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Watch an Aventador, Viper and LFA play the songs of their people

Our friends at Road & Track recently stopped by Cars and Coffee in Irvine, California, with the 2013 SRT Viper and found themselves a place to park between a Lamborghini Aventador and a Lexus LFA. Those machines might as well be the three musketeers of ludicrous exhaust notes, and rather than keep those 24 raging cylinders muffled, R&T set about conducting an orchestra of internal combustion. On seeing these three lined up, we were more than prepared to call the Viper victorious when it came to tickling our ear drums, but the latest domestic V10 sounds down right civilized in this company.
If we're picking favorites, we have to say the LFA takes the cake. There's something about the noise of a street-legal V10 that can wrap it's tachometer all the way to 9,000 rpm that turns our knees to quivering dollops of jelly. Check out the clip below for a listen. We shouldn't need to tell you to get frisky with the volume.

Final Lexus IS F rolls off assembly line in Japan, bound for US

We knew this day would come, but it's nonetheless a bit of a sad one for Lexus enthusiasts as the very last example of the IS F has rolled off the assembly line in Tahara, Japan. Decked out in its trademark bright blue, the final IS F is destined for a customer right here in the United States.
Far from just another now-defunct model in an endless succession, the IS F marked the first time that Lexus did a proper performance model, debuting in production guise at the 2007 Detroit Auto Show alongside the LFA concept long before the latter entered production and took the idea of the high-performance Lexus even further. The IS F may not have sold in huge numbers, but it definitely marked a milestone for Toyota's luxury division.
Don't cry too much, however, as the new RC F that effectively takes its place packs an even mightier punch. While both are powered by essentially the same 5.0-liter V8 engine mated to an eight-speed automatic driving the rear wheels, the outgoing sedan's 416 horsepower and 371 pound-feet of torque is easily outgunned by the new coupe's 450 hp and 383 lb-ft.

Why Lexus shies away from plug-in hybrids

Lexus may have softened its stance a bit from the anti plug-in vehicle ads the Toyota luxury badge ran last year, but at least one executive from the company casts a pretty critical eye towards the concept as a way to cut both emissions and refueling costs. In fact, Lexus doesn't really buy the fact that buyers of plug-in hybrids are really looking to save both gas and the environment, Green Car Reports says, citing an interview at the recent New York Auto Show with Lexus executive Mark Templin. Templin also said hydrogen fuel-cell technology may be a better way to edge towards zero emissions. Templin decried plug-in hybrid technology because it adds weight to vehicles, which contributes to poor emissions figures in the process. He added that plug-in vehicle buyers are motivated more by potential tax credits and solo driving rights in high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes than cutting back on fuel use. Last summer, Lexus ran an supposedly tongue-in-cheek print ad poking fun at how long it takes to charge a plug-in vehicle and how using air conditioning can shorten a car's charging range. Last spring, Lexus had to backpedal from an anti-electric ad it ran that had serious mistakes about hydrogen infrastructure. News Source: Green Car Reports Green Lexus Toyota Hybrid PHEV