This probably should belong to future powertrain thread but: if they would combine diesel T or gasoline T to hybrid system do they need to abandon atkinson cycle? Okay diesel atkinson probably won't work cause it would be too much underpowered.
My thoughts exactly. Aesthetically, most Toyotas transitioning to TNGA platforms have been a clean break from their immediate predecessors, but this one and the Corolla sedan are the 2 exceptions that look almost like major refreshes as opposed to all-new. Especially this Highlander.
That's disappointing. Perhaps they'll come back in a future model year? Then again, it appears that SE take rate for Highlander is lower than for other Toyota models, at least judging by how few I've seen in the wild.
I'd say retuned is more like it. Since the 2GR V6's transition to FKS (if not earlier), crossover and minivan applications are tuned for lower horsepower but higher low-end torque than their sedan counterparts.
I would not personally spend the premium for a Lexus product over its Toyota counterpart - LS, LC and GS F exempt from that because they have no Toyota equal. Most of Toyota's lineup is now on TNGA-K, has CarPlay, Android Auto, Dynamic Torque Vectoring AWD, beautiful interiors, nice exteriors, etc. Part of that is the function of product planning, but I remain puzzled about why all of the innovative "firsts" are rolling out for Toyota first and Lexus later.
Hell, Highlander Platinum has a saddle quilted leather interior and 12.3" screen.
It's like Toyota is on the all star team right now and Lexus is in the farm league. I just don't understand the product planning decisions, but hopefully once NX and RX move to TNGA, they will see even larger leaps forward than what we're expecting. With Rav4 and Highlander being this good, imagine how amazing RX and NX could be.
