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The Truth About Cars
The Truth About Cars (www.thetruthaboutcars.com) has great Lexus news, photos, videos and more
Wednesday, Nov 18
IIHS Moves Crash Test Goalposts, Pisses Off Toyota
The IIHS has released its “Top Safety Picks 2010,” and thanks in part to the addition of roof crush tests that exceed federal standards (4x vehicle weight for an “acceptable” score) , a spot of drama has ensued. Not a single Toyota, Lexus or Scion made the list, for example, causing Toyota’s...
Review: 2010 Cadillac SRX V6
Since day one, the Cadillac SRX was a desperate underdog looking to dethrone the Lexus RX: Middle America’s CUV of choice. But the SRX was a muscular macho machine and the Lexus is an overstuffed Camry Wagon. Now, with a more mundane blueprint, Cadillac believes their latest SRX utility is “...
Thursday, Nov 5
NHTSA to Toyota: Stop Lying About Floormatgate
The Brits have an expression for this situation: “When you’re in a hole, the first thing you do is stop digging.” The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) issued a statement today correcting inaccurate and misleading information put out by Toyota concerning...
Wednesday, Oct 28
Review: Lexus HS250h
Every luxury car make seems compelled to explore how low it can venture in the American market without hopelessly devaluing the brand. Mercedes no longer offers the C-Class hatchback Coupe and has shied away from offering the A- and B-Classes in the United States. BMW hasn’t offered a semi...
Thursday, Oct 22
Import Sport Sedan Comparison: Third Place: Jaguar XF
If there’s a counterpoint in this test to the GS350’s robotic rationality, it’s the Jaguar XF. If the Lexus makes perfect sense to the kind of people who see car buying as an equation to be solved, the XFR is the only choice for right-brained aesthetes. It screams sex appeal like nothing else s...
Monday, Oct 19
Lexus LS 600h L: the New Volkswagen Phaeton
Our friends over at wreckedexotics.com have hooked-up with realcartips.com (be careful when driving your exotic?). This week’s alert: luxury hybrids are a drug on the market. Hybrid Escalades are going for ten grand under sticker. Lexus dealers have been instructed to sell their remainin...
Starter Button A Factor in Runaway Lexus ES350?
Toyota has taken a massive hit to its rep, due to reports of floor mat-related unintended acceleration, and the automaker’s subsequent recall. The headline case: a fatal crash on August 28th. As The LA Times reports, a “runway” Lexus ES350 slammed into another vehicle and embankment, kil...
Thursday, Oct 1
September Sales: Honda Falls 20 Percent, Toyota Drops 13 Percent, Nissan Skids 7 Percent
The three Japanese majors saw September sales slides that were generally closer to Ford’s mild Clunker hangover than GM and Chrysler’s cliff dive belly-flop. Honda’s 20 percent overall decline was the worst of the bunch, and was led by a 30 percent drop in Acura sales. In contrast, Toyota-...
What’s Wrong With This Picture: Rebadging The Rebadge Edition
We thought the Lexus HS250h would be a cynical rebadge of the Prius with a little more power. We were wrong. The HS was marginally unique enough, but then ToMoCo went and cynically reabdged it as a Toyota and called it the Sai. Sigh. It hasn’t been confirmed for the US yet, but if it [...]
Thursday, Sep 24
Review: 2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class
I’m old enough to remember when Mercedes used the tagline “the best-engineered cars in the world,” and no one questioned it. When the 1986 W124 E-Class was introduced, Car & Driver proclaimed it “the best car in the world.” In the quarter-century since, Mercedes’ position in the autom...
Wednesday, Feb 25
Review: 2010 Lexus RX350
Euphemisms are our friends. If it weren’t for “calamari” my kids would have never tried squid. Similarly, the SUV became a more palatable version of the station wagon-- although I am not sure how the wagon became an object of scorn by my generation. I have many happy memories slouched down in t...
Tuesday, Feb 17
Daily Podcast: Extra Effort
I hopped in my Boxster and headed to the Lexus dealer yesterday. We’d agreed on a price for their ‘08 2k mile IS-F. Only a single hurdle remained: Mrs. Farago. Sam thinks I’m nuts to swap a Porsche anything for a Lexus anything. There was only one way to convince my live-in lead-footed badge snob [...]
Friday, Nov 7
TTAC Photochop: New Lexus GS MkIV
Lexus struggled for years to find its identity. Now, that the brand is done teenaging (it will turn 20 next year), we can see clear signs of maturity in its visual language. The manufacturer that had to draw its inspiration form the likes of Mercedes-Benz is now a trend setter. Lexus’ L-finess...
Tuesday, Jul 22
Daily Podcast: The Infiniti G35 Wrecked Everything
A few years ago, when my mother was car shopping for entry luxury sedans, I suggested she "just get an Infiniti G35x." I've never been wild about the G - especially when laden with AWD - but it had more power than any competitors at the time, offered the AWD, the all-important luxury badge, and...
Thursday, Jul 3
New BMW 7-Series Revealed
Without much fanfare, BMW has debuted its redesigned 7-Series sedan. A supposed riff on the svelte CS Concept, the new 7 is certainly less chunky than its 2002 - 2008 predecessor. While the outgoing generation (that's E65 or E66 to BMW folks) broke the styling mold, the 2009 model is no groun...
Thursday, May 29
Hyundai Releases Pricing Info on Genesis Lux Sedan
The rear wheel-drive Genesis sedan is Hyundai's first foray into the luxury car market. We brought you in-person pictures back in March at the NY Auto Show. Now, Hyundai has released the pricing info. For $33k you can get yourself a V6 model with a very healthy 290 horses and six speed autobox p...
Wednesday, May 21
Lexus Supercar to cost $200,000+
Edmunds' Inside Line quotes Lexus' corporate product planning manager as saying the price of the new Lexus' LS-F price will "begin with a 2." We're guessing the V10 supercar won't be $29,995. In honor of this news, I've hit up the thesaurus: brainsick, off, daft, absurd and whack. See also: d...
Wednesday, Apr 23
2008 Infiniti G35x AWD Review
When launched, the Infiniti Q45 was infinitely more desirable than Lexus's stuffy LS400. Unfortunately, Lexus had already eclipsed Mercedes as the brand Black Sea immigrants asked for by name, and BMWs remained the must-have nouveau riche accessory. Although today's M45 is best-in-c...
Monday, Apr 21
Lexus To Debut LF-A Supercar At Nurburgring Endurance Race
For those attending the 36th ADAC Zurich 24 Hour Race 2008 in May, Toyota has a treat for you. Motor Authority is reporting that a prototype racing version of the as yet to finalized LF-A uber-Lexus will be running round the 'Ring. This impresses us because any 24 Hour race is murder on a vehicl...
Monday, Apr 7
The Future of Lexus Revealed in Australia
Loose lips may sink ships, but what do they do for brands? If you're John Roca, Lexus' Australian Chief, secure in the knowledge that the brand is going to move over a million cars in a few years, you just don't care. Mr. Roca opened his yap to The Australian and had lots to say. Most interesting t...
Thursday, Mar 27
Toyota to launch Lexus in India
After Lexus' slow start in Japan, Toyota has announced plans to introduce India to the premium brand within the next two years. To that end, India's Economic Times reports that the flagship Lexus LS sedan and LX SUV will lead the way, followed closely by the RX CUV. Toyota is investing heavi...
Saturday, Mar 22
Lexus Going Nowwhere Fast in Japan
Not that the average American Lexus buyer could give a damn, but Toyota's luxury division has singularly failed to gain traction outside the U.S. market. Which is exactly the point: Americans are far less bothered by issues of provenance (i.e. or lack thereof) than any other developed automo...
Thursday, Mar 20
Hyundai Sonata and Genesis Coupe In Person
In rounding out our coverage of Hyundai's offerings in NYC, we've got shots of the facelifted Sonata and Genesis Coupe. Both are much, much better in person than in pictures. The Sonata's biggest aesthetic improvement is the interior, which goes from zero to hero. Build quality and fit and f...
Tuesday, Mar 18
Hyundai To Launch Luxury Brand; Ridiculous Name to Follow
Hyundai sales executive Young-Key Koo revealed to China Daily (via MotorAuthority) that the Korean carmaker will be spinning off a new luxury brand. The new nameplate caps Hyundai's steady upmarket climb, and could well compete with Acura, Infiniti and Lexus in the not-too-distant bu...
Saturday, Mar 15
Daily Podcast: Will Luxury Car Sales Suck?
Rising U.S. gas prices and the American mortgage meltdown has hit sales of new vehicles hard. In terms of the product mix, a lot of ink has been expended on the rapid, ongoing transition from gas-guzzling SUVs to more miserly models-- a change that's hurt the truck-heavy domestics particula...
Monday, Mar 10
TTAC Photochop: New Lexus SC
I used to detest Lexus' styling-- if you want to call it that. The SC was just one of many derivative, disgusting designs. That all changed in 2005, when the beta "L-finesse" produced the magnificent second IS. The 2007 LS revealed that the IS was no accident. (Maserati Quattroporte aside, I co...
Monday, Mar 3
Ford and Toyota Down, Honda and Mazda Up
GM and Chrysler weren't the only ones singing the blues when February's sales numbers plunked onto the e-mat. Automotive News [sub] reports Ford and Toyota also showed declines in February-- although not quite as precipitous as The General and Mopar. Ford's sales fell 6.3 percent compare...
Tuesday, Feb 19
Podcast: Nissan Sends Infiniti to Europe– and Beyond!
Infiniti is, for all intents and accounting purposes, a U.S. brand. Last year, Nissan's luxury division shifted American customers' expectations-- I mean sold brand fans 127,038 new vehicles (93,717 cars and 33,321 SUVs). And now Infiniti's heading across the pond to convince European b...
Monday, Feb 4
Import Buyers Still Shun Chevy Malibu and Caddy CTS
In January, GM Car Czar Bob Lutz stated that all of GM's new models "are getting a lot more non-GM and non-domestic conquests." As usual, the former marine aviator was flying by the seat of his pants. The numbers tell a different story. Automotive News [sub] compared fourth quarter '07 conque...
Monday, Jan 28
Daily Podcast: Audi Wants to Make You An Offer You Can Refuse
At its core, the film is about a struggle between old and new power. In precisely that fashion, Audi represents the rise of a new force in luxury." God I hate hype. I don't blame Scott Keogh, Audi's chief marketing officer, for trying to build some anticipation for Audi's Godfather-themed Sup...
Friday, Jan 25
Lexus Dealers’ New Strategy: Hang Out or Piss Off
Did I or did I not just blog that Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc. Group Vice President and Lexus General Manager Mark Templin wants his customers to "hang out" down at the dealership? I did. WardsAuto now reports that the self-same suit says his dealers should learn from its Scion brand's custome...
Tuesday, Jan 22
Lexus: You Can Check in Any Time You Like…
We're trying to create a feeling in our car dealerships more of a luxury hotel than a car dealership." This according to Lexus NA GM Mark Templin, speaking at the Automotive News [AN, sub] "world congress" (information without representation!). Templin encouraged U.S. Lexus dealers to off...
Sunday, Jan 13
A Picture Gallery is Worth a Thousand Page Views…
2009 Honda Pilot BMW ActiveHybrid BMW Advanced Diesel BMW Hydrogen7 BMW M3 BMW M6 BMW X6 Ford Ford Explorer America Concept Ford F-150 Ford Flex Ford Mustang Ford Verve Concept Honda Accord Lexus Lexus LF-A Roadster Lexus LX570 Mazda Nissan GT-R Toyota Corolla XRS Toyota Sequoia
Tuesday, Dec 4
Hyundai Genesis: Let There Be 375 Horses!
Hyundai is slowing releasing details about its upcoming luxury sedan , called the Genesis. What we already knew is that it's rear-wheel drive, and that Hyundai benchmarked the BMW 5-Series. Let's hope they leave out the too-small back seat and spine-jarring ride quality. An iDrive knock o...
Friday, Nov 16
Infiniti G37 Coupe Review
Lexus, Infiniti, Acura, Cadillac, Lincoln. Any automaker with dreams of glory in the upscale midsize sports sedan market has tried to beat the BMW 3-Series-- and lost. Too big, too small, too crude, too expensive, too front-wheel drive, too ugly, no stick. Of all the contenders, only Infin...
Wednesday, Oct 31
Lexus Follows The Crowd
Audi has the A3. Mercedes has the B-class. BMW has the 1-series. And now Lexus is jumping on the small car bandwagon. According to Redbook (the Aussie website, not the thirty-something fashion mag), Toyota's upmarket car brand is dumping plans to build a RAV-4-based SUV in favor of crafting t...
Tuesday, Oct 30
More Brandicide: MINI’s mini-SUV
Someone go get my Clonazepam. MINI has announced that it's building an SUV-type product, and cyber-mag Winding Road has the shots to prove it. Forget market share, ignore the ever-present push to increase sales numbers at any cost. The MINI Cooper was specifically, consistently and persi...
