Lexus LF-LC (Spy)

[superkappa125]

Secondo speculazioni di Automotive News il recente concept Lexus è destinato ad entrare in produzione.

[h=1]Report: Lexus LF-LC Concept Production-Bound[/h]

Written by:

Edward A. Sanchez [G+]on July 14 2012 12:00 PM

2

According to a report from Automotive News, the rakish Lexus LF-LC concept shown at the 2012 Detroit Auto Show is headed for the showroom in the near future. Filling the hole of the dated and heavy SC 430, the LF-LC will join the IS hardtop convertible in Lexus’ coupe lineup. At first only fielded as a concept, the overwhelming response to the concept’s debut makes it a prime candidate for production. A production version is expected within three years.

The pressure is heating up for Lexus, which for many years was comfortably on top of luxury car sales, but has recently been eclipsed by its German arch-rivals Mercedes-Benz and BMW, as well as having to fend off a resurgent Audi. The , with its leaner lines and more aggressive styling, has signaled a change in direction for the brand, which gained a reputation for making refined, feature-packed, but somewhat bland, uninvolving models. Although the high-performance Lexus IS-F has been out since the 2008 model year, and the ultra-exclusive LFA exotic debuted for 2011, the two models were notable exceptions to Lexus’ otherwise sedate lineup.

The LF-LC concept featured a front-engine, rear-drive hybrid powertrain. The specific engine was not disclosed at the Detroit debut, but may be a version of the GS’ 3.5-liter V-6.

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[lorenz82]

mi auguro con un frontale un po' rivisto e a prezzi sensati...l'LFA è abbastanza eccessiva da questo punto di vista

[Touareg 2.5]

AUSTIN, TX – Lexus confirms the LF-LC concept car will enter production, a move long rumored since the rear-wheel-drive hybrid sport coupe was introduced to much fanfare at the 2012 North American International Auto Show in Detroit.“That was (intended as) a concept car, and I think it surprised everybody, including us, when Japan said due to overwhelming response they decided to do it,” Brian Smith, Lexus’ vice president-marketing, tells WardsAuto at a recent media event here. “It’s a huge win.”

Smith declines to reveal details about the LF-LC, including when production will begin.

The concept was a studio-wide effort by Toyota's Newport Beach, CA-based designers to "advance the redefinition of Lexus with emotive, avant-garde beauty and advanced technology, yet remain within reach for premium buyers."

It’s unclear where the LF-LC will slot into Lexus’ lineup, although it likely will be built in limited numbers and priced above most of the brand’s mainstream products. It also is unknown if the production coupe will have a hybrid powertrain like the concept, as speculation has pegged the car as the successor to the non-hybrid, discontinued SC 430.

The GT Channel, a car enthusiast website, says the production car may be named the LC 550 and incorporate many of the concept’s design elements.

Even with the addition of the LF-LC, Smith says holes remain in Lexus’ lineup. Among models needed are more cross/utility vehicles, which are growing in popularity worldwide.

The Lexus RX currently is the only CUV in the luxury marque’s lineup. A number of auto makers, including Ford’s Lincoln division, have cited small CUVs as an area of growth in the luxury segment.

“In general, CUVs of any size are becoming a bigger force in the industry. So as we sell more products globally, I think that could lead to new products for us,” Smith says, declining to reveal details.

Smith says one of the brand’s two large body-on-frame SUVs, the GX and LX, could be converted to unibody platforms as the auto maker works to meet looming government-imposed fuel-economy regulations.

“In the future, if we could do a 3-row unibody (utility vehicle), I think that’s what consumers would want to see,” he says.

Smith says Lexus has no plans to introduce a diesel powertrain in the U.S., noting the auto maker is known for hybrids, which he considers a better fuel-economy solution.

Lexus’ European competitors are “sort of forced to go diesel because that’s where their skill set is,” he says. “And I think it still remains to be seen the acceptance of diesel in the U.S. It’s clearly improving, but hybrid is an easy sell.”

As for borrowing plug-in hybrid-electric vehicle technology from parent Toyota, Smith says it likely wouldn’t appeal to luxury consumers who want a no-compromise vehicle.

“For PHEVs, the target is somebody who drives shorter distances and wants to maximize the electric range, and I don’t think that’s where luxury is,” he says.

There currently are no plans for an entry-level non-hybrid car to slot in under the all-new ’14 IS sport coupe, although Smith says that remains a possibility if the market demands it. Lexus retails the compact hybrid hatchback CT 200h in the U.S.

Luxury competitors have been forced to offer entry-level vehicles to meet fuel-economy mandates, but Smith says Lexus, due to its grouping with Toyota and Scion, does not need such fuel-sippers.

However, he says Lexus will continue to monitor the trend toward small, entry-level luxury vehicles. And if there’s sufficient demand, “Lexus might go there someday.”

wardsauto

Secondo quanto ha detto Brian Smith, vice presidente del marketing di Lexus, la LF-LC sarà prodotta in serie.

[superkappa125]

Bene, spero che non deludano. La concept mi ha davvero colpito, seconda solo alla Essence nella scala delle bellezze japane.

[X82]

Erede della supersportiva alias "auto del futuro"?

[Touareg 2.5]

Il vice di Lexus Europa da per certa e ormai confermata la versione di serie della bella LF-LC:

Lexus has confirmed that it will put the stunning LF-LC concept, first seen at the 2012 Detroit Motor Show, into full production. But according to Alain Uyttenhoven, Vice President of Lexus Europe, it will be a far more accessible model than the short-production run LFA supercar and go up against the likes of the Mercedes S-Class Coupe and Maserati Gran Turismo.“It will not be a full carbon car costing £350,000. It will be - in terms of construction - a more normal car, a car than can be manufactured in larger quantities than just a batch of 500,” Uyttenhoven said. “This shows there will be more emotion from the brand.”

There’s no word on powertrain just yet, but considering the show car was powered by a 500bhp hybrid system, and 98 per cent of the car’s Lexus sells in EU countries now are hybrids, something similar to that is likely. And if rumours are to be believed, a more conventional twin-turbo V8 version could be offered alongside that.

Uyttenhoven wouldn’t be drawn on a time scale for the car, but confirmed that its design “might be very close to the concept,” and that other Lexus F models are in the pipeline: “In the UK 25 per cent of cars are sold in F Sport and a big part of customers respond positively to that. Next to LFA, RC-F will be launched at the end of this year, are we going to have more F models? Yes, and maybe coming soon.

“We are too much in the rational corner for people, what we miss is a bit of passion,” he added. “What you will see and what we will add - and the NX is the first full example of this - is that our cars in the future will polarise in terms of design.”

He also hinted that a smaller SUV to sit below the NX was under consideration: “Smaller SUVs? My answer is that it could make a lot of sense. We haven’t made an announcement yet, but it could make sense because for the European market and the Chinese market this is where a good chunk of the volume is, but we will not rush into anything.”

autoexpress

Conferma anche più modelli F e come possibile un suv da posizionare sotto la NX.

[Touareg 2.5]

Sono commosso.

WS

[superkappa125]

Roba da pippe, non ci speravo neanche più.

[MichD]

Quel cul*ne mi preoccupa un po'

[reckoner00]

Scoop: Lexus LF-LC front fascia spied for the first time