2003 Lexus Es300 Base Sedan 4-door 3.0l on 2040-cars

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10 most memorable cars and SUVs of 2019

It's no surprise that a car reviewer will drive a large number of cars over the course of a year. Indeed, when the clock strikes midnight on Dec 31, I will have driven 75 new cars, trucks and SUV this year (and one old Peugeot) over the course of weekly evaluation loans and first drive events. That sure seems like a lot. Some definitely got more attention than others, and some came and went without leaving much of an impression – I completely forgot I drove a Kia Forte. Yet in the spirit of this day, I thought I'd pick the 10 that I would love to see under the Christmas tree tomorrow morning. You know, just in case you were looking to get me something. I'll also throw in a couple disappointments that were memorable for the wrong reasons. They'd get sent back to the store on Boxing Day. Lexus LC 500 Pictured below and resplendent in its Flare Yellow metallic paint, the car that would reach highest on my list is the divine Lexus LC 500. As a devout lover of GT cars, the LC ticks all the boxes. Muscular and characterful engine? V8, check. Beautifully made and memorable interior? It's gorgeous, to hell with Remote Touch. Check. Comfortable and reasonably practical? Superb seats and, uh, yeah. Makes me want to stand there and stare at it? You bet. Though I long figured my heart would say LC but my head "Porsche 911," after this go-around, that's no longer the case. LC, pretty please. 2020-lexus-lc500-f34-2 View 19 Photos Polestar 1 I actually feel lucky that I got to drive the Polestar 1. Only 150 will be produced each year, and it's a far more special thing than it would initially appear. And that's despite initially appearing to be a beautiful, classic two-door GT car with a roof so rakish it's only possible because it's made of carbon fiber. That itÂ’s a massively powerful plug-in hybrid with more all-electric range than any other PHEV is a thick dollop of whipped cream on a slice of Toscakaka. You know, Swedish dessert, Swedish car. Fine, I'll stick to Ikea references.  Polestar1_Launch_SanFrancisco-0014 View 44 Photos Volvo V60 Cross Country Speaking of Sweden, did I drive this car off the road there? Sure did! And despite this, the V60 Cross Country scratches that certain wagon itch and looks sensational to boot. I wish it were available with the T8 plug-in hybrid powertrain, but it's best not to get greedy at Christmas.

Lexus to replace GX SUV with new TX crossover

There's been a lot of news regarding future Lexus products recently, including spy shots of new RC coupe and NX compact crossover, and reports that a 2+2 coupe based on the LF-LC concept is heading for production. Now, Automotive News says that Japan's #1 luxury automaker is planning to replace the fullsize, body-on-frame Lexus GX SUV with a three-row crossover called the TX.
The article says that the GX, which is based on the foreign-market Toyota Land Cruiser Prado, will get a styling update for 2014 before being phased out in 2016. In a similar move as Infiniti made with its new three-row JX/QX60, the new TX will be car-based, but details are still unknown as to whether it will be front-wheel-drive riding on the Toyota Avalon platform or rear-wheel-drive using the Lexus GS platform. Either way, this new luxury crossover could join the Lexus lineup as soon as late 2016.

2022 Lexus NX touchscreen infotainment review

The all-new 2022 Lexus NX’s most important change, improvement and missed opportunity is its equally new Human Machine Interface infotainment system. It also has implications for the entire Lexus brand, because it signals the demise of the unloved Remote Touch tech interface. That such an important development arrives on one of the brand's cheapest vehicles may seem surprising, but it's consistent with the brand's product cycle: Remote Touch's first major upgrade, the infernal touchpad, actually debuted on the original NX. We didn't like it 2014 and that never changed. The new "Human Machine Interface" touchscreen isn't perfect, but it's still a vast improvement. Or rather, both touchscreen choices are vast improvements: a 9.6 unit base unit and a 14-inch widescreen upgrade included in Luxury and F Sport trims. Both share a common, all-new interface developed in the United States that will spread throughout the Lexus lineup. Regardless of size, the screen's lowermost portion is devoted to the climate controls, with physical temperature knobs sticking around along with defroster buttons. The touch icons are large enough, don't omit frequently used choices and always remain on the screen. So does the row of menu icons on the screen's left side, making it easy to go back and forth between screens. Unusually, though, there is no home screen, nor the ability to split the screen to show two sources – for instance, Google Maps on the left and radio information on the right. This would be one of the aforementioned missed opportunities, especially on the 14-inch unit, as split-screen functionality is usually a key benefit of a widescreen format. Not only do rival brands like BMW and Genesis offer this, so do the widescreen displays of Lexus Remote Touch and some Toyotas. According to Technical Communications Lead Chris Pedregon, the decision to only show one thing at once was to highlight the new natural voice command functionality and to "minimize the touch-touch-touch" of using a touchscreen. She also noted that people did not like that the old Lexus NX only had a split screen. Another Lexus representative noted that secondary information, say that radio information, can be shown in the instrument panel. That's the argument, here's the refutation. First, saying "Hey Lexus" followed by a command can be just as frustrating and/or futile as it is with any other voice recognition system.