Lexus: Engineering Amazing
#1
Lexus: Engineering Amazing
Edit - Sorry this is a repost . The other thread has a link to the mini site - I posted all the videos individually here.
First video is a commercial - the rest are informational videos I believe. Watch them all, all I can say is.... they are amazing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJTYPq0gNCo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4yXOHQVBiw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50j7SFS-mj4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTG5-S53mKc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aete8xhEeyw
I LOVE the last video ... and LOVE the new direction Lexus is going with their advertising!!! Finally they got rid of the red bows and clasical music ... they finally are showcasing their NEW TECHNOLOGY and INVENTIONS! This is the type of marketing they need to get people excited about lexus!!
First video is a commercial - the rest are informational videos I believe. Watch them all, all I can say is.... they are amazing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJTYPq0gNCo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4yXOHQVBiw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50j7SFS-mj4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTG5-S53mKc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aete8xhEeyw
I LOVE the last video ... and LOVE the new direction Lexus is going with their advertising!!! Finally they got rid of the red bows and clasical music ... they finally are showcasing their NEW TECHNOLOGY and INVENTIONS! This is the type of marketing they need to get people excited about lexus!!
Last edited by GiantsFan; 06-13-11 at 03:37 PM.
#6
Lexus Test Driver
iTrader: (10)
Great videos. I see a billboard everyday driving to work, but I didn't get a chance to see what it was all about until now. I like the way they are doing things! Not an ad to sell cars, per se, but an ad that brings more awareness and attention to the brand itself.
#7
Moderator
Lexus is definitely amazing at what they do. They move the industry forward which is great for everyone...
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#8
Lexus Fanatic
iTrader: (20)
awesome stuff!!!! bout time!
#9
Lexus Fanatic
iTrader: (3)
I really don't see any sort of new technology and high-end engineering (save for the LF-A) that sets them apart from the rest any longer, which is sad because Toyota has always been an engineering powerhouse.
For what it's worth, Lexus' sedan lineup is now quite old so the lack of technology and innovation there is simply part of the life cycle.
#10
Lexus Fanatic
iTrader: (3)
What you are saying doesn't really make sense. Lexus has 5 models in the $30,000 - $45,000 segment, where Buick's entire lineup is spread, and several others that are $45,000+...a segment where Buick does not compete at all. I'm not going to argue with you that Buick is a direct competitor to Lexus when companies like Hyundai and Toyota sell more expensive, more luxurious, more advanced cars than they do and aren't considered as much. Buick is Tier 3, Tier 2 at best right now.
Also, if Buick's recent products are considered "amazing," then I am a little concerned...
Certain Buick products are certainly relevant - LaCrosse, Enclave, Regal are all compelling choices that compete directly with certain Lexus models. There is a significant difference between models that are in competition with eachother (LaCrosse vs. ES350) and claiming that entire bands are on the same playing field (Buick vs. Lexus). Lexus has several products in the $50k+ segment and Buick has none...that alone is a serious contributing factor.
Also, if Buick's recent products are considered "amazing," then I am a little concerned...
Certain Buick products are certainly relevant - LaCrosse, Enclave, Regal are all compelling choices that compete directly with certain Lexus models. There is a significant difference between models that are in competition with eachother (LaCrosse vs. ES350) and claiming that entire bands are on the same playing field (Buick vs. Lexus). Lexus has several products in the $50k+ segment and Buick has none...that alone is a serious contributing factor.
#11
Guest
Posts: n/a
So does Audi (tons of FWD A3/A4/Q5 in the 28k-45k range) so not sure what the point is exactly? One month does not make a trend.
I take full credit for putting Buick in the luxury sales chart race. No one else wanted to give them credit. I did and people followed suit. They still offer no V-8, no RWD car, and are an Acura type brand. The Verano coming will be a car in the low 20k range. I tire of these psuedo luxury brands being compared to Lexus based that they sell cars in the same price range. Where is Buick's IS, GS, LS, GX, LX, LFA competitors?
Buick isn't relevant to Lexus outside of the ES/RX and both continue to sell well and I seriously doubt many people cross hop the two brands. Lexus is a full blown luxury brand on par with the Germans. Buick is on par with Acura. End of story
Funny how my giving Buick credit now has people taking jabs at Lexus. Buick couldn't begin to produce any ad like this, they offer minimal technology.
That is what the thread is about, Lexus engineering. We should give them praise and credit, not sure why BUick is even being discussed.
Maybe Lexus should have copied Chrysler's ad like Audi did
I take full credit for putting Buick in the luxury sales chart race. No one else wanted to give them credit. I did and people followed suit. They still offer no V-8, no RWD car, and are an Acura type brand. The Verano coming will be a car in the low 20k range. I tire of these psuedo luxury brands being compared to Lexus based that they sell cars in the same price range. Where is Buick's IS, GS, LS, GX, LX, LFA competitors?
Buick isn't relevant to Lexus outside of the ES/RX and both continue to sell well and I seriously doubt many people cross hop the two brands. Lexus is a full blown luxury brand on par with the Germans. Buick is on par with Acura. End of story
Funny how my giving Buick credit now has people taking jabs at Lexus. Buick couldn't begin to produce any ad like this, they offer minimal technology.
That is what the thread is about, Lexus engineering. We should give them praise and credit, not sure why BUick is even being discussed.
Maybe Lexus should have copied Chrysler's ad like Audi did
Last edited by LexFather; 06-14-11 at 08:36 AM.
#12
Lexus Fanatic
iTrader: (3)
I will say your last statement is correct. It's not that Lexus can't have new technology, it's just they need new products soon. And Lexus needs to start a product blitz asap.
I love how everyone here discredits the R8 saying Lamborghini did the work, but people don't realize that Audi owns 100% of Lambo, therefore they still had to develop it. Remember there are a large amount of Audi parts in the Gallardo. The R8 is further based off the Gallardo's platform.
The LF-A's engine was made using Toyota's F1 expertise. And Lexus is owned by Toyota. Same sort of situation.
I love how everyone here discredits the R8 saying Lamborghini did the work, but people don't realize that Audi owns 100% of Lambo, therefore they still had to develop it. Remember there are a large amount of Audi parts in the Gallardo. The R8 is further based off the Gallardo's platform.
The LF-A's engine was made using Toyota's F1 expertise. And Lexus is owned by Toyota. Same sort of situation.
Toyota never had any corporate parts bin to draw from so everything from the engine to the transmission to the carbon fiber weaving process were all created from scratch, in house, specifically for the LFA, and had to be tested and refined over the 10 year development process.
I'm pretty shocked at your comparison between the LF-A and the junk the XJ220 turned out to be. Lexus promised perfection with the LF-A and they delivered. The Jag turned out to be a failure. Remember that Jag promised a 6.2 V12, then gave its customers a twin-turbo V6 instead?
With the SLR, we have to remember MB owned a good portion of McLaren, so they made McLaren make the SLR. McLaren already had the carbon fiber know-how from the old F1 and they expanded upon that knowledge with the SLR.
I have no excuses for BMW. I agree with you on that. I have no idea what they're doing and why they don't have a halo supercar yet. Remember, they did have the M1 back in the day though.
I have no excuses for BMW. I agree with you on that. I have no idea what they're doing and why they don't have a halo supercar yet. Remember, they did have the M1 back in the day though.
If we go back in history, even Mercedes has had a lot of halo supercars. SLR, old Gullwing, CLK-GTR, SLK black, CLK black, SL black. Lexus has had one. This is understandable because Lexus has been around for 2? decades and Mercedes is decades old.
We could also argue that MB, Audi, BMW have nothing to prove to the world because their brands already have a long-standing pedigree with motorsports. They don't have to prov anything because they already have a reputation. Lexus had to prove to the world that they could do it, and I will say, they did it
On the idea of "well, except the LF-A," if we compare the lineups of MB/BMW/Audi and look at Lexus, it is sort of obvious how behind they have fallen. Is this still a life-cycle issue or more their reluctance to take on new technology? They have implemented DI throughout their lineup, dual-clutch transmissions, torque vectoring AWD systems, forced induction, diesels, multiple sporty fast cars (AMG, RS, //M), diff't bodystyles (A7, CLS, X6, etc) and so on. It's hard to not ask where's Lexus in all of this? They have the engineering know-how, and the money.
If we think about it, Lexus really only has like 2? cars that show how their ingenious engineering (IS-F, LF-A), but we can list a large number of them for the other three brands. MB: SLS, SLR, all the AMGs BMW: all the Ms Audi: R8, all the S/RS models
If we think about it, Lexus really only has like 2? cars that show how their ingenious engineering (IS-F, LF-A), but we can list a large number of them for the other three brands. MB: SLS, SLR, all the AMGs BMW: all the Ms Audi: R8, all the S/RS models
Consider that it wasn't very long ago that BMW and Mercedes were teetering between red and black ink on a very regular basis when it came time to earnings and profits. The upper brass in both companies literally said, "We need to make more cars with the same hardware," and then the CLS, GLK, GL, E Coupe, 5 GT, X1, 1 series, etc were all born. Further, we hear more about the CLC, GLC, 3GT, etc so BMW and Mercedes have done a good job of spreading out costs across more vehicles, most of which have all been pretty successful, and they will continue to do so.
Lexus and Audi are significantly more profitable because of their architecture and ability to share costs with larger/parent companies. In Lexus' case, two of their core products, RX and ES, are based on Camry architecture and hardware. HS and CT share lots of parts and components with Auris, Prius, etc. This is good for the bottom line and IMO, not so good for the product. Why? For BMW or Mercedes, they are concerned with spreading costs across their lineups. For Lexus (and, Audi) it's about spreading costs into larger parent companies who might loop those expenses into a huge pool...for example, Toyota's Camry platform and hardware, or for Audi, the B-whatever platform that underpins the A4, A6 and A8.
For example, for BMW, everything from the X1 to the 7 series have an 8 speed automatic available because that is how the company spreads costs out over the lineup...one or two engine blocks and trannys for every vehicle. This more or less has to be the standard for the 7 series but to share costs at the front end, it's designed and engineered so that even base products like the X1 or 1 series can utilize the same parts. In a way, you have bottom end products being built to somewhat flagship standards if you're looking at the hardware.
Lexus' production scales for powertrains and hardware are all over the map.
- GS and IS share a platform and many common parts (and LS to a lesser extent)
- ISF and LS share engines and trannys
- ES and RX share heavily with Camry, Sienna, Highlander, etc.,
- GX with 4Runner, LC Prado, Tacoma,
- LX with Land Cruiser and to a lesser extent, Tundra and Sequoia
- CT with Auris and Prius, etc.
In Lexus' case, it makes sense for the GX and LX because Toyota builds such great BOF SUVs to begin with, but they are also somewhat niche products with a pretty dedicated buyer base. For sedans and crossovers, it's less of a winning game because you're trying to sell what started life as a $19,000 Toyota Camry as a $40,000 luxury SUV or sedan. Whereas the X3 has a nice 300hp TT V6 with an 8AT, the RX will continue using Camry hardware for the forseeable future which means the same 2GR-FE engine and 6AT as a Camry LE V6.
Audi is much the same but has he ability to draw richer resources because Lamborghini and Porsche are in house.
There's a definite trade off between profitability and economies of scope or scale and BMW/Merc do it very differently from Audi/Lexus. For the sake of products, I think you could make the case that at the bottom end, they do it better than Audi and Lexus but I'm not so sure for the sake of profitability. Top end, where Lexus invests a significant amount into products like the ISF and LS, their engineering ability shines through.
I think Lexus is at a crossroads where the competition has surpassed them in several instances and much of it is technological. IMO, there will come a time in the not too distant future for products like the RX, which is the core of Lexus, that Toyota underpinnings and hardware will not be sustainable for much longer. Think about it - we're due for a new RX in 3 years and if it doesn't come packing ~320hp and an 8AT, the competition will be standing by and laughing. Can we expect those things from the Camry which is set to debut next quarter? I don't think so.
How Lexus decides to cope with these challenges remains to be seen, but there will be several new products in the next few months and years, and I think we will start to see and understand more more of their strategy in that time.
Last edited by MPLexus301; 06-14-11 at 09:13 AM.
#13
^ I heard sometime a back that the RX and ES would eventually share a new platform unique to them and no longer with the Camry... any truth or even possibility of this?
If any vehicle in the lineup that would make economic sense is here. The ES and RX are Lexus' best selling vehicles.
The IS and GS do also share platforms with the Japanese Mark X and Crown (awesome vehicles in their own right and actually in a similar price bracket despite the Toyota branding). IIRC the SC also shares it's platform with the gen2 GS.
If any vehicle in the lineup that would make economic sense is here. The ES and RX are Lexus' best selling vehicles.
The IS and GS do also share platforms with the Japanese Mark X and Crown (awesome vehicles in their own right and actually in a similar price bracket despite the Toyota branding). IIRC the SC also shares it's platform with the gen2 GS.
#14
I really hope this is true because the RX already sells so well, but it is sad to see it's based on a Camry platform. Not exactly what you want when the competition is so fierce. They can't stick with the Camry powertrain options because themselves aren't that impressive to begin with now.
BMW has turbos thru out the whole X5 lineup, torque vectoring rear diff, and countless other things. The 8AT is thru its whole lineup almost. Mercedes and Audi are basically the same. It really is a shame because I doubt the next Camry will be anything special. No turbos, no 7/8AT, etc and Lexus really needs this. Someone spending close to $50-60k on these cars doesn't want a Camry V6 in their SUV.
It would be interesting to see if the ES and RX get their own platform that is specific to both. Lower costs and they can share powertrains, etc.
I would really like Lexus to get a new DI forced induction V6 paired with a 7/8AT in the next gen RX. By the time, the 4th gen RX is out, the new X5, Q7, etc will also be out.
BMW has turbos thru out the whole X5 lineup, torque vectoring rear diff, and countless other things. The 8AT is thru its whole lineup almost. Mercedes and Audi are basically the same. It really is a shame because I doubt the next Camry will be anything special. No turbos, no 7/8AT, etc and Lexus really needs this. Someone spending close to $50-60k on these cars doesn't want a Camry V6 in their SUV.
It would be interesting to see if the ES and RX get their own platform that is specific to both. Lower costs and they can share powertrains, etc.
I would really like Lexus to get a new DI forced induction V6 paired with a 7/8AT in the next gen RX. By the time, the 4th gen RX is out, the new X5, Q7, etc will also be out.
Not to say Lexus should be complacent... but IMO the platform doesn't hold them back one bit from an engineering point of view. It's not as if RX buyers were hoping to get an M3 on stilts.
#15
I really hope this is true because the RX already sells so well, but it is sad to see it's based on a Camry platform. Not exactly what you want when the competition is so fierce. They can't stick with the Camry powertrain options because themselves aren't that impressive to begin with now.
BMW has turbos thru out the whole X5 lineup, torque vectoring rear diff, and countless other things. The 8AT is thru its whole lineup almost. Mercedes and Audi are basically the same. It really is a shame because I doubt the next Camry will be anything special. No turbos, no 7/8AT, etc and Lexus really needs this. Someone spending close to $50-60k on these cars doesn't want a Camry V6 in their SUV.
It would be interesting to see if the ES and RX get their own platform that is specific to both. Lower costs and they can share powertrains, etc.
I would really like Lexus to get a new DI forced induction V6 paired with a 7/8AT in the next gen RX. By the time, the 4th gen RX is out, the new X5, Q7, etc will also be out.
BMW has turbos thru out the whole X5 lineup, torque vectoring rear diff, and countless other things. The 8AT is thru its whole lineup almost. Mercedes and Audi are basically the same. It really is a shame because I doubt the next Camry will be anything special. No turbos, no 7/8AT, etc and Lexus really needs this. Someone spending close to $50-60k on these cars doesn't want a Camry V6 in their SUV.
It would be interesting to see if the ES and RX get their own platform that is specific to both. Lower costs and they can share powertrains, etc.
I would really like Lexus to get a new DI forced induction V6 paired with a 7/8AT in the next gen RX. By the time, the 4th gen RX is out, the new X5, Q7, etc will also be out.
Hybrid technology is a lot bigger feat than adding turbos and then having catastrophic fuel pump failures.
RX sells well because it is good car, period. BMW now shares engines with PSA and MB shares engines with Renaults, both low cost brands.
Engine sharing is not going anywhere.