By Derek Mau

Pros

• Excellent for around town driving and taking care of all the necessary family functions
• The benefits of a hybrid without sacrificing luxury amenities
• Conservative styling upgrade easily blends in with the thousands of other Lexus RX’s on the road today
• More technology gadgets but with less driver distraction

Cons

• Batteries and electric motors add up to a serious weight penalty with regards to braking and cornering
• Electronic steering control is good for mothers on their way to PTA meetings, but not so good for relaying feedback from the road
• Horrific blind spot
• No towing capacity

The new generation Lexus RX blends the geekiness of high technology with the green consciousness of driving a hybrid car. Launched in the summer of 2009 as a successor to the RX 400h, Lexus’ new RX 450h builds on the success of the company’s first luxury hybrid SUV. Visually similar to the RX 350, the 450h has a few of its own unique styling features, including an exclusive grille, hybrid badging with blue-trimmed Lexus logos, unique front bumper, special 19-inch wheels, blue-tinted headlamps and taillamps, and optional LED headlamps.

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Toyota’s dominance in the hybrid car game (which seems to be a game that they invented) continues unabated. Take the Lexus HS 250h. It’s hugely popular in Japan, so popular in fact that Toyota is going to triple production output for the car. But Toyota didn’t triple production just for the home market alone, no. It would seem that the Lexus HS 250h will soon be seen on the streets of America as well.

The good news for gearheads put off by the somewhat unconventional styling of the segment leading Prius is that the Lexus HS 250h looks like a more traditional car. It’s got an engine compartment up front and four doors and a trunk out back; the traditional three-box design, in other words. It seems to be a look that’s working well, because they’re Hoovering them up in Japan.

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It’s the Germans fighting the Japanese in the battle of the upscale cars. And as of right now, the Germans are winning! BMW has overtaken Toyota Motor Corp.’s Lexus to become the best-selling marquee nameplate in the United States this year to-date.

Lexus has held the top spot since 2000, according to Autodata Corp. But the once mega-popular brand is struggling now, with sales down 37.2 percent. Are former Lexus owners switching to BMW, or are Lexus owners saving money by downgrading to other non top-tier candidates? Evidently.

The last time the BMW brand was No. 1 in the United States for a full year was in 1997, when it also beat its archrival, Daimler AG’s Mercedes-Benz.

But Lexus should never be counted out. The carmaker recently launched the RX 350 SUV and will roll out a hybrid version next week. It will also be introducing its first designated Lexus gas-electric hybrid, the HS 250h, toward the end of the summer.

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Happy New Year everyone!

Another year has passed by and it is time for reflection upon the past year, as well as looking forward to more good things happening in 2009. 2008 had the debut of the largely anticipated Nissan GT-R which ran rings around the competition from the European stalwarts such as the BMW M3 and Porsche 911. In 2008, gas prices reached an all-time high of over $4 per gallon and dropped below $2 a gallon in less than six months. I don’t even want to mention the controversy surrounding the subject of bailing out the big 3 American auto makers because that conjures up more pain that the taxpayers have to bear. Getting past the greedy oil brokers and money-grubbing banks, there were still some outstanding cars that came out in 2008. CarReview’s editors reviewed the cars for 2008 and picked their favorites. Below is our list of outstanding vehicles that don’t require any handouts from congress.

(The photos are linked to the page with the corresponding consumer reviews.)
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By Kurt Gensheimer

Horsepower. Raw, tire-melting horsepower. Every man worth his chest hair can’t deny it’s one of the first criteria for buying a car powered by a V8. Typically, the more the horsepower and the lower the MSRP, the more attractive it looks. It was the formula that made the muscle car era a piece of American history. But nowadays, American automakers aren’t the only ones making rear-wheel-drive radial roasters; Japan and Germany have also gotten in on the unmitigated horsepower wars, albeit with a little more luxury and refinement.

We recently had a Bridgestone bar-b-que with three fire-breathing, rear/all-wheel-drive V8s representing each of the three respective automaking countries. Japan arrived respectfully in the Lexus IS-F, Germany showed up to the cookout well dressed in the Audi S5, and the United States arrived rockin’ a mullet and Miller Lite in the Dodge Challenger SRT8. Three different V8s, three different countries, and three very different cars.

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The 2008 Lexus GS 450h hybrid is a 4-door, 5-passenger luxury sedan, available in one trim only, the Sedan. The GS 450h has a VAR speed automatic transmission, 3.5-liter, V6, 340-horsepower, hybrid engine, and is equipped with a completely new Lexus hybrid powertrain which has 80 percent fewer smog-forming emissions than the average new car.

“From a stop, acceleration and low speed is all electric power. It’s silent. It’s eerily silent. Sometimes you think the car isn’t running, but once you get going, the transition between the electric and gas [motors] is very smooth…”

By John G.

Hybrid Power Without Compromise – Lexus GS 450h

Up:

• Luxurious yet not ostentatious, inside and out: that’s the Lexus way
• Ridiculous torque makes passing easy and high-speed cruising a pleasure
• Hybrid drive means a performance car that doesn’t feel silly stuck in traffic
• Keyless entry and exit done right

Down:

• “Quick start guide” is 58 pages long
• Weighs over two tons and it isn’t even AWD
• Map lights are really dim, light switches are hard to find in the dark
• Batteries for the hybrid drive don’t leave much trunk space

Sideways:

• Really a 4-door Grand Touring car, not a sports car Read the rest of this entry �

The 2007 Lexus RX 400h is the first luxury SUV to feature a gas-electric hybrid drivetrain. The 2007 Lexus RX 400h has luxury and quality throughout. So if you’re in the market for an SUV and are environmentally conscious, the Lexus could be a perfect choice!

Watch the video review as Alex sums up the character of this environmentally friendly, luxury SUV.

by Alex Kramer

Pros

• Excellent acceleration
• Lexus luxury and quality
• Silky smooth ride
• Seamless hybrid powertrain

Cons

• Overly cautious handling
• All that hybrid technology sure is pricey
• Not a true fuel sipper

The Lexus RX 400h brings Toyota’s award winning hybrid technology to the realm of luxury SUVs. While most hybrids sacrifice some performance for increased fuel efficiency, the RX 400h is one of a few hybrids to offer not only increased fuel-efficiency, but also increased performance over it’s gas only siblings. Add to that the fact that all this technology is mated to the best selling mid-size luxury SUV on the market, and the result is another winning effort from Lexus.

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December 20, 2007 – Torrance, CA - Lexus introduces the all-new, more powerful, more capable and more luxurious 2008 LX 570 premium luxury utility vehicle. With a host of technological advancements and a new high-strength chassis, the third-generation LX offers significantly increased performance and new safety features over the LX 470 model it replaces. The all-new roomier eight-passenger LX 570 casts about the same footprint as its award-winning predecessor.Lexus established the paradigm for full-size, full-capability luxury utility vehicles when it debuted the original LX in January 1996. Since that time, the LX has won a multitude of awards for quality and value. For the third generation LX, Lexus retained the basic formula of the previous model, amplifying and enhancing its core attributes. The new LX 570 offers perhaps the most compelling combination of luxury, safety, on-road smoothness and off-road performance of any vehicle in its segment. Read the rest of this entry �

Read John's full review - 2007 Lexus ES 350 Review - Please, No More Camry Comparisons

Read what other consumers are saying about the ES 350 or submit your own review

View all of the Lexus ES 350 pictures in the photo gallery

Official site for information on Lexus luxury cars, sports sedans, utility vehicles, and hybrids: www.lexus.com

by John G.

Up:

Down:

Sideways:

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The Lexus flagship steams into port at full throttle

by Natasha M.

Pros

• Responsive handling, yet smooth as a limousine ride
• Super luxurious interior design
• Innovative features (i.e. 8-speed auto-transmission, Advanced Parking Guidance System, Dynamic Radar Cruise Control)

Cons

• Exterior styling – more subtle, less “flashy” than its competitors
• Does not fit in those compact car parking spaces
• You might get a speeding ticket!

The Lexus LS 460L has the look and comfort of a luxury sedan, the energy of an SUV and the heart of a sports car. And what I enjoyed most was that it evoked euphoric feelings instantaneously by doing exactly what I wanted it to do and with such ease. Whether it was to quickly reach high speeds at a moments notice or cruise quietly with grace and style, the LS 460L definitely reminds you that cars can really have great physical and expressive design that is so desirable by any discerning car lover. Add to that a reputation of reliability and safety, and then you really have something that’s really close to perfection.

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Read Natasha's full review of the Lexus LS 460 L

View all of the Lexus LS 460 L pictures in the photo gallery

Read what other consumers are saying about the LS 460 or submit your own review

Official site for information on Lexus luxury cars, sports sedans, utility vehicles, and hybrids: www.lexus.com