- Thread starter ssun30
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They won't see a better one with an ev IS. Early 2021 the IS was one of the top selling vehicles, just with a sexy reskin. Now they will see a better business case with revamping it and scrapping a 15 year old platform and engine. I just don't now why Lexus isn't thinking like this. IS is the only hope of true Lexus performance since they don't wanna be boring anymore (think RX500h FSP as a step forward).
Boosted V35 I think is capable with 475hp reliably + 10 speed and lighter than current RCF will be a delight. They could do a hybrid as well with 500hp+. One can dream though.
Oh I thought this was some completely new system. The 30kW small e-Four has been on the market for a while now...
The old unit had so little power because it is an induction motor system and uses no PM.
Naveelttil97
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Remember, there was the IS600+ at SEMA this year with a 600hp retune of the V35!
https://lexusenthusiast.com/2022/11/02/sema-2022-the-600-horsepower-lexus-is-600-by-dsport/
A V35A-powered IS with the 10-speed that shifted as quickly as it does in the LC would be a dream.
dylanfoos
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Would be awesome to get this in production… Wonder if Lexus will ever add a track edition to the is500 as well…
Yea but on different fuel. A realistic tune would be 475hp 450lb-ft in an ISF
Too little. That is barely more than 2UR. Also it needs AWD. RWD is so yesterday in terms of performance. Germans don’t do RWD anymore.
Yea that's on the conservative side, but you're getting much more torque at low rpms. If it was the same weight as RCF but with awd and 10 speed it'll be way faster.
MichaelL
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Germans don’t do RWD anymore? Say what? M2 is only RWD, M3 and 4 are available with RWD….
Exceptions are not the norm. These cars you mentioned, so as a few other you didn’t are exceptions.
dylanfoos
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Everytime they introduce an AWD option, sales of the RWD model instantly collapse. People vote with their wallets. Vast majority of German performance cars they sell now is AWD.
dylanfoos
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2023 RC refresh from Kirk...
"The updates will make it more dynamic and quality riding comfort. The RC F is also pursuing more F like rides by reviewing the body elasticity layout and improving the D-range paddle shift gear control to achieve higher handling performance in circuit driving"
Check it out -
"The updates will make it more dynamic and quality riding comfort. The RC F is also pursuing more F like rides by reviewing the body elasticity layout and improving the D-range paddle shift gear control to achieve higher handling performance in circuit driving"
Check it out -
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It's a fan car. Do you seriously think any major car maker will produce a fan car? It's a hill climb special that only needs to last a few km after which the tyres will disintegrate form the extreme downforce.
There's a very good reason in most on-road racing series AWD is either banned or heavily handicapped.
There's a very good reason in most on-road racing series AWD is either banned or heavily handicapped.
Gecko
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Quick thought, I've been tossing this around my head for a while.
Myself and others jokingly refer to ~2010 - 2020 as Lexus' "lost decade" because aside from the LFA, all product development was fairly stale or refreshes of old parts and platforms for most of ten years. The thinking at this time was that Lexus was "rebooting" to unleash a new round of turbo 4-6-8 cylinder engines, hybrids and all new platforms that would take the market by storm.
Part of that materialized and part of it didn't. We have the T24A and V35A turbocharged motors and GA-K, but GA-L turned out to be a poorly packaged and developed platform in many ways. The new "500h" powertrain is probably Lexus' best, but the LS 500h and LC 500h mostly use refreshed versions of the old GS 450h's hybrid system mated to the multi-stage transmission. GX and LX went this entire period with no change and the LS went 11 years before a redesign. We have no new V8 and the promise of new Lexus performance cars never happened -- we're still using the 2UR V8 and versions of the "New N" platform in IS 500 and RC F.
While Lexus half delivered on that "reboot" period while we all waited, the market didn't wait at all. The switch to EVs has happened hard, fast and Lexus (nor Toyota) were prepared or correctly invested for the change. The appetite for high power ICE motors in luxury cars is quickly waning, not that Lexus had much to offer there anyway. But my point here is: Around 2020 is when the viability of electric cars became real thanks to Tesla, and Audi, BMW and Mercedes were able to quickly pivot and build a strategy over the last 3 years. Lexus has yet to put a ground-up EV into production and Toyota's tech is certainly behind... look at bZ-4x issues and RZ delay. Lexus' promise to be fully EV by 2030 puts them another step behind the market... not quite a decade, but at this pace, not far off either.
If and when Lexus delivers a competitive EV lineup, it will be nearly two decades that Lexus has been their own worst enemy with product planning by being behind or being wrong. Missing out on the turbocharged ICE years and also the early EV years... you really have to wonder exactly what has been going on behind the scenes.
All of this does make me wonder if for as great as he's been to Toyota, if Akio is the right man for Lexus. We are lucky that the GR V6 and UR V8 have been such great engines because while they have never been able to touch their turbocharged or electric competitors, they have had a lasting charm in their own rights, and legendary reliability. But that is also a story of what could have been and quite frankly never happened -- much like Lexus itself.
Myself and others jokingly refer to ~2010 - 2020 as Lexus' "lost decade" because aside from the LFA, all product development was fairly stale or refreshes of old parts and platforms for most of ten years. The thinking at this time was that Lexus was "rebooting" to unleash a new round of turbo 4-6-8 cylinder engines, hybrids and all new platforms that would take the market by storm.
Part of that materialized and part of it didn't. We have the T24A and V35A turbocharged motors and GA-K, but GA-L turned out to be a poorly packaged and developed platform in many ways. The new "500h" powertrain is probably Lexus' best, but the LS 500h and LC 500h mostly use refreshed versions of the old GS 450h's hybrid system mated to the multi-stage transmission. GX and LX went this entire period with no change and the LS went 11 years before a redesign. We have no new V8 and the promise of new Lexus performance cars never happened -- we're still using the 2UR V8 and versions of the "New N" platform in IS 500 and RC F.
While Lexus half delivered on that "reboot" period while we all waited, the market didn't wait at all. The switch to EVs has happened hard, fast and Lexus (nor Toyota) were prepared or correctly invested for the change. The appetite for high power ICE motors in luxury cars is quickly waning, not that Lexus had much to offer there anyway. But my point here is: Around 2020 is when the viability of electric cars became real thanks to Tesla, and Audi, BMW and Mercedes were able to quickly pivot and build a strategy over the last 3 years. Lexus has yet to put a ground-up EV into production and Toyota's tech is certainly behind... look at bZ-4x issues and RZ delay. Lexus' promise to be fully EV by 2030 puts them another step behind the market... not quite a decade, but at this pace, not far off either.
If and when Lexus delivers a competitive EV lineup, it will be nearly two decades that Lexus has been their own worst enemy with product planning by being behind or being wrong. Missing out on the turbocharged ICE years and also the early EV years... you really have to wonder exactly what has been going on behind the scenes.
All of this does make me wonder if for as great as he's been to Toyota, if Akio is the right man for Lexus. We are lucky that the GR V6 and UR V8 have been such great engines because while they have never been able to touch their turbocharged or electric competitors, they have had a lasting charm in their own rights, and legendary reliability. But that is also a story of what could have been and quite frankly never happened -- much like Lexus itself.
Spot on. Lexus is too behind in turbo engines and evs. Only blindfolded Lexus fanboys dont see it.
I agree with a lot of what you said. Just when we start to see Lexus is getting some momentum, it feels like they are slipping back again.