Production Lexus UX to Debut at Geneva Motor Show in March?

just spent few hrs behind C-HR Hybrid, and cant to see what will UX version be like.
C-HR already drives well... I expect UX to solve issue with "weak" powertrain and also be a lot quieter... otherwise C-HR is very nice already, interior is quite premium as it is.

The fact that the UX makes its debut in Europe seems logical to me.
It should have happened a few years earlier, the competition is very big in the meantime, but we are in good expectation.
And where and when will the ES get its debut? Rarara...

spwolf

just spent few hrs behind C-HR Hybrid, and cant to see what will UX version be like.
C-HR already drives well... I expect UX to solve issue with "weak" powertrain and also be a lot quieter... otherwise C-HR is very nice already, interior is quite premium as it is.

I think it's time for a new engine, honestly. UX would be a great time to introduce a second powertrain. The UX 200, UX 250, UX 250h -- if these trademarks are accurate, Lexus will be getting three new engine options. UX 250h seems most significant to me, though the 250 could be interesting as well.

krew

I think it's time for a new engine, honestly. UX would be a great time to introduce a second powertrain. The UX 200, UX 250, UX 250h -- if these trademarks are accurate, Lexus will be getting three new engine options. UX 250h seems most significant to me, though the 250 could be interesting as well.

Toyota Europe already announced that all of the hybrids in Europe will get 2 hybrid powertrains - so one for base, and one for sportier option.
And we have many... Yaris, Auris, C-HR, Rav4 currently... so I suspect that it will come with UX and C-HR, maybe C-HR will get UX200h powertrain and UX250h will get even stronger version.

C-HR is "fast enough" until 80 mph, but for serious autobahn driving it needs more oomph. With larger engine and 50 hp more it would also generate less noise since it would not have to be at WOT all the time.

spwolf

just spent few hrs behind C-HR Hybrid, and cant to see what will UX version be like.
C-HR already drives well... I expect UX to solve issue with "weak" powertrain and also be a lot quieter... otherwise C-HR is very nice already, interior is quite premium as it is.

The US version isn't premium :thumbsdown:Our powertrain is too anemic to take advantage of its good suspension tuning. But hey, it looks good and is a crossover, so easy sale for Toyota : unamused:

Tragic Bronson

The US version isn't premium :thumbsdown:Our powertrain is too anemic to take advantage of its good suspension tuning. But hey, it looks good and is a crossover, so easy sale for Toyota : unamused:

interior is certainly premium though... it has better materials than rav4 even though it is not as well as equipped as in Europe, base models are also fine.

After reading the full motor.es article and doing some additional digging around, I have a few comments:

- With a bit over 3 months to go before the 2018 Geneva Motor Show, their official site ( https://www.gims.swiss/en/ ) is still pretty bare-bones. It does confirm, however, that the show opens to the public on Thursday 8 March. Thus, that "6 de marzo 2018" (Tuesday 6 March 2018) date surely corresponds to the first of 2 press days.

- Spain is expected to offer UX exclusively as a non-plug-in hybrid, while other markets (such as the U.S.) will offer non-hybrid powertrains. This is, of course, old news, as is the fact that it is derived from the Toyota C-HR.

- Motor.es predicts an on-sale date sometime during the second half of 2018, and they cite Japanese reports predicting an October 2018 on-sale date there.

- The article also includes this image of Lexus Spain's "100% Hybrid" lineup, which aligns Coupes, Berlinas/Compacto (sedans/compacts) and SUVs by ascending Precio (price).



Of note is the fact that it refers to the 3-row RX as RX+, rather than RX L. Will Lexus Spain (and, perhaps, other markets as well) use this different badge for RX L? It would certainly follow the European naming protocol for the 3-row Toyota Prius wagon, which wears the Prius+ badge in most European countries. 7 plazas simply means 7-seater. And that also makes me wonder if Lexus will drop the 2-row RX in Spain and perhaps other Euro markets. Finally, it seems that the higher placement of the "RX + 7 plazas" dot vs the GS dot implies a higher European price for RX+/RX L vs base GS models.

If "UX 250" is packing the Camry's new 203/206hp I4, that would be a great engine for a sub-compact CUV. That's a lot of engine for something so small and would be great upper level engine choice over a theoretical "200."

Gecko

If "UX 250" is packing the Camry's new 203/206hp I4, that would be a great engine for a sub-compact CUV. That's a lot of engine for something so small and would be great upper level engine choice over a theoretical "200."

One fact that really strikes me is that the C-HR already weighs 1,500kg/3,300lbs, which is why the 122hp hybrid and 144hp 2.0 are both painfully slow. I thought a UX250 would be dashing quick given its size, but we shouldn't really expect something much faster than the 2.5 RAV4. TMC needs to watch the diet of its cars!

ssun30

TMC needs to watch the diet of its cars!

I keep saying this and everyone tells me I'm wrong... but yes. A lot of these newer products, aside from Camry, are a few hundred pounds too heavy.

Gecko

I keep saying this and everyone tells me I'm wrong... but yes. A lot of these newer products, aside from Camry, are a few hundred pounds too heavy.

you pay for increased interior and suspension quality with weight though... C-HR is based on mid-size platform, not small car platform.

Difference between Rav4 and C-HR is vast right now - it is 330kg in weight. That means that Rav4 will likely lose some weight, since the difference will be mostly in lenght.

And in the same day I drove both C-HR and Suzuki Vitara, which is based on small car platform... while Vitara is affordable and decent for price, it was at least one category lesser vehicle... Their suspensions are miles apart, with C-HR handling curves with big bumps and highway 100mph ride much, much better, not to mention interior quality being miles apart... C-HR is only Toyota right now i can see myself driving, just not the hybrid due to my usual 100mph drives.

If they keep doing vehicles, i can see myself driving next Prius SUV or Rav4, which currently has way too cheap interior for me. Here taxes on lexus are very expensive, so good Toyota would be great.

Also, current TSS-P in Europe works really well... i had no complaints, it was doing city traffic without any issue or jerks, and it was following at reasonably short distance in both city and hwy driving, ie like i would.

Lexus Execs Pushing For Tiny UX Crossover For Sale In US

With the CT200h gone, the company could use the UX to fill that spot in the lineup.

Lexus execs in the United States see the potential for expanding the lineup in the country by introducing a production version of the UX – a concept for a subcompact crossover from the 2016 Paris Motor Show.

“It’s something that our consumers are looking for. Our dealers are all over us to produce that concept vehicle,” Lexus General Manager Jeff Bracken said during the Los Angeles Auto Show while speaking about the UX. “We are in the process of helping our company understand what we’re leaving on the table. So it’s laser focused and stay tuned.”

The UX would be Lexus’ entry-level product in the United States. The CT200h previously occupied that spot, but the company decided to axe the hybrid hatchback in the United States due to lack of sales.

At the Geneva Motor Show, Lexus International Executive Vice President Yoshihiro Sawa confirmed plans to put the UX into production. However, it wasn’t clear whether the automaker planned to bring the little crossover to the United States.

Details about the production UX remain scant. However, the company already holds trademarks on the UX 200, UX 250, and UX 250h in the United States, which could point to powertrain possibilities, including a potential hybrid. In addition, Bracken said that Lexus has decided not to offer models with an MSRP below $30,000, meaning the UX would cost at least that much.

Bracken said that crossovers and SUVs currently occupy around 60 percent of Lexus’ sales in the United States. The company has been doubling down on the segment, too. At the L.A. show alone, the automaker unveiled the new three-row version of the RX and a two-row variant of the LX.

https://www.motor1.com/news/222999/lexus-ux-crossover-us-rumor/

WardsAuto's Christie Schweinsberg writes about Lexus UX, in an article that combines information from the motor1.com article cited above with a shout-out to the Lexus Enthusiast article atop this thread and some commentary on UX's potential U.S. competition.

Lexus Studying UX Small CUV for U.S.
Dec 4, 2017 - Christie Schweinsberg | WardsAuto

LOS ANGELES – Lexus’ top U.S. sales executive says the brand is considering bringing the European-centric UX small CUV here.

With the CT 200h entry-luxury car discontinued, and the strong popularity of utility vehicles, Lexus is making its case to parent Toyota for bringing the UX, introduced as a concept at the 2016 Paris auto show, to the States.

“Our dealers are all over us to produce that concept vehicle,” Jeff Bracken, general manager-Lexus Div. for Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A., tells WardsAuto during a roundtable interview at the Los Angeles auto show.

“We’re in the process of helping our company understand what we’re leaving on the table” by not having an entrant in the burgeoning small-luxury CUV segment, he says.

A production version of the UX, said to be a subcompact rather than a compact CUV, will debut at March’s Geneva auto show, LexusEnthusiast.com says via a translated report from Spanish website Motor.es.

While their collective volume is meager – 99,785 units sold through November – small luxury CUVs have been one of the fastest-growing segments in the U.S. this year.

WardsAuto’s Small Luxury CUV group rose 52.1% in the period largely due to three models: the all-new Chevrolet Bolt and Infiniti QX30, as well as the BMW X1.

Of models on sale for at least a year, BMW’s X1 has seen the most growth, up 11.6% to 26,372.

Infiniti’s all-new QX30, riding on the Mercedes GLA platform, accounts for an estimated 13,542 of the segment’s tally. (Due to technical glitch, Nissan will not report November sales until later today.)

The GLA is down from the first 11 months of 2016, slipping 3.0% to 21,524, but with volume good enough to make it second in sales behind the X1.

Sales of the Audi Q3 small-luxury CUV are up 1.5% through November to 18,266.

http://wardsauto.com/industry/lexus-studying-ux-small-cuv-us

The article goes on to discuss the RX L. I'll post those bits of information in the separate RX L thread.