 Premium 2wd Sedan 4-door 3.5l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2020 Lexus LX 570 Sport Package is sporty like tube socks

The Lexus LX is enormous, square, old, and expensive. It is also very luxurious, and now it has a sporty version, with Lexus announcing the Sport Package for the 2020 LX 570. But you can only get it on the three-row trim, the least jazzy of the bunch. The styling makeover adopts a sport grille, which means an ornate mesh instead of slats in the spindle opening, and a new lower portion that appends parallelogram intakes at the corners. Not only do the vents appear to be non-functional, they look like aftermarket afterthoughts. The sides get body-colored mirrors with chrome accents, while in there's a tweaked lower rear valance. Inside, leather-trimmed seats come in either Black, Cabernet, or exclusive Moonlight White, under a black headliner. If our numbers are correct, Lexus has bumped 2020 LX prices up by $150 across the admittedly small board. The base, two-row model will start at $86,380. Assuming the destination charge holds steady at $1,295, that makes for a total of $87,675. The three-row will need $92,675. Lexus Safety System+ comes standard, with assistance features such as Pre-Collision System with Pedestrian Detection, Lane Departure Alert, Intelligent High-Beam headlamps, and adaptive cruise control.  When the range goes on sale in September, the LX 570 with the Sport Package will cost $100,595. That seems like a weighty chunk for minor ornaments; however, the Sport Package automatically adds the Luxury Package, which adds features like heated and ventilated seats, four-zone climate control, LX projector door lamps, and a la carte options like the 19-speaker Mark Levinson audio and the 21-inch wheels. Optioning a 2019 model with to the same spec comes to $97,935, so the Sport Package comes to $2,310 after subtracting the $150 price increase. That also seems like a lot, considering the Luxury Package already provides the option of Cabernet seats. But the LX is a special kind of beast. Any truck that can run with a multi-terrain system mode called Mogul instead of Snow doesn't have to live by the same rules as other terrestrial rigs. That's what you can do when you're a dinosaur that "packs in a lot of charm."

Lexus NX, BMW i3 to get Super Bowl commercials

At this point last year, we'd been getting news on automotive-focused Super Bowl commercials for more than two months. The teasers hadn't come out yet, but manufacturers lined up for the super-expensive spots were making their intentions known. This year? Almost nada, until this week. BMW has said it will air a 60-second spot promoting the i3 during the first quarter of the game, the Munich firm returning to The Big Game after a four-year absence. BMW says, "Big ideas like the BMW i3 take a little getting used to, and the creative idea surrounding our spot will play on this analogy." We say that pitching a tiny range-extended hatchback during the beer-iest American sports orgy of the year should make for some neat commentary afterward. Lexus is putting its new NX crossover in the second Super Bowl commercial it's ever aired, eschewing the glitter of celebrities and glamor for a straight-shooting spot and the tagline, "Be seen, be heard, make some noise." Joining those two are Kia, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan and Toyota. The six confirmed carmakers are down from eleven last year, when car spots made up a quarter of the total ad time. The price to do business for 30 seconds this year: reportedly around $4.5 million, up a stacks from last year's $4 million. You can watch the Lexus commercial in the video above, and beneath that, the BMW press release below has a bit more information on its effort. BMW to Advertise All-Electric BMW i3 during Super Bowl XLIX. The all-electric BMW i3 is featured in a 60-second spot during Super Bowl XLIX on Sunday, February 1, 2015. Woodcliff Lake, NJ – January 15, 2015... Today, BMW announced plans to feature the all-electric BMW i3 in a 60-second spot during Super Bowl XLIX on Sunday, February 1, 2015. After a 4-year hiatus, BMW will be returning to the big game with a commercial during the first quarter. "As one in three Americans will tune in to watch the Super Bowl, we are thrilled to use this platform to educate viewers on the importance of electric mobility," said Trudy Hardy, Vice President of Marketing, BMW of North America. "Big ideas like the BMW i3 take a little getting used to, and the creative idea surrounding our spot will play on this analogy." BMW i is BMW's forward-looking and sustainable brand dedicated to solving many of the mobility challenges faced by the world's most densely populated cities. The BMW i3 is the first of the BMW i vehicles constructed from the ground up primarily of carbon fiber.

J.D. Power: Mini, Lexus again offer most satisfying sales experience

JD Power has released its annual Sales Satisfaction Index Study, and once again Mini and Lexus have taken top honors. Overall, buyers are more satisfied with the auto-buying sales experience than they were last year, with those surveyed reporting an average score of 664 points on a 1,000-point scale. That's up from 648 in 2011. Dealer satisfaction also increased by five points over last year as well.
All told, Lexus brought home an index score of 737, which was high enough to put it atop the luxury brands for the second year in a row. JD Power says Infiniti came in second in that category with a score of 728 and Cadillac rounded out the podium with it's rating of 725. Speaking of Infiniti, that brand saw the single largest jump in sales satisfaction of any brand on the survey, popping up 52 index points over 2011.
Among mass-market brands, Mini ranked highest with a score of 712, followed closely by Buick with 706 and GMC farther down the line with 683. You can check out the full press release below for more information.