5th Generation (2018+) Lexus LS 500 & LS 500h Megathread

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If there is a v-8 hybrid coming and you can get it as an f sport I would be intrigued. If it’s another special order car not sure why. The kirko glass equipped LS isn’t moving and it’s special order only I believe now.

They also need some marketing behind it. I barley recall any marketing for the LS. Maybe I should try to help :)

From my sources, I was told that it's going to be a twin-turbocharged V6 hybrid a la the Toyota TS050 Hybrid LMP-1 car.
 
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What? The TS050 uses a 90-degree 2.4L V6 with a P2 hybrid layout plus through-the-road AWD which is unlike anything Toyota/Lexus makes. We still haven't heard about anything using THS-R other than the GR SS.

Aha! Slow down there mate.

Note that I said "a la" as in it will be like the engine that's in the Toyota TS050 Hybrid LMP-1 car. I didn't say it will use that said engine. I know what the engine in the LMP-1 car is and there is no way that they're going to bring an engine that expensive into a pedestrian passenger car. At least not for several years.

However, Toyota is adamant on bringing in what they've learnt in WEC to their road cars and it is evident in their newer generation hybrid vehicles. The NA V6 hybrid in the LC/LS/Crown was a bastardized stopgap because the one that they wanted to push out (the TTV6 hybrid) wasn't stamped for approval yet, also note how the current NA V6 hybrid has a weaker output than both the TTV6 and the NA V8 in the LS and LC respectively. There's a reason why that the engine I spoke about is still coming and the hybrid models in the LC and the LS will be more powerful than their normal ICE equivalent as tradition always shows.

Obviously the engine I am talking about isn't going to have exactly THSR-II but it will derive some technologies from it like the rear-biased motor to help the cars have a more responsive and more performance oriented AWD system as well as the aggressive battery regeneration that it has under lifting and braking. Also pairing it with the twin-turbocharged V6 will give it the torque that it desperately needs. The electric motors in the current multistage hybrid is quite weak in terms of torque.

EDIT: Wanted to add that the NA V6 isn't that torquey either so that makes things worse lol.
 
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CRSKTN

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I'm getting confused. Is the performance hybrid the same as the Prime/h+ technology? Is the performance e-axle something you can stick onto existing hybrid systems? I don't think so, right?
 

ssun30

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One thing I would like to add here is that the new V6TT hybrid system will probably upgrade to a new battery. The Yaris hybrid silently debuted the new generation Panasonic Li-ion battery with 4.3Ah capacity, 20% higher than the one currently used on the Prius Eco/Camry Hybrid LE/LC500h (I know they are the same battery because the capacities are all 3.6Ah with a whopping 40C discharge rate).

Assuming C-rate stays the same, the new battery could be upgraded from 1.1kWh to 1.3kWh with power up from 44kW to 53kW. The capacity is tiny but keep in mind these batteries cycle extremely quickly. At 40C it could be fully discharged and charged in just 40 seconds. I actually consider these to be a middle ground between batteries and supercaps. Assuming the V35A-FTS tune remains the same the combined output will be 363kW or 486hp. So if the 450hp rumor was true the engine could be detuned by ~30hp to gain some extra efficiency.

Aha! Slow down there mate.

Note that I said "a la" as in it will be like the engine that's in the Toyota TS050 Hybrid LMP-1 car. I didn't say it will use that said engine. I know what the engine in the LMP-1 car is and there is no way that they're going to bring an engine that expensive into a pedestrian passenger car. At least not for several years.

However, Toyota is adamant on bringing in what they've learnt in WEC to their road cars and it is evident in their newer generation hybrid vehicles. The NA V6 hybrid in the LC/LS/Crown was a bastardized stopgap because the one that they wanted to push out (the TTV6 hybrid) wasn't stamped for approval yet, also note how the current NA V6 hybrid has a weaker output than both the TTV6 and the NA V8 in the LS and LC respectively. There's a reason why that the engine I spoke about is still coming and the hybrid models in the LC and the LS will be more powerful than their normal ICE equivalent as tradition always shows.

Obviously the engine I am talking about isn't going to have exactly THSR-II but it will derive some technologies from it like the rear-biased motor to help the cars have a more responsive and more performance oriented AWD system as well as the aggressive battery regeneration that it has under lifting and braking. Also pairing it with the twin-turbocharged V6 will give it the torque that it desperately needs. The electric motors in the current multistage hybrid is quite weak in terms of torque.
So for that to happen, the car will have a motor in front of the engine to provide AWD? I guess packaging will be very tight but LS and LC are two vehicles that do have the room since they are both FMR.
 

spwolf

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One thing I would like to add here is that the new V6TT hybrid system will probably upgrade to a new battery. The Yaris hybrid silently debuted the new generation Panasonic Li-ion battery with 4.3Ah capacity, 20% higher than the one currently used on the Prius Eco/Camry Hybrid LE/LC500h (I know they are the same battery because the capacities are all 3.6Ah with a whopping 40C discharge rate).

Assuming C-rate stays the same, the new battery could be upgraded from 1.1kWh to 1.3kWh with power up from 44kW to 53kW. The capacity is tiny but keep in mind these batteries cycle extremely quickly. At 40C it could be fully discharged and charged in just 40 seconds. I actually consider these to be a middle ground between batteries and supercaps. Assuming the V35A-FTS tune remains the same the combined output will be 363kW or 486hp. So if the 450hp rumor was true the engine could be detuned by ~30hp to gain some extra efficiency.

this seems realistic... do we know anything about Highlander Hybrid battery and how did they get extra power?
What was the discharge rate of previous batteries in Toyota's?

In European PR, Toyota mentioned engine being off up to 80% in the city... this number was 50% for old Yaris and 60% for new Corolla, so it was obvious that they were upping both the battery capacity and discharge rate.

It is essentially free power from them, when incorporated into current powertrains.

And of course, V6tt would be hybridized version of V35A that currently has 37% thermal efficiency, vs 41% in their new dynamic force hybrids.
 

ssun30

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this seems realistic... do we know anything about Highlander Hybrid battery and how did they get extra power?
What was the discharge rate of previous batteries in Toyota's?

Their NiMH battery has 25C max and 15C continuous. The standard battery is a stack of 6 cells in series at 7.2V and weighs 1.05kg. The Highlander uses the same cell just more of them.
Prius NiMH: 28 cells, 201.6V, 1.31kWh, 33kW
Prius Li-ion: 56 cells, 201.6V, 0.72kWh, 29kW
UX250h NiMH: 30 cells, 216V, 1.4kWh, 35kW
Camry NiMH: 34 cells, 244.8V, 1.59kWh, 40kW
Camry Li-ion: 72 cells, 259.6V, 0.93kWh, 37kW
Highlander NiMH: 40 cells, 288V, 1.87kWh, 47kW
LC500h Li-ion: 84 cells, 302.4V, 1.09kWh, 44kW

So the Highlander actually has the most powerful battery in their lineup (although the LC500h Li-ion is only half the weight). It also has bigger MG2 and PCU to use more electric boost.

An upgraded LS hybrid would have 1.3kWh and 53kW. And if NX350h uses Li-ion it would have 1.1kWh and 45kW.
 

CRSKTN

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Lexus is by far the hybrid luxury leader so I am hoping if this rumor of a V-8 hybrid LS 600 is true, that is really is something special. I mean 0-60 in 4 seconds flat getting 30 MPG. Something showing technological advancement and superiority. That likely would require a new engine, not sure how much more magic they can get from the current 5.0.

Also will this be a performance hybrid or more in the vein of the current LS 500h past LS 600? I would really love to see a F-Sport version come to the USA and not just the base look.

I think only the Panamera Turbo S E hybrid couples a V-8 flagship sedan with hybrid power. I think the rest of the Germans mix their hybrids with a 6 or 4 cylinder.

The facelift is needed. The ES/LS look too similar up front and the LS styling might have went to far for most people. Its crazy to think arguably the most styled car in this class is a LS.



Whats crazy is a C63 S and M3 with options are 90-105k cars now. I just can't see Lexus having an IS cost that much. I am under the impression that F might be LS/LQ/LC/LX cars only going forward. That is my guess at this point.

To be fair, i think you need to quote the germans in average monthly payments and due on signing, vs the total price.

I also can't imagine paying that much for a C or 3.

Maybe Lexus will bring the IS up a bit in the market. I could see them move to a position of "Sedans are not entry level".

E.g. the LF-SA to come, UX, NX, should be enough for people with entry level luxury budget who need compact utility. Make the IS the alternative to the "corporate car" ES.
 

Rydo

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@CRSKTN The LF-SA is dead. The design became the C-HR. It really irritates me because a premium small hatch/CUV which was Audi A1 sized would have been mega in Europe. Of course that made too much sense to Lexus.

Looking at that link a few posts back, the photo of therevised LC rear lights look awful. I hate that ‘fin’ they are trying to make from the light housing like some kind of 50s Cadillac.

Anyone else think the all in one headlight design of the refreshed LS is looking back they way? That’s the design the ageing RX uses where most of the newer stuff has had them split off, like LC.
 

CRSKTN

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I'm pretty sure there are rumours of a C-HR derived Lexus product, which is what I was using LF-SA to refer to. Unless that's been explicitly debunked lately and I missed it.
 

Rydo

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I'm pretty sure there are rumours of a C-HR derived Lexus product, which is what I was using LF-SA to refer to. Unless that's been explicitly debunked lately and I missed it.
Well the way i see it, they took the LF SA design and made it bigger, turning it from a 2-door sub compact into a UX sized product. The CHR derived Lexus surely wouldn’t be any different from UX.
 

CRSKTN

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Well the way i see it, they took the LF SA design and made it bigger, turning it from a 2-door sub compact into a UX sized product. The CHR derived Lexus surely wouldn’t be any different from UX.

If you think the UX is as small as they could go you're mistaken. I mean, we just got a Yaris-based CUV. I imagine whatever the new sub UX model is, is going to be based on that or the CH-R. I'm leaning towards something Yaris-based, given the frankenstein frame they created for the GR version.
 

Joaquin Ruhi

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The C-HR derived Lexus surely wouldn’t be any different from UX.
Of course not, because the C-HR-derived Lexus is the UX. Both are built on the TNGA-C architecture and even share the same 2,640 mm (103.9 in) wheelbase. What it seems you're speculating on is whether or not there will be a smaller-than-UX TNGA-B Lexus-badged counterpart to Yaris Cross. There has been some talk of this, perhaps as the first Lexus product (other than UX 300e) not offered in North America.

Anyway, enough of this subject here. Please remember this thread is devoted to the Lexus 5LS mid-cycle refresh.
 

TurboLag

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Sebass

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Boom!
View attachment 4176
WTF is that thing on the underside of the headlights? I don't think I like this update, the Headlights look less premium than the previous design, plus they look too small. The radar piece at the bottom of the grille really sticks out like a sore thumb in a really bad way. I hope I grow to like the design.
 
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