Hey, just writing what I read.

 

Maybe, it will have two suicide doors..

 

Toyota to add hybrids in U.S.
3 light trucks are expected to join the Prius for 2005


LOS ANGELES -- Toyota Motor Corp., already the industry leader in hybrid-electric vehicles with three in production, is poised to add three more to its U.S. lineup for the '05 model year. It also is studying the feasibility of a V-8 hybrid for its Lexus Division.

The automaker is preparing to add hybrid versions of the Highlander sport wagon and Sienna minivan to the U.S. lineup, Toyota sources said at a media event here last week.

The two vehicles would join the redesigned Prius sedan, to go on sale in October, and a previously announced hybrid Lexus RX 330, to be called the RX 400H when it goes on sale next spring as a 2005 model.

In a June interview in Tokyo, Toyota President Fujio Cho said the automaker was preparing to double its hybrid-vehicle lineup to six by 2006 by adding SUVs. In addition to the Prius, which has sold 140,000 units worldwide since its 1997 launch, Toyota sells hybrid versions of the Estima minivan and Crown luxury car only in Japan.

The redesigned Prius is priced at $20,480, including destination, unchanged from the old model. A five-door hatchback that has the interior space of a mid-sized sedan, it is expected to average combined city and highway fuel economy of about 55 mpg, up from 48 mpg for the current version.

Toyota expects to sell 36,000 Priuses a year in the U.S. market and 12,000 RX 400Hs. Sales of the current Prius for the six months through June are off 1.8 percent from a year earlier to 9,865.

Dave Hermance, executive engineer for environmental engineering for the Toyota Technical Center, also said here that the Camry, the best- selling car in the United States, could get a hybrid powerplant.

The RX 330, Highlander and Sienna share architecture that is based on the Camry's platform, although the sedan's packaging is different from that of the larger vehicles.

Eventually, all models

The possibility of a hybrid Camry, Toyota's bread-and-butter sedan, dovetails with suggestions by senior executives that the automaker eventually could offer hybrids as a powertrain option on all of its mainstream models.

"It's all a question of resources," Hermance said. "Every time you want to make a hybrid, you have to pull engineers away from other projects."

Toyota also is researching the feasibility of mating hybrid technology with a V-8, said Shinichi Matsumoto, project general manager for Toyota's electric and hybrid powertrain development group.

A hybrid V-8 powertrain would give Lexus a powerful alternative to the V-12s used by BMW and Mercedes-Benz without the V-12's gas-guzzling consequences, Matsumoto said.

"The direction of hybrid technology is to improve performance while improving the eco-factor," said Masao Inoue, chief engineer for the redesigned Prius. "You can apply it to a compact, a midsize, or a sports car. Any engine can be hooked up."

 

Humm. GS with a Hybrid V8, very nice.

If people are not getting the picture yet, take a look where Toyota is going, it isn't towards the gas guzzling v12's.

Why not? Because they don't have to.

From what I know about electric motors, they can produce insane amounts of torque INSTANTLY, no wait, no rpm's, instant torque.

Ever been to a steel processing plant? I have seen DC cranes hoist massive steel coils that are as tall as me and 3-4ft wide, they lifted them effortlessly 10-20 feet in the air with no hesitation.

That kind of instant TQ may not work so well in a automobile so maybe this is why the AWD option may be pushed with the future hi-performance hybrids. How can the Hybrid RX do 5.5 0 to 60? With that kind of instant TQ on a AWD vehicle, it will launch!

 

Personally, you can count me out of ever wanting a hybrid - the electromagnetic flux on those babies is unreal. Like living with a high tension power line right over your head. Not for me. There are so many ways to get cancer these days, why add one more?


PS - yea, I know, studies are in-conclusive but still....

 

Really nothing very big or ominous. As we are talking about the next generation GS we have had people posting who do (or have) owned these cars and people who haven't owned either a GS or any Lexus. So, we have at least two different viewpoints. Those from people who I assume are posting here letting us know what Lexus would have to do to get them out of their current preferred marque. And input from people who have already bought a Lexus, and in most cases a GS, saying what they expect to see. Sometimes they are the same, sometimes not, but Lexus has both tasks ahead of it. To try and keep current owners loyal and to try attract more owners.

Keeping current owners loyal actually looks like it will take evolutionary development and keeping things not very changed. As for shooting for the merc or bimmer customer, I am not sure that is too high a priority for Lexus. Personal opinion is that if merc went to number one on the JD Power reliability survey for new and used cars, things would really shake up. As it is, merc and bimmer offer what they offer (with their brand loyalty) and Lexus offers what they offer. So I just like to keep in mind which opinion is being voiced, that's all. The redesigned E may not have hit a home run with me but it was definitely improved. I just can't figure out why someone was able to get $2500 off on an E500 already. Something doesn't add up.

Basically this is all great fun and purely speculation. Lexus has the next GS complete for all intents and purposes and there won't be any significant changes. Will it be AWD or hybrid? Who knows. I don't think they get a lot of buyers with either of those features alone. The hybrid comment is really interesting but they would have to be more than just speculating on a V8 hybrid if it is going to go into a car being introduced in a year and was on the drawing boards at least two years ago. But, we will see.

 

Just spoke to one of my connections at the Dealer trying to get some better info on the 05' GS.....Nada! He said everybody and their dad has being trying to gather info but the Japanese are way too secretive on this project.
On another note: There was a Corporate Engineer at the dealersip recently and he spoke of a powerplant that Lexus has indeed developed...and it is INCREDIBLE to say the least.......
Try a 'Naturally-aspirated Hybrid V8' making @ 800-hp but still maintaing between 25 - 30 mpg! Now naturarly my first words were, "Just the engine alone would be well up into the "Six-Figures" due to R&D!" He conceded. BUT, the engineer went on to say that the technology will be "Trickled down into upcoming vehicles such as the next gen GS."
Hmmmmmmmmm?
I'm just hoping it looks Bad A**......?

Also he said the LS will receive a "freshining" due out in a few months, with a "major face-lift" for 05' when the GS hits!

 

one thing thaz been in my mind recently is that could the next GS be a GS500?

I remember when the merc came out w/ their E400, lexus had GS400
Then the Merc came out the E420, Lexus didn't bother...then came the E430, the Lexus began the GS430. Now Merc has E500, Lexus gotta come up w/ something at least a GS500 . It'll be nice if Lexus has a sport version of the GS... call it the GS55 lol

J

 

I'm not sure very many of us know what is going to happen but I think I would put money down on GS500, LS500, and SC500.

 

I hope my thinking is right and they will not play the AMG\M game straight up.

They will use high torque hybrid engines to AWD systems that will STOMP those supercharged 8's and 12's (or turbos)... I hope

IF this is where Lexus is going, BMW and MB will be so far off the rocker they won't know what it going on. These high powered hybrids will be competing and beating the AMG's and M's in the 0 to 60 game, while maintaining a wicked gas mileage.

The torque these engines have is crazy, instant torque, no waiting for RPM's to rise. If Lexus can harness the torque and make it usable, I am not sure there is anything a gasoline engine can do to compete, aside from join them.

I think a lot of people, including myself use to think of Hybrids as slow, no power awesome gas mileage type vehicles. Not so. The Hybrid Rx300 proves that, if this thing truly launches to 60 in the mid 5's, watch out!

 

Now imagine THAT!

600HP/ lb torque GS430 HYBRID

0-60: 3.5 seconds (limited by traction)

1/4 mile: 11.9 seconds (limited by traction)


hahah.... how wild would that be?

 

That would be very wild, especially if they don't fix the suspension!

 

You forgot price tag: $135,000.

 

did you know that the hybrid doesnt even need that much power to make the car that fast?? the toyota system uses independent electric motors PER wheel so there is no need for power killing axel connections to a main engine.. not to metion the 'problem' <if it ever build, some of you may enjoy this..> with that toyota system is wheel spin when you first take off since power peak for electric engines is at 0rpms...

 

I definitely believe a new GS will be AWD. Wheel spin will be limited.