2009 Lexus Rx350 on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Lexus ES 350 vs. Lincoln MKZ

Despite a lineup of well-received crossovers on the Lexus showroom, the midsize Lexus ES 350 four-door continues to appeal to consumers. Many of those customers are older, so you won't see marketing budgets directed toward them; no one, other than the pharmaceutical companies, is spending money marketing to baby boomers. But a midsize, moderately expressive sedan with an easy buying experience and almost coddled ownership still has its fans, and the Lexus ES 350 delivers those attributes in spades. We'd like to say Lincoln's MKZ (pictured above) is hot on the Lexus' heels, but Lincoln's lineup remains a work in progress. The Fusion-based MKZ offers a nice mix of attributes, but Lincoln's dealer count has shrunk, and many Lincoln outlets are located within – or immediately adjacent to – Ford stores. If a Fusion-based Lincoln credibly aspires to Lexus-like attributes, the same won't be said for the Ford showrooms. Here are the offerings: The Lexus ES 350 team has, over the sedan's several variations, worked hard to separate the volume Lexus from Toyota's similar Camry, and in 2017 that separation might actually be quantifiable. To its credit, the ES 350 (pictured at left) comes with but one non-hybrid drivetrain, a 3.5 liter V6 connected to a six-speed automatic driving the front wheels. With it, the ES 350 delivers a motoring experience bordering on the sublime. With the exception of its now-predictable big mouth grille, the balance of the ES sheetmetal is responsibly muted, inoffensive to the eye and should wear well through the typical payment cycle. Access to its moderately upscale interior is easy, and once inside you'll find expansive room (some 100 cubic feet) for four, along with adequate space for the occasional fifth. With a curb weight of just 3,600 pounds, the V6's 268 horsepower and 248 pound-feet of torque is responsive, and that's evident in the four-door's 7-second sprint to 60. This isn't a track day or autocross weapon, but if part of your day is a stressful commute, this will make it less so. With a base – albeit well appointed – spec, the ES 350 retails for just under $40,000. We would order ours in Atomic Silver, even if "atomic" seems so last-century. If you can forget – for a minute – the Matthew McConaughey connection, know that Lincoln's MKZ is fully credible as a midsize, mid-fashion sedan. If you like your Fords with more expressive interiors and additional driving refinement, there's a lot to like in Lincoln's MKZ.

Lexus TX three-row SUV coming in about 18 months

When we drove the 2018 Lexus RX 350L for the first time, we called it "generally a far superior vehicle to the GX," but also a "seemingly quick-and-dirty solution" to address the chasm in the Lexus lineup: Lack of a large, three-row SUV on a unibody chassis to counter competition like the Mercedes-Benz GLS and BMW X7. Lexus die-hards were asked to accept the compromises of the silken RX L or parachute into the truckish LX (because the GX is shorter than the RX L). Automotive News reports there's a patch coming. Sources told the outlet a model called the Lexus TX will put three-row seating for adults on a unibody architecture, debuting about six months after the three-row Toyota Grand Highlander that's expected in the middle of 2023. Bolstering that report, Toyota applied to trademark the TX name in 2009, then suspected to be a Mercedes-Benz GLK fighter below the Lexus RX. Toyota followed that up with applications for TX 350 and TX 500h in 2020. The Grand Highlander is the key piece, the TX being Lexus' version of the Toyota. We don't know how much length either vehicle will bring to showroom floors. The 2022 Highlander is 194.9 inches long, the RX 350L stretches two inches beyond that to 196.9 inches. The 2022 Toyota Sequoia is 205.1 inches long, nearly five inches longer than the 2022 Lexus LX. That gives Toyota a hair over eight inches to play with — comparing the RX L with the Sequoia, and assuming the all-new 2023 Sequoia doesn't break the measuring tape — if it doesn't want to present the Grand Highlander as merely a unibody Sequoia. Both new three-row models will be built at Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indiana, in the process of an $803 million makeover "in preparation to introduce two all-new, three-row SUVs." When the automaker announced the investment in the Princeton, IN facility, it said both models would offer seating for up to eight people, hybrid powertrains, "a semi-automated driving system — which will allow for hands-free driving in certain conditions — a remote parking system allowing the driver to park and unpark from outside the vehicle using a smartphone, and a digital key that turns a user's smartphone into their key and allows them to share it digitally." Lexus dealers no doubt have their calendars circled. The chairman of the brand's National Dealer Advisory Council told AN the TX "can't come fast enough." Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

2022 Lexus LS 500 gets subtle changes, the same price

The Lexus LS 500 glides into 2022 with a modicum of changes. The most notable update for new owners will be the retuned suspension, spring and damper rates adjusted to provide a more comfortable ride and anti-roll bars enlarged to tamp down body roll. On sedans optioned with the adjustable-ride-height function, Lexus said that feature has been "enhanced" to make getting in and out even easier. Output from the 3.5-liter twin-turbo V6 doesn't change from 416 horsepower and 442 pound-feet of torque, but a trio of tweaks are said to upgrade the experience. Reshaped tops on the pistons deliver "quiet operation when cold" — as if engine noise has ever been a Lexus problem — and lower emissions. New wastegate control logic means better turbo efficiency. And the 10-speed automatic transmission gets recalibrated shift mapping to keep the engine in the meatier part of the power band. The other changes for every LS 500 trim start with Lexus making its Safety System+ 2.5 standard across the range. This adds active safety features like Pre-Collision System (PCS), Frontal Collision Warning (FCW), Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB), Pedestrian Detection and Bicyclist Detection. Inside, Lexus says the infotainment system "provides additional control options for driver and passenger," without going into what those are. Those who option the Luxury or Executive Packages can get a new foil interior treatment called Haku. This is derived from 400-year-old the Japanese art of decorative gold leaf, the most well known being Kanazawa-haku, the leaf made by hammering gold until it was one or two ten-thousandths of a millimeter thin. Yes, you read that thickness correctly. The foil is so delicate that Lexus says it has to be applied by hand. Lastly, the 2,400-watt, 23-speaker Mark Levinson stereo can be optioned on the entry-level LS for the first time. Prices don't change from the current MSRPs for the 2021 sedan, the base LS 500 with rear-wheel drive starting at $76,000 and adding a $1,075 destination charge for $77,075 total. The rear-driven LS 500 F Sport starts at $80,675. Optioning either with AWD costs another $3,250. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. 2021 Lexus LC 500 Convertible Walkaround