Lexus NX chief engineer Takeaki Kato shares some interesting details in an interview with Australian website GoAuto:
[The 2.0-litre turbo] engine looks set to provide sparkling performance in the NX 200t, but an even more potent version has not been ruled out by Mr Kato – an amateur motor racer in his spare time.
He told GoAuto the four-cylinder engine had been designed for a variety of performance tunes in various applications across the Lexus range.
Asked if an extreme version to match the 265kW GLA45 AMG was on the cards, he replied: “I want one, yes.”
He stopped short of saying such a vehicle would make it into showrooms, but left the door open for the possibility.
There are two parts to this quote — the first being that the 2.0L turbo engine has multiple performance configurations. This is very exciting news, and makes me curious about what engine will show up in the IS & GS.
The second part is the NX F — the very idea runs counter to an earlier interview with Lexus F chief engineer Yukihiko Yaguchi — here’s a quote from Motoring Australia:
“To have an F badge, the car needs to have characteristics to be able to run on track and on race course,” he explained. “Therefore it doesn’t really suit to have an SUV as an F model. There may be an F Sports SUV (there are already – ED), but as far as F models go, no plans.”
The idea of a NX F is an interesting thought experiment, but there are Lexus models better suited to F high-performance models — until a CT F, IS F, GS F, & LS F are in production, an NX F just doesn’t make a whole lot of sense.
[Source: GoAuto]
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