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Lexus RX gets Top Safety Pick award from IIHS

Lexus’ newly refreshed 2020 RX crossover has received a Top Safety Pick award from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. And as with many vehicles that pass IIHSÂ’s increasingly tough muster these days, thereÂ’s a caveat: It applies only to versions equipped with certain headlights. That metric was also what caused the RX to narrowly miss out on notching a Top Safety Pick+ designation, the highest possible. IIHS rated the base headlights and one of the premium headlight options — both static LED projectors — as acceptable, but it gave a poor rating to the available curve-adaptive LED headlamps, saying they created too much glare. Elsewhere, the RX aced crash testing, earning good ratings across the board. IIHS says this was the first time it put the luxury crossover through its passenger-side small overlap crash test, noting that Lexus made changes to the bumper and front-end structure to improve protection for front-seat passengers. It also gave a superior rating to the RXÂ’s vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, which avoided collisions in track tests at both 12 and 25 mph. Both the RX350 and 450h hybrid version received light refreshes for 2020, including the latest version of Lexus Safety System +. It includes new features such as daytime bicyclist detection and low-light pedestrian detection, adding to the existing pre-collision warning and adaptive cruise control. This is the fourth IIHS safety award for the brand in 2019, following Top Safety Pick+ awards for the ES, UX and NX.

2016 Lexus GS F is a .22 in a .357 world, and that might not be a bad thing

In Max Brooks' zombie epic World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War, the author envisions an apocalypse where the living dead necessitate a rethinking of societal behavior. One such change, among many, was the replacement of large-caliber, automatic weapons with smaller .22-caliber rounds and semi-automatic firearms that promise better accuracy when battling the undead. We're hoping Lexus used this as its inspiration when finalizing the numbers for its 467-horsepower, 4,000-pound GS F sedan. Lexus may not have brought a knife to a gun fight, but it's fair to say the firepower of its new GS F is lagging behind that of its German rivals. While BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi and most recently, Cadillac, are playing with force-induced V8s and power figures that are well north of 550 ponies, Lexus' kiddy table approach belies a significant weight savings against some of its rivals. At just 4,034 pounds, the Lexus is some 350 pounds lighter than the BMW M5 and nearly 400 pounds lighter than the Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG S 4Matic (that said, the Lexus is only about 100 pounds lighter than the 640-horsepower Cadillac CTS-V). We won't know if this weight advantage is enough for the 2016 GS F to outrun its competitors until we're able to drive it, though. Beyond that, Lexus has fitted the sort of tinsel typical of its high-performance models, with an even more wildly gaped fascia and vertically staggered rear exhausts. Meaty wheels and tires hide under flared wheel arches, while the cabin features far more aggressive sport seats and stylish upholstery. Take a look at our live images of the new GS F, fresh off is debut at the 2015 Detroit Auto Show.

TMG Lexus LS Sports 650 destined for production after 2015?

There's little question that Lexus has succeeded in challenging its German rivals in the luxury marketplace. And with the LFA, it has proven that Japan can build a world-class supercar. What's left blank is the space in between.
Toyota Motorsport GmbH came up with a compelling answer in the form of the Sports 650 prototype, a Lexus LS with a 5.0-liter twin-turbo V8 producing 641 horsepower and other go-fast components to challenge the likes of the Mercedes-Benz S63 AMG and Audi S8. Toyota boss Akio Toyoda was reportedly so impressed with the project that he initially ordered TMG to build ten examples - one for him and each of his nine best friends. But since the model on which the project was based has since been replaced, questions remain over the project's fate.
Georg Kacher - European correspondent for Automobile and Car magazines - recently drove the prototype and reports that "the project will now likely be transferred to the new model out in 2015." That could come down purely to speculation, but Kacher tends to get the inside line on industry news, so this particular bowl of gossip soup might not requite the usual grain of salt we otherwise might add.