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In Memory of Hiromu Naruse

Today, the automotive world lost an icon — Toyota’s Chief Test Driver Hiromu Naruse was killed in an accident outside of the Nürburgring racetrack while driving a Lexus LFA Nürburgring prototype. Naruse-sama was influential in the development of every production sports car produced by Toyota, from the 2000GT to the MR-S, and was so widely …

Kevin · June 23rd, 2010

World’s Smallest Lexus Enthusiast

Just a personal note to explain the radio silence of the last couple days: Much to the excitement of my wife Karissa & I, our daughter, Pepper Gwendolyn Watts, was born yesterday — making her the world’s smallest (and youngest!) Lexus enthusiast. As you can imagine, life gets turned upside down with a new baby, …

Kevin · June 18th, 2010

Lexus Dark Ride VIP Card Giveaway

As part of their Dark Ride campaign for the CT 200h, Lexus USA is issuing special VIP cards that bring some very exclusive benefits — including fast-track entry to clubs, free cocktails, & limited edition items. Here’s just a small sample of the perks: 20% off best available rates at notable boutique hotels such as …

Kevin · June 10th, 2010

Lexus Performance Registry Now on Lexus USA Website

After our week and a half preview here at The Lexus Enthusiast, Lexus has launched the Performance Registry on their website as part of a larger Inside F performance section. Inside F, as you would imagine, is dedicated to the Lexus’ growing performance lineup, with information on the LFA, IS F, LS Sport, and all …

Kevin · June 4th, 2010

Lexus Performance Registry

Major news today! Next month, Lexus USA will be launching a worldwide Performance Registry on their website — but it’s been opened early for Lexus Enthusiast readers! The registry will be an online resource that will let enthusiasts share information on their Lexus vehicles and connect with other owners — making it easy to tap …

Kevin · May 24th, 2010

Lexus LFA Desktop Wallpapers

During my trip to the Lexus F-Sport event in New Jersey, I took over 600 photos — including 350 of the LFA alone — so I thought I would share my favorite three images as desktop wallpapers: Select Resolution: 1680×1050 | 1440×900 | 1280×1024 | 1280×800 | 1024×768 Select Resolution: 1680×1050 | 1440×900 | 1280×1024 …

Kevin · May 20th, 2010

Video Interview with Scott Pruett

One of the best things about attending the Lexus F-Sport event in New Jersey was the chance to meet Scott Pruett, the very successful race car driver that also happens to handle the LFA hot-laps. Scott is such a well spoken and knowledgeable guy, and his insight into the LFA was really something to hear …

Kevin · May 18th, 2010

Driving the Lexus LFA

Picture the most intense, heart-pounding roller-coaster ride of your life, only instead of rails and a cart, you’re strapped into a prototype supercar driven by a race car driver. That was the scene two weeks ago at the New Jersey Motorsports Park, where I found myself in the passenger seat of Lexus USA’s (formerly matte …

Kevin · May 17th, 2010

TLE Issues Resolved

Regular readers may have noticed some general weirdness with TLE since its move to WordPress a couple days ago — unfortunately, with a site move of this size, there were a number of unforeseen issues, including some problems with viewing articles and leaving comments. I’m happy to say that the most of these problems have …

Kevin · May 6th, 2010

The Lexus Enthusiast 6.0

Welcome to The Lexus Enthusiast 6.0! Now running on the WordPress platform, this new edition of TLE was made necessary due to reasons too numerous and technical to mention, but rest assured, the switchover will be well worth it. The most obvious change is the content slider at the top of the homepage, which should …

Kevin · May 5th, 2010

Lexus F-Sport Event Today in New Jersey

Just a reminder that the Lexus F-Sport event at the New Jersey Motorsports Park is happening today—there’s still time to book a spot, but not for much longer. As mentioned last week, I will be at the event all day—in fact, I was at the track today as part of a early preview, where I …

Kevin · April 28th, 2010

Lexus New Jersey F-Sport Event Next Week

A couple weeks back, Lexus USA announced an April 29th F-Sport event at the New Jersey Motor Park, and today, I’m happy to say I will be attending. I didn’t want to miss my chance at a hot-lap in the LFA with Scott Pruett, so I’ll be making the eight-hour drive down to New Jersey …

Kevin · April 21st, 2010

Lexus RX 450h Review

My three month winter road test of the 2010 Lexus RX 450h wrapped up last month, and it’s safe to say that the experience has changed my opinion of Lexus’ most popular vehicle. It’s not that I didn’t understand the success of the RXh — from a purely practical point, it’s easy to see how …

Kevin · April 11th, 2010

Exclusive Interview with Lexus CT 200h Chief Engineer

Although I wasn’t able to attend the Geneva auto show and see the Lexus CT 200h debut in person, I did get a very special chance to virtually interview the two men central to the creation of Lexus’ new hatchback model. By way of the good folks at Lexus Europe, I sent questions by email …

Kevin · April 6th, 2010

Lexus RX 450h Service Appointment

Last week, right before my long-term Lexus RX 450h loaner was set to be returned to Lexus Canada, I had the opportunity to bring it to my local Lexus dealership, Performance Lexus in St. Catharines, Ontario, for its 8,000km oil change.

Kevin · March 17th, 2010

Interview with Toyota Canada’s Stephen Beatty

I had a chance at last week’s Toronto Auto Show to have a quick chat with Toyota Canada’s Managing Director, Steven Beatty, about the growing Canadian Lexus sales and the possibility of a production LF-Ch coming to Canada (keep in mind that this conversation took place before Lexus’ announcement of the CT 200h). TLE: In …

Kevin · February 15th, 2010

(Re)Introducing the New TLE Comment Moderator

Much to my excitement, The Lexus Enthusiast community has been growing steadily over the last few months. There’s now dozens of frequent commenters with diverse insight and strong opinions, and it’s been one of my favorite things to watch as the site builds in popularity. In order to best serve this community, I’ve asked frequent …

Kevin · February 9th, 2010

2010 Lexus RX 450h Long Term Review: Week 8

Even with the winter weather, one of the real pleasures during my time with the 2010 Lexus RX 450h has been driving at night. It all starts with the on-demand all-wheel drive system—there hasn’t been a single slip, really nothing more than a flash of the yellow traction light, and that brings a lot of …

Kevin · February 7th, 2010

Lexus Taiwan Commercial: Perfect

Prepare yourself for what may be the greatest Lexus garage setup ever: Classic. The only thing, the car selection’s a little dated—I think my four-Lexus rotating garage would comprise of: LFA, GS 450h, LS 460 AWD & a GX 460 for the wife. How about you?

Kevin · January 24th, 2010

Lexus LFA @ The Detroit Auto Show

After a concentrated effort, I finally got through all of my Lexus LFA photos from the Detroit Auto Show—seeing the LFA for the first time was a funny experience. After all the hours writing about it, poring over photos, watching videos, there wasn’t much room for surprise—or so I thought. From a distance, the LFA …

Kevin · January 20th, 2010

VIP Auto Salon Lexus HS 250h @ The Detroit Auto Show

The modified Lexus HS 250h at the Detroit Auto Show was the centerpiece of the entire Lexus exhibit. Put together by Clark Ishihara and VIP Auto Salon, the HSh is decked out in Branew—front under-spoiler, side skirts, rear under-spoiler, trunk spoiler, stainless steel muffler, and the 20” wheels all come from the Japanese tuning company. …

Kevin · January 18th, 2010

Lexus NAIAS Detroit Exhibit Photos

I’m now settled back at home after two days at NAIAS in Detroit, faced with the task of going through the 700 photos stored on my camera’s memory card. In a very real way, the auto show was overwhelming—I don’t know that I was prepared for the scope of it. Of course, getting to see …

Kevin · January 13th, 2010

Lexus @ NAIAS Detroit Auto Show

The North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit opens its doors on Monday, and while Lexus won’t be debuting any new vehicles or concepts this year, they will be trying something new with their exhibit—from the press release: Gone is the previous two-story structure with sweeping staircase. This year, the exhibit has a “landscape” …

Kevin · January 8th, 2010

Poll Results: Favorite Lexus of the Past Decade

Last week, I asked you to vote for your favorite Lexus of the past decade—510 votes later, here are the results: Ranking 1. Lexus IS F 20% 2. Lexus 2nd Gen IS 16% 3. Lexus 4th Gen LS 13% The IS F received 1 of every 5 votes and took the poll with ease, not …

Kevin · January 7th, 2010

2010 Lexus RX 450h Long Term Report: Weeks 2 & 3

Travelled: 1077km (669 miles) Gas Mileage: 8.8l/100kms (26.7 mpg) The second and third week of my 2010 Lexus RX 450h road test blended in together as I powered through day after day of holiday visiting, a pile of snow and ice, and a lengthy head cold. It was in this blur of activity that I …

Kevin · January 4th, 2010

Happy New Year!

2010 is ringing in all over the world, I just wanted to take this opportunity to wish all of you a Happy New Year! Much happened over 2009—we saw the introduction of the LFA right in the middle of an automotive market meltdown, the LF-Ch and the promise of a compact Lexus, the long awaited …

Kevin · December 31st, 2009

Poll: Favorite Lexus of the 2000s

As we prepare for the new year, let’s take a moment to look back on the decade that was by voting on the top Lexus of the 2000s: For me, this was a hard choice between the third generation LS & first generation GS hybrid, but after much deliberation, the GSh won out: On its …

Kevin · December 31st, 2009

Happy Holidays!

The festive season has arrived, and I would like to take this opportunity to wish every one of my readers a safe and happy holidays! Regular posting will resume December 28th with a report on how the RXh handled the holidays, along with some year-end wrap-ups and what to expect in 2010. All my best, …

Kevin · December 24th, 2009

2010 Lexus RX 450h Long Term Report: Week 1

Last week, I took the delivery of my first long-term road test vehicle from Lexus Canada—a 2010 Smoky Granite Mica RX 450h: This is the full deal—an RX 450h with the Ultra Luxury package that includes Heads-Up Display, rear entertainment system, LED headlights, and fifteen-speaker Mark Levinson audio system. As far as I can tell, …

Kevin · December 21st, 2009

Lexus GX 460 First Impressions

I wanted to wait a little while after the Lexus GX 460’s introduction before weighing in with my own impressions of the SUV, which I had a chance to see for myself at a Lexus Canada sneak peek dinner a couple weeks ago. Much like the RX redesign, the new GX is a more masculine …

Kevin · December 3rd, 2009

Happy Thanksgiving!

I wanted to take this opportunity to wish all of my American readers a warm and plentiful Thanksgiving! Please drive safe if you have travels ahead of you, and enjoy this time with your family over the holiday weekend. All the best, Kevin Watts, Editor, The Lexus Enthusiast.

Kevin · November 26th, 2009

Lexus Enthusiast 5.0

Welcome to the latest edition of The Lexus Enthusiast! Developed over a two-month period, this is the fifth redesign of the site since its debut in May 2007. First off, some key points: The entire site navigation has been simplified and reworked—gone is the needlessly complicated model database, and in its place is a simple …

Kevin · November 21st, 2009

Lexus Celebrates 20th Anniversary

Today marks the 20th anniversary of Lexus! On this very day in 1989, opened the dealership doors in the United States, and has since gone on to become the bestselling luxury brand in the country, and the fourth largest luxury car brand in the world. To mark the occasion, I thought it would be fitting …

Kevin · September 1st, 2009

Spending Time with the 2010 Lexus HS 250h

Recently, I had a chance to get a quick look at a Lexus HS 250h prototype that was being used to develop dealership training materials by the people at Lexus Canada. Glenn Alkema of the Lexus Academy was nice enough to give me a tour of the new hybrid, which will be introduced here in …

Kevin · August 31st, 2009

Lexus IS-F Photo Gallery: Niagara-on-the-Lake

Niagara-on-the-Lake is a small town in Southern Ontario, full of historical significance and now home to some of the finest wine country in Canada. Over the last few years, a new collection of exceptionally modern looking wineries have been cropping up, and I thought it the perfect backdrop to some IS-F photos: {embed=“site/gallery” gallery_id=“1271”} (Really …

Kevin · July 27th, 2009

Lexus IS-F Week

Earlier this month, I picked up a 2009 Lexus IS-F from Lexus Canada, and over the course of a week, had the most fun I’ve ever had in a car. Everything happens very fast with the IS-F—I only had to drive Lexus’ super sedan five seconds before I knew it was something special, and a …

Kevin · July 27th, 2009

Minor Site Changes

As part of ongoing improvements, The Lexus Enthusiast has received a slight design refresh. The changes are subtle, but are meant to bring some added polish to the website. To fix any problems you may be seeing, hold down the Shift key and click Refresh in your browser. If you continue to have any issues …

Kevin · July 25th, 2009

2009 Lexus LX 570 Review

The 2009 Lexus LX 570 is, at its very heart, a contradictory vehicle. After all, Lexus’ flagship SUV attempts to bridge together two contrary styles — ultimate luxury and ultimate utility. It seats eight, yet has a fixed rear axle and can tow up to 8,500 lbs(3,856 kg). It’s packed with every conceivable automotive luxury …

Kevin · July 10th, 2009

Correction

By some fluke, the software that runs this website ate the final revision of my IS 350c & RX 450h story and published an earlier draft. I have rewritten the missing parts and the post has been updated. Sorry for any confusion this may have caused.

Kevin · June 23rd, 2009

Lexus IS Convertible Wallpapers: Up and Down

While I didn’t take too many photos at the Lexus event last week, I did manage to find a great location for a couple IS 350C shots, and thought it would be something to put up wallpapers with the both the top-down and top-up: 1680×1050 | 1440×900 | 1280×1024 | 1280×800 | 1024×768 1680×1050 | …

Kevin · June 23rd, 2009

Driving the Lexus RX 450h & Lexus IS 350C

This past Friday, I attended a Lexus Canada press event in Kingston, Ontario, where I had the opportunity to test out the 2010 RX 450h and the IS 350C convertible. After an a quick briefing, we all loaded up into our first vehicle of the day and set out on a route through the surrounding …

Kevin · June 23rd, 2009

Lexus LX570 Photo Gallery: Industrial Waterway

Next up in my 2009 Lexus LX 570 photo galleries is a collection of three different locations—Lake Ontario (looking more like a windy Hawaii), an abandoned steel mill, and along the Welland Canal: {embed=“site/gallery” gallery_id=“1192”} One of my favorite things about taking LX photos was trying to make it look as tiny as possible. Image …

Kevin · June 9th, 2009

2009 Lexus LX570 Photo Gallery: Out in the Wilderness

There are some tight & twisty roads in my area, and this first set of Lexus LX 570 photos are taken at the only stop on one of my favorites: {embed=“site/gallery” gallery_id=“1188”} The LX 570 engine roared climbing some of the massive hills, like driving the world’s smoothest, best handling tank.

Kevin · June 8th, 2009

Lexus LX Week

Yesterday, I returned the 2009 Lexus LX 570 to Lexus Canada, much to the chagrin of my entire extended family. Being able to seat eight turned every drive into an event, and everyone was sad to see the giant SUV go. Over the course of ten days, I drove 1386 km (862 miles) and averaged …

Kevin · June 8th, 2009

Lexus Enthusiast Contest Winners

The deadline is up, all the entries are in, and it’s time to announce the winners of the Lexus Enthusiast Second Anniversary Contest! There were over 500 contestants from around the globe—five names were randomly selected—here they are: USA Detailing Kit prize pack: Aaron Seligman USA Lexus Logos prize pack: Andrew Patterson Canadian IS-F prize …

Kevin · June 5th, 2009

24 Hours Left to Enter Lexus Enthusiast Anniversary Contest

Just wanted to remind everyone that there’s only 24 hours left to enter The Lexus Enthusiast Second Anniversary Contest—winners will be announced tomorrow at 3PM EST (7:00 UTC). Anyone from the USA, Canada or the European Union can enter, with prizes provided by VAIS Technology, Sewell Lexus, Bel-Air Lexus and Lexus UK. For full details …

Kevin · June 4th, 2009

Spending Time with the 2009 Lexus LX 570

Late last week, I picked up a review LX 570 from Lexus Canada with more than a little anxiety. After all, this is a two ton, sixteen-foot tank of a vehicle, immense in every sense of the word, and I had to jump straight into big-city traffic immediately after taking the keys. Intimidating. Of course, …

Kevin · June 3rd, 2009

The Lexus Enthusiast Second Anniversary Contest

Hard to believe, but it was two years ago today that I started posting daily Lexus news at The Passionate Pursuit. Since then, the site has gone through a name change, four redesigns, eight million pageviews, over 1,000 news stories, and close to 5,000 comments on its way to becoming a premier source of Lexus …

Kevin · May 29th, 2009

2009 Lexus GS 450h Review

The first time I saw the third-generation Lexus GS, I didn’t like it one bit. Compared to the previous generation’s sharp, aggressive lines, the current GS seemed to lack any real visual punch. In particular, I really disliked the rear third of the car, and constantly referred to it as “frumpy” at any opportunity. At …

Kevin · April 28th, 2009

Spending Time with the 2009 Lexus IS 250 AWD

Early this morning, I made my way to Toyota Canada’s corporate HQ outside of Toronto and took possession of a Lexus IS 250 for review. It’s the AWD config, an automatic, with Truffle Mica exterior and Ecru leather interior, a very flattering combination. The rest of the day was spent powering through highway traffic and …

Kevin · March 30th, 2009

New Beginnings

Hello, and welcome to The Lexus Enthusiast, otherwise known as the new and improved version of The Passionate Pursuit. As promised, the name change is the first step in some major improvements coming to the site, in fact, today’s changes also include a move to a new software platform. WordPress, which has powered the site …

Kevin · March 25th, 2009

The Toronto Auto Show & Some Site News

It’s a bit last minute, but I’ll be heading to the Canadian International Auto Show tomorrow in Toronto, where I’m finally going to get chance to see the Lexus IS-F (among other assorted vehicles). It’s my first auto show in years, and I’m really looking forward to it. As expected, I’ll be taking a ton …

Kevin · February 22nd, 2008

Lexus & Team One are looking for your Lexus photos

Team One, the company behind Lexus’ advertising in the US, recently contacted me about a great opportunity for Lexus owners to show off their cars. Right now, they’re looking for photos of you and your Lexus for an upcoming project, here are the details: The photo has to be of you with your Lexus, not …

Kevin · February 18th, 2008

The Passionate Pursuit Version 2.0 Coming

Before launching this site in June 2007, I made up a list of rules that I wanted to follow, and the very first thing I wrote down was “Leave the site design alone for six months.” As a professional web designer, I have a tendency to tweak sites obsessively, but in this case I wanted …

Kevin · February 9th, 2008

Lexus in 2007: A Brief Recap

Right from the very start, 2007 was a year of controversy for Lexus. In January, the Detroit Auto Show saw the introduction of the IS-F and the F-Sport line. The F-Division is meant to be Lexus’ answer to Mercedes’ AMG and BMW’s M-Division, and it was a move that was criticized from all angles over …

Kevin · December 31st, 2007

Happy Holidays from The Passionate Pursuit

No matter how unsubtle my hints were, I have some real doubts that I’ll be getting an Lexus LS 600hL for Christmas, December to Remember or no. Hopefully, some of you out there have better luck! (Posting will resume on Boxing Day December 27th. Santa left me the flu for Christmas.)

Kevin · December 24th, 2007

Lexus ES Shopping

It’s been a long time coming, but tomorrow begins my search for a suitable car for my girlfriend, Karissa. Having driven a 1993 Toyota 4runner for the last five years, she’s looking for an upgrade in comfort, gas mileage and safety. Of course, it’s going to be a Lexus. Now, there was talk of buying …

Kevin · December 12th, 2007

Car Magazine, The Lexus LF-Xh, and Some Photoshop Fun

Car Magazine has put in their two cents regarding the design of the Lexus LF-Xh concept, and they like what they see: The concept’s exterior dimensions are similar to the RX400h’s, but crucially massaged in all the right ways to alleviate the current model’s slightly ungainly ‘body-disconnected-from-its wheels’ stance. The LF-Xh is longer and wider …

Kevin · October 25th, 2007

Site News: Most Popular, Latest Comments, & A WSJ Mention

With comments picking up and some of my older posts drawing in daily traffic, I have added links to the latest comments and most popular posts to the sidebar, underneath the category links. *** Though I’m sure it’s probably automated, my site has been linked to from a Wall Street Journal article dealing with strategic …

Kevin · September 16th, 2007

The White Lexus IS-F Revelation

After yesterday’s lengthy post examining Lexus’ decision to create their F-Division, I was left with an uncomfortable feeling, and it was quite clear to me where it was coming from. There is, and will always be, a distinct difference between theory and practice, and while I think it’s important for Lexus as a brand to …

Kevin · September 13th, 2007

TPP Improvements

With the rather exciting interest my Lexus Body Kit Series has been generating, this site has started to grow in traffic significantly, and now seems like the perfect time to start rolling out some planned site improvements. If my estimations are correct, there are over twenty-five changes and features in the pipeline, which I will …

Kevin · August 18th, 2007

Site of the Week: LexLS.com

For any old-school LS 400 owners handy with a torque wrench and a willingness to get their hands dirty, there is no site better than Lexls.com: This site is jampacked with a range of useful information, with everything from changing your oil to replacing your timing belt/water pump. Each tutorial is extremely well written and …

Kevin · July 21st, 2007

Start

It all started with the LS400. I remember the first time I noticed one, admittedly mistaking it for a Mercedes, only to see that silver L and think I’d seen something rare, like a Ferrari or a Lamborgini. Of course, that wasn’t the case, but the truth impressed me even more, a Japanese Luxury brand, …

Kevin · May 29th, 2007

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