Once again, Lexus Australia’s chief executive John Roca has spilled the goods on the future of Lexus, this time in regards to the oft-rumored sub-compact:

Devised to take on the premium European small cars exemplified by the BMW as well as the Audi A3, the forthcoming compact is understood to be in co-development with the next-generation IS due about 2012.

The sub-IS model is priority number one at Lexus at the moment as it seeks to weather the economic storm, lure more younger buyers and move in the general downsizing direction of the luxury car market. The fact that there will be a hybrid version of the BS leads to the conclusion that a hybrid IS might also see the light of day when the all-new version arrives.

Lexus has even put the sub-RX luxury SUV (to be based on the LFXh concept) on hold as it focuses on bringing the BS to market.

“At one stage we were discussing the option of a vehicle below the RX, but at the time we felt that the priority would be for a car below the IS and not the RX,” Lexus Australia chief executive John Roca told GoAuto last week. Mr Roca promised that the C-Premium would not be a restyled next-generation Toyota Corolla, or share major mechanical components with it.

“It will be a dedicated Lexus car, that I am certain of,” he said. “Whether it is rear-wheel drive, that has not been determined yet either. Frankly a car of that size, a front-wheel drive car in that category would be viable. But we are looking at a specific Lexus product.”

There’s plenty of other information in the article, including the fact that Toyota has yet to confirm that this vehicle even exists. Not exactly a ringing endorsement, but this is hardly idle gossip or an unexpected development.

There’s no question, this model should be a priority, in fact, given the excitement and growth of the segment, I would be surprised if Lexus waited until the 2012 model year. A sub-compact equipped with hybrid technology is an absolute winner, especially if the engine is a V6.

[Source: GoAuto Image from: Paul Tan]

On the eve of the new 2010 Lexus RX debut, I thought it would be a good time to reach back and take a look at the introduction of the original RX, including some footage of the Lexus SLV concept, courtesy of Motor Week:

Would the RX have been as successful with that trunk spoiler on the production model? Too bad we’ll never know.

(The new 2010 RX debuts tomorrow at 1:20PST, so expect a torrent of info throughout the day.)

Volkswagen website VWVortex isn’t the first place you’d expect to find information on the upcoming Lexus dedicated hybrid, but the Internet’s a strange place. Regardless, a member of their forum came across this page out of Japanese magazine Mag-X, featuring a rendition of the now-named Lexus HS 250h (click for a closeup):

Other information gleaned from the Japanese article is the HS 250h will be powered by the 2.4L hybrid engine from the Camry hybrid and will have the 2010 RX i-Drive competitor and the common LED lights found in all the new Lexus hybrids.

I have doubts that this is the actual exterior styling, which basically looks like a Prius/ES mashup. We do know that this new Lexus hybrid will be introduced at the Detroit auto show, plus there’s also an on/off rumor that another hybrid will also be announced. Luckily, it’s only a couple months away…

[Souce: VWVortex via Motor Authority]

I have to post this link to Autoblog’s photo set of the Project GS on the floor at SEMA — there’s always a concern seeing a vehicle outside of the highly manicured official photo environment, but the GS doesn’t disappoint. Take a look at this rear close-up:

Looks almost cartoonish to me, I love the handmade look of the matte black paint. I have to say, I’m sold on this car. It’s just awesome.

[Source: Autoblog]

The eagerly awaited Project GS by Five Axis has been unveiled, and it’s quite handedly the best looking GS I’ve ever seen. Just take a minute and click through each of these images to get an up-close-and-personal look:

From the extensive widebody conversion right down to the Five:AD R5:F onyx rims, the Project GS hits all the right notes, so much that I barely notice the orange accents — and when I do notice them, they look good…You know what, I love this concept so much I’m going on a photo hunt. More soon.

Click through for a full modification list.

Update: I found some desktop-size images of the Project GS, check out the added gallery.

Read the rest of this entry »

According to The Car Connection, the next-generation Lexus RX will be making its debut at next month’s Los Angeles Auto Show. When you consider this alongside the Lexus SEMA lineup, November’s looking to be a big month for Lexus.

Also, after confirming it with three separate sources, I can now able to say with certainty that the new RX 350 will be in US dealerships starting February 2009. This has been the traditional release month for RXs, and we can expect the new generation to follow in the same footsteps.

What an exciting week!