found the Lf-C PICS! ENJOY!!
04-09-04, 10:08 AM
#46
Pole Position
Originally posted by XeroK00L
Please...don't quote the entire article..
Quote what you have a say about.
BTW, here's one more reason it won't be an IS coupe: I"S", by Lexus's naming convention, has to be a sedan. If this concept doesn't realize as an SC, it will have to be a new model called something "C"...maybe "IC"?
Please...don't quote the entire article..
Quote what you have a say about.
BTW, here's one more reason it won't be an IS coupe: I"S", by Lexus's naming convention, has to be a sedan. If this concept doesn't realize as an SC, it will have to be a new model called something "C"...maybe "IC"?
please don't tell people what to do.... if I talk about an article never posted, how does my credibility or other people's opinion look?!
p.s. if u READ the article, you'd kow clements talked about the lf-c and referred many times as the next IS. Nowhere did a state a new designation or name.....besides, if you look at the strategy of the (camry) solara coupe, it does not make sense for lexus from a marketability perspective not to lump the sales of the production lf-c with the is, especially when u're trying to play the numbers game against the many incarnations of the 3 series...
04-09-04, 01:03 PM
#47
Guest
Posts: n/a
http://www.forbes.com/vehicles/2004/...l_0330vow.html
Lexus is thinking young. The IS 300 line, which Lexus currently sells in sedans and wagons, has an average buyer's age of 30, the youngest for any Toyota vehicle--and that includes cars from Scion, the new subsidiary Toyota created to attract the under-30 customer. At the New York International Auto Show, which will open to the press next week, Toyota Motor's Lexus division will display the LF-C, a prototype for the next generation of Lexus' IS-series cars that the company hopes will give it an even more youthful, sporty image.
Lexus has revealed only a sketch of the LF-C (pictured above) and said very little to the press. In a statement, the company said the vehicle was "created with a new, more passionate design direction." While carmakers overuse the words "passion" and "enthusiasm" when making promises about forthcoming models, Toyota (nyse: TM - news - people ) is as hungry as all the other manufacturers that want to build more youthful cars. The IS 300 replacement could further decrease that average buyer's age while increasing Lexus' sex appeal.
The timing is right. After Lexus entered the U.S. in 1989, it was outselling BMW and Mercedes-Benz, now a division of DaimlerChrysler (nyse: DCX - news - people ), within two years. It still beats them, with 259,755 American sales last year, compared with 240,589 at BMW and 218,551 at Mercedes. However, Lexus has always taken second to the Germans in terms of performance, style and sportiness, opting instead for quiet, refinement, good dealers and comparatively modest looks. Is everything about to change?
Toyota is dramatically rethinking the IS 300 because its U.S. sales declined to 13,559 last year from 20,306 in 2002--a drop of 33%. Its German competitors humiliate the IS; last year, Mercedes sold 52,000 more copies of its C-class than Lexus sold of the IS. The BMW 3-series did 111,944 sales in the U.S. last year--98,000 more units than the IS.
The IS 300 is no sales champion within Lexus either. In 2003, the IS 300 was the third best-selling Lexus passenger car. It was beaten by the LS 430 (23,895 sales), which costs $26,000 more, and it was trounced by the also-pricier ES 300's 65,762 sales. Perhaps the IS 300 has slipped because Lexus has, in many ways, turned its attention to sport utility vehicles. The division's best-selling model last year was the RX 330 SUV, which sold 92,366 units in the U.S.
The current model: Lexus' 2004 IS 300 sedan.
The Germans, on the other hand, make passenger cars their bread-and-butter models and have comparatively more kinks to iron out with their SUVs. The LF-C is an opportunity for Lexus to inject more German-style moxie into a passenger car. The prototype has a high-powered V-8 engine, which means that right off the bat the vehicle has more sporting chops than the six-cylinder IS 300's that Lexus currently sells. Acura, Lexus' counterpart at Honda Motor (nyse: HMC - news - people ), doesn't have any eight-cylinder cars. A V-8 is an acknowledgment of America's love of cubic inches and is easier to explain than why Lexus is previewing the replacement for a sedan and wagon with a coupe.
Making the LF-C a coupe is, for one thing, a way to reposition the IS 300 as a sportier car; under the traditional definition, a sports car has two doors, not four. There's another reason for the two-door concept: Lexus wants to exploit the IS's youth appeal by building its next generation in higher volumes, and the company could add a coupe to the model line--potentially a convertible too. There is also a strong chance that Lexus will kill the IS 300 wagon, which has always been a disappointment in terms of sales.
The full roster for the IS series remains to be determined, and the line is roughly two years away from an overhaul. While the LF-C is a coupe, Lexus officials will not estimate the chances that the IS 300 line could feature a two-door in the future--but the prototype is a pretty darned good indication of what Toyota is thinking.
Forbes Fact
Automakers often use prototypes like the LF-C, which are called "concept cars," to indicate the direction in which their designs are headed. The LF-C is the third in a series of Lexus concepts that do just that. The company's HP-X concept from last year's New York show and its LF-S concept from last year's Tokyo Motor Show featured design cues that made it onto the new 2006 Lexus GS sedan that the company unveiled at January's North American International Auto Show in Detroit. Expect elements from the LF-C to filter into other new designs from Lexus.
Lexus is thinking young. The IS 300 line, which Lexus currently sells in sedans and wagons, has an average buyer's age of 30, the youngest for any Toyota vehicle--and that includes cars from Scion, the new subsidiary Toyota created to attract the under-30 customer. At the New York International Auto Show, which will open to the press next week, Toyota Motor's Lexus division will display the LF-C, a prototype for the next generation of Lexus' IS-series cars that the company hopes will give it an even more youthful, sporty image.
Lexus has revealed only a sketch of the LF-C (pictured above) and said very little to the press. In a statement, the company said the vehicle was "created with a new, more passionate design direction." While carmakers overuse the words "passion" and "enthusiasm" when making promises about forthcoming models, Toyota (nyse: TM - news - people ) is as hungry as all the other manufacturers that want to build more youthful cars. The IS 300 replacement could further decrease that average buyer's age while increasing Lexus' sex appeal.
The timing is right. After Lexus entered the U.S. in 1989, it was outselling BMW and Mercedes-Benz, now a division of DaimlerChrysler (nyse: DCX - news - people ), within two years. It still beats them, with 259,755 American sales last year, compared with 240,589 at BMW and 218,551 at Mercedes. However, Lexus has always taken second to the Germans in terms of performance, style and sportiness, opting instead for quiet, refinement, good dealers and comparatively modest looks. Is everything about to change?
Toyota is dramatically rethinking the IS 300 because its U.S. sales declined to 13,559 last year from 20,306 in 2002--a drop of 33%. Its German competitors humiliate the IS; last year, Mercedes sold 52,000 more copies of its C-class than Lexus sold of the IS. The BMW 3-series did 111,944 sales in the U.S. last year--98,000 more units than the IS.
The IS 300 is no sales champion within Lexus either. In 2003, the IS 300 was the third best-selling Lexus passenger car. It was beaten by the LS 430 (23,895 sales), which costs $26,000 more, and it was trounced by the also-pricier ES 300's 65,762 sales. Perhaps the IS 300 has slipped because Lexus has, in many ways, turned its attention to sport utility vehicles. The division's best-selling model last year was the RX 330 SUV, which sold 92,366 units in the U.S.
The current model: Lexus' 2004 IS 300 sedan.
The Germans, on the other hand, make passenger cars their bread-and-butter models and have comparatively more kinks to iron out with their SUVs. The LF-C is an opportunity for Lexus to inject more German-style moxie into a passenger car. The prototype has a high-powered V-8 engine, which means that right off the bat the vehicle has more sporting chops than the six-cylinder IS 300's that Lexus currently sells. Acura, Lexus' counterpart at Honda Motor (nyse: HMC - news - people ), doesn't have any eight-cylinder cars. A V-8 is an acknowledgment of America's love of cubic inches and is easier to explain than why Lexus is previewing the replacement for a sedan and wagon with a coupe.
Making the LF-C a coupe is, for one thing, a way to reposition the IS 300 as a sportier car; under the traditional definition, a sports car has two doors, not four. There's another reason for the two-door concept: Lexus wants to exploit the IS's youth appeal by building its next generation in higher volumes, and the company could add a coupe to the model line--potentially a convertible too. There is also a strong chance that Lexus will kill the IS 300 wagon, which has always been a disappointment in terms of sales.
The full roster for the IS series remains to be determined, and the line is roughly two years away from an overhaul. While the LF-C is a coupe, Lexus officials will not estimate the chances that the IS 300 line could feature a two-door in the future--but the prototype is a pretty darned good indication of what Toyota is thinking.
Forbes Fact
Automakers often use prototypes like the LF-C, which are called "concept cars," to indicate the direction in which their designs are headed. The LF-C is the third in a series of Lexus concepts that do just that. The company's HP-X concept from last year's New York show and its LF-S concept from last year's Tokyo Motor Show featured design cues that made it onto the new 2006 Lexus GS sedan that the company unveiled at January's North American International Auto Show in Detroit. Expect elements from the LF-C to filter into other new designs from Lexus.
04-09-04, 01:17 PM
#48
Super Moderator
Originally posted by ST430
please don't tell people what to do.... if I talk about an article never posted, how does my credibility or other people's opinion look?!
. . . . . it does not make sense for lexus from a marketability perspective not to lump the sales of the production lf-c with the is, especially when u're trying to play the numbers game against the many incarnations of the 3 series...
please don't tell people what to do.... if I talk about an article never posted, how does my credibility or other people's opinion look?!
. . . . . it does not make sense for lexus from a marketability perspective not to lump the sales of the production lf-c with the is, especially when u're trying to play the numbers game against the many incarnations of the 3 series...
04-09-04, 02:27 PM
#50
Lexus Fanatic
Originally posted by ST430
please don't tell people what to do.... if I talk about an article never posted, how does my credibility or other people's opinion look?!
p.s. if u READ the article, you'd kow clements talked about the lf-c and referred many times as the next IS. Nowhere did a state a new designation or name.....besides, if you look at the strategy of the (camry) solara coupe, it does not make sense for lexus from a marketability perspective not to lump the sales of the production lf-c with the is, especially when u're trying to play the numbers game against the many incarnations of the 3 series...
please don't tell people what to do.... if I talk about an article never posted, how does my credibility or other people's opinion look?!
p.s. if u READ the article, you'd kow clements talked about the lf-c and referred many times as the next IS. Nowhere did a state a new designation or name.....besides, if you look at the strategy of the (camry) solara coupe, it does not make sense for lexus from a marketability perspective not to lump the sales of the production lf-c with the is, especially when u're trying to play the numbers game against the many incarnations of the 3 series...
When I first saw your post I thought you were only quoting jp82729's or Sick's posts and adding a one-line comment to it, when in fact what you were posting was something new--the full speech!!! I must have been blind... Thanks so much for sharing it. And my apology to Sick too for the comment on mentioning the IS coupe.
Now from the full speech it is entirely, totally, undoubtedly clear that the LF-C *is* the future IS coupe.
I still think, however, that they may very likely change the model name to something with a C. The name will only make sense this way.
Again, my apology to ST430 and Sick for not reading well before posting something stupid.
Last edited by XeroK00L; 04-09-04 at 02:29 PM.
04-09-04, 02:39 PM
#51
Pole Position
My source tells me it's the new IS Conv. The next IS will have all the body style combos like BMW and tranny options as well as 2-3 engine types.
Toyota will also have it's own truck line for Toyota. Bigger Tundra with all the combo options you have with GM and Ford. 1 Ton, with diesel engines and dual wheels in the rear and so on.
The next IS will have all the body style combos like BMW and tranny options as well as 2-3 engine types.Toyota will also have it's own truck line for Toyota. Bigger Tundra with all the combo options you have with GM and Ford. 1 Ton, with diesel engines and dual wheels in the rear and so on.
Last edited by jimxo; 04-09-04 at 02:40 PM.
05-20-04, 08:01 PM
#52
Guest
Posts: n/a
As I boldly predicted, the 4.3 liter Lexus V-8 WILL find it's way into the next IS!!! Th3 3.0 V-6 from the GS 300 will be used as the base engine.
Sedan, wagon but MOST IMPORTANTLY, Lexus is HARD AT WORK making the CONCEPT roof WORK!!! They are WORKING HARD on making the top stop like a TARGA as well as drop all the way back Danny Clements has stated it would make them a LEADER in the segment, something very important for them in the next IS.
Lexus wants to sell possibly 3,000-4,000 units a month, past the avg 1,000 units a month since the ISs inception.
Sedan, wagon but MOST IMPORTANTLY, Lexus is HARD AT WORK making the CONCEPT roof WORK!!! They are WORKING HARD on making the top stop like a TARGA as well as drop all the way back
Danny Clements has stated it would make them a LEADER in the segment, something very important for them in the next IS. Lexus wants to sell possibly 3,000-4,000 units a month, past the avg 1,000 units a month since the ISs inception.
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