Lexus News: Rumorpile: Next Lexus IS To Be "Revolutionary"

[William Maley]

William Maley

Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com

July 10, 2012

Lexus is in the middle of refreshing their entire lineup, giving them a bold look and some sport. So far, Lexus has unveiled the new GS and ES, and a refreshed RX. Coming up is the LS and following behind is the next IS.

''When you're a challenger brand and you're No.4 [in sales], you can't afford to be evolutionary,'' said Lexus Australia corporate marketing manager, Peter Evans to Drive.com.au.

So what are we expecting with the new IS? Exterior design will have Lexus’ now trademark spindle grille wrapped in a coupe-like sedan.The interior will have a richer and more upmarket feel.

As for the next IS' base, speculation points towards a modified version of the Toyota GT86/Subaru BRZ/Scion FR-S platform. This would help spread development costs for Toyota.

Source: Drive.com.au, Motor Authority

William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster.

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[smk4565]

It will no doubt be ugly, and probably not a very good sports car, since Lexus never figures out how to make something sporty. But if they start with the GT86 chassis it should be light, if they use the 8-speed as the base transmission and turbo the the 2.5L four and 3.5L V6 they could have some good powertrains. But my guess is we see carryover engine and transmission and they'll be sunk.

[G. David Felt]

Revolutionary would truly be new if Lexus actually broke from their stale conservative design language.

[Drew Dowdell]

The new ES was supposed to blow the Lacrosse out of the water too....

[Robert Hall]

The new ES was supposed to blow the Lacrosse out of the water too....

I was surprised to see the LaCrosse has been outselling the ES...I had assumed it was the other way around...I rarely see LaCrosses (or any Buicks) compared to Lexuses, esp. the ES..

Edited July 10, 2012 by Cubical-aka-Moltar

[smk4565]

Well the ES is nicer than the Lacrosse, but the ES also costs more than a CTS. So it should be nicer than a Buick and a $37k car should sell less than a $30k car (in similar segments). Plus the current ES has been around since 07 or so, it is pretty stale. Although the 2013 car will look and drive in a stale fashion anyway.

[smk4565]

I think they will Toyota parts bin together the new IS, that is why it won't be as good as the Germans, and it till be styled to look like every other Toyota, with chrome on front so you can tell it is a Lexus and not a Camry. This is why the Germans are good, the 3-series isn't pieced together from a parts bin, it is designed with purpose. This car will be a Scion chassis, Camry transmission, corporate V6, Avalon styling, etc It is just a mishmash of mediocre parts.

[Drew Dowdell]

The Es is not at all 10k nicer than a Lacrosse.

[Z-06]

I think they will Toyota parts bin together the new IS, that is why it won't be as good as the Germans, and it till be styled to look like every other Toyota, with chrome on front so you can tell it is a Lexus and not a Camry. This is why the Germans are good, the 3-series isn't pieced together from a parts bin, it is designed with purpose. This car will be a Scion chassis, Camry transmission, corporate V6, Avalon styling, etc It is just a mishmash of mediocre parts.

You mean just like Audis, Bentleys and Porsches are?

[smk4565]

The Es is not at all 10k nicer than a Lacrosse.

Maybe not $10k nicer, but it is nicer. Lexus build quality, as far as panel gaps and leather/wood quality is better than what Buick has. The ES and RX are all they sell since they do offer entry level luxury that appeals to people that don't care about driving dynamics, in those 2 cars cases, people over 70 and soccer moms. The rest of the Lexus lineup is a decade behind the Germans.

[smk4565]

I think they will Toyota parts bin together the new IS, that is why it won't be as good as the Germans, and it till be styled to look like every other Toyota, with chrome on front so you can tell it is a Lexus and not a Camry. This is why the Germans are good, the 3-series isn't pieced together from a parts bin, it is designed with purpose. This car will be a Scion chassis, Camry transmission, corporate V6, Avalon styling, etc It is just a mishmash of mediocre parts.

You mean just like Audis, Bentleys and Porsches are?

Audi interiors are top notch, and their cars offer good fuel efficiency considering how quick some of them are. Porshce 911 Turbo S 0-60 in 2.7 seconds and 25 mpg, and Bentley is Bentley. There is no mishmash of mediocre parts in those cars. They have Lamborghini and Bugatti too, that group of brands is pretty good. Where as Lexus is all Toyota has, and most of the Lexus line is mechanically a twin to a Toyota product. Personally I don't care for Audi, Porsche or Bentley, but they are not parts bin junk for $35-45k like most Japanese and American luxury brands try to build.

[Z-06]

I think they will Toyota parts bin together the new IS, that is why it won't be as good as the Germans, and it till be styled to look like every other Toyota, with chrome on front so you can tell it is a Lexus and not a Camry. This is why the Germans are good, the 3-series isn't pieced together from a parts bin, it is designed with purpose. This car will be a Scion chassis, Camry transmission, corporate V6, Avalon styling, etc It is just a mishmash of mediocre parts.

You mean just like Audis, Bentleys and Porsches are?

Audi interiors are top notch, and their cars offer good fuel efficiency considering how quick some of them are. Porshce 911 Turbo S 0-60 in 2.7 seconds and 25 mpg, and Bentley is Bentley. There is no mishmash of mediocre parts in those cars. They have Lamborghini and Bugatti too, that group of brands is pretty good. Where as Lexus is all Toyota has, and most of the Lexus line is mechanically a twin to a Toyota product. Personally I don't care for Audi, Porsche or Bentley, but they are not parts bin junk for $35-45k like most Japanese and American luxury brands try to build.

You mean just like a 25K VW GTI doesn't share the engine with a 50K Audi A5? You mean how a Phaeton doesn't share its components with a Bentley? You mean how the Tuareg is not based on the same platform with Cayenne and Q7? Should the list go on?

[smk4565]

You mean just like a 25K VW GTI doesn't share the engine with a 50K Audi A5? You mean how a Phaeton doesn't share its components with a Bentley? You mean how the Tuareg is not based on the same platform with Cayenne and Q7? Should the list go on?

Golf GTI (widely thought to be the best hot hatch of the past 25 years by the way) doesn't have the 8-speed transmission or chassis or interior trim of an A4 or A5. The 2.0T engine is shared, but every automaker shares engines. They do platform share on SUVs, but the Touareg is also more expensive than an SRX, RX350 or MKX. So they aren't really starting from a mediocre product, and the Cayenne and Q7 have different engines and transmission.

I'm not saying VW doesn't share stuff across the range, but for the most part their luxury brands have plenty of exclusive equipment and it is differentiated from the other brands. They aren't doing what Lexus, Lincoln and Acura do, and take a $25k family sedan and change nothing mechanically and just change the interior and front and rear fascias and call it a luxury car.

That being said, I wouldn't buy an Audi, they aren't as good as BMW or Mercedes.