More Details on the Second Lexus GS Hybrid

Posted by Kevin on June 14th, 2012

Interesting quote from Lexus GS chief engineer Yoshihiko Kanamori in this Autocar article:

Referring to the new four-cylinder Audi A8 hybrid, Yoshihiko Kanamori, chief engineer said that the need for in-cabin noise cancellation to improve refinement in the German car was one of the reasons that a Lexus GS ‘could never have a four-cylinder engine.’

Although the Japanese company would not reveal more about the new GS Hybrid (potentially badged GS350h) it is possible that it will use a version of the 204bhp 2.5-litre V6 engine that is fitted to the new GS250.

This puts an end to the idea that this second GS hybrid will share the 2.5L 4-cylinder engine found in the new ES 300h — in fact, it appears that an all-new V6 hybrid powertrain is on its way to the Lexus lineup.

This openness to share information is a new tactic from Lexus, and leads to all sorts of speculation — will the new V6 hybrid be based on the existing 2.5L V6 in the GS 250 or an entirely new engine? Will it debut in the GS or the third-generation IS?

Autocar mentions one expected milestone:

Hitting a CO2 figure of 119g/km – matching the BMW 520ed – is the likely aim of the new model. It would, though, also offer higher performance than the four-pot BMW.

I would add one more fairly obvious point — it has to beat the Lexus GS 450h’s fuel economy by a decent margin (the GS 450h is currently rated at 31 combined MPG in the USA, 5.9l/100km in Europe).

[Source: Autocar]

EuropeFutureHybridsLexus GS: Fourth GenerationUnited Kingdom
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Comments
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    BlackDynamiteNY
  • June 14, 2012
Wouldn't expect to see it in the US as a GS.  Most likely as an IS250h BD
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    Alex Sunders
  • June 15, 2012
More interesting than this new willingness to share information, is this new willingness to share FALSE information. Either that or this is one hell of misquote.
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    mrxandthexfactor
  • June 15, 2012
V6 is what I've been saying all the time. 2.5L I4 hybrid could produce about the same amount of power as the 2.5L V6, or even less. The GS is a heavy car. It would need a bigger, more powerful engine. 
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    WWL
  • June 15, 2012
All of this future plans for GS and ES is ok, but c'mon Lexus  bring us wagons versions of your cars. Greating from Euro 2012 in Poland and Ukrain
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      DuDE
    • June 15, 2012
    To improve sales in Europe they should do a diesel and a wagon. We know Lexus wont do Diesels, at least the should do a wagon.
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      DuDE
    • June 15, 2012
    *they
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      Pattebb
    • June 15, 2012
    I agree with u Dude, Lexus should do wagons, but if they do a GS and IS with small hybid engine like the 200hp ES engine it will be enough to make good milage..That is one problem i think they have here in Europe, price start with 45.000euro, for the GS 250..The Bmw 5 serie start with 38.000euro..And next model of the GS is the 450h and that starts with 57.000euro. Lexus GS should have a model that starts around 35.000euro. That is what i think..
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      WWL
    • June 15, 2012
    I think Lexus should sell ES in the Europe, which is cheaper then GS but almost the same size. For me ES 300h wagon would be a car of choise, or beter ES 300h AWD :)
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      Pattebb
    • June 15, 2012
    Yes i think that would be an great wagon, big like the MB E-klasse..
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    Annoinashell2000
  • June 15, 2012
im guessing 35 mpg combined
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      krew
    • June 18, 2012
    Has to be better than that -- the GS 450h gets 31 mpg combined.
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    MT
  • June 15, 2012
This is a misquote or a placed false trail. They are not going to have two different engines with the same displacement. If they want more power than the standard 2AR-FXE they are going to put in direct injection, like they did in the GS with the RX engine.
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      DuDE
    • June 15, 2012
    4 cylinder gas engine for a heavy RWD car, with no forced induction  is not a good idea for performance or efficiency. Instead, I think integrating an electric motor to the existing GS250 is a better solution.
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    DuDE
  • June 15, 2012
Why isn't Lexus /Toyota working on a turbo motor? 
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      WWL
    • June 15, 2012
    They are: http://www.thedetroitbureau.com/2012/01/toyota-ready-to-fight-back-with-downsized-turbo-engines/) 
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    Ljn71
  • June 15, 2012
This sounds very exciting! A more affordable GS hybrid is a great idea. As for a wagon;well,I don't know. Cross-overs are all the rage,and if I need something more practical than a saloon I'd be more than happy to go for an RX. As for a GS diesel:no,no,no,no,no! In a Hilux,Hiace or Land Cruiser diesels are just the thing but in a luxury car? No thank you! The only reason to offer a diesel Lexus is to placate closed-minded European buyers who can't see how fantastic petrol-electric hybrids are. Better to do what Lexus is doing,which is to educate people on why hybrids are the way to go.
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      MT
    • June 15, 2012
    You can't even educate people when they are not at all buying your products. You gotta sell something to have any educational impact. I prefer petrol hybrids too. But there is no businesscase for waiting until all the market is saturated with products from your direct competitors.  So either have diesels and a wagon or don't even bother trying to get into the Euro market, end of story. But either way a small hybrid will help at least a little bit.
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 Word @Ljn71.
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    yosafbridge
  • June 16, 2012
Diesels are going to die a quick death when the European nations start enforcing stricter emissions standards for diesels. The only reason diesels are popular aside from their cheaper diesels cost are that Euro emissions regulations are weak.Besides, hybrid fuel efficiency has caught up and surpassed diesels this round with the latest Prius already beating the similarly sized diesels in mpg. Toyota is working hard on the next iteration of hybrids with the next generation sure to beat diesels handily and with much lower emissions as well.
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      MT
    • June 16, 2012
    As long as VW, BMW and MB can not match Toyotas hybrid technology the only thing they have against it is Diesel. And the governemnts are not going to play in to the hands of a foreign manufacturer. This would result in even more financial crisis. They are not going to do that. Or we have civil war in Germany and France.
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      Jake
    • June 16, 2012
    Diesel engines are so important for the Europeans automakers that I doubt we'll see any stricter regulations. VW, Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Opel Vauxhall, Citroen, Peugeot, Renault, etc... They are so many that the organization in charge of that won't do anything against them.
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      Wooski
    • June 18, 2012
    Euro 6 comes in September 2015 - only 3 years away.  As you can see below there is virtually no difference between a petrol Euro 5 and Euro 6 car.  But Diesel has to lower NOX emissions from 180g down to 80g.  Note that Euro 5 petrol cars can only emit up to 60g of NOX now and even Euro 4 petrol was set at the same 80g due in 2015 for diesel. Some current Euro 6 engines (e.g. the 3.5Liter V6 fitted to the Mercedes S350 Bluetec) are fitted with expensive Urea injection systems to enable this to happen.  Other manufacturers are frantically working on cheaper solutions for smaller cars.  But this could push up the cost of diesel engined cars which is why we've seen renewed interest in Europe in small efficient petrol engines (e.g. Fiat Twinair and Ford 1.0 liter 3 cylinder for Focus etc)  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euro_6#Emission_standards_for_passenger_cars 
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    yosafbridge
  • June 16, 2012
As long as the US is the biggest automobile market and  enforcing emission regulations keeping diesels out, the Big 3 German Automakers will have no choice but to jump on the hybrid bandwagon or risk getting left behind by Toyota in the fuel efficiency race in America.
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      Jake
    • June 16, 2012
    That's one of the reasons why hybrids have been so successful in the States. BTW, US is no longer the biggest automobile market, it its China,
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The 2.5 V6 is a 3.5 2GR with a shorter stroke.  So, not much engineering would be involved if this is true.
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      F1
    • June 20, 2012
    Not really.. They're quite different.. 2GR-FE & 2GR-FSE are both 3.5L but that's where the similarity ends.. The 2GR-FE is used on the RS350, ES350, Toyota Camry and many other Toyota cars & SUV's 2GR-FSE is used in the Lexus IS350, GS350 and some other JDM Toyota's 4GR-FSE is the 2.5L V6 used in IS250 & other JDM Toyota's.. The 2GR's are regarded as some of the best V6 engines in the world.. Their inherent qualities are that they're very smooth, unruffled, quiet, powerful and reliable..

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