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New Toyota Supra may get a twin-turbo Lexus V6

We've heard endless rumors that a successor to the much loved and much missed Toyota Supra is in the works. Toyota hasn't done much to deny these conversations. On the contrary, the FT-1 concept from two years ago and the partnership with BMW have only fueled the fire. Now, talk of a new Lexus engine has led to speculation about the supposed Supra's powertrain. To be clear, this is mostly heresay. Few things have actually been confirmed, but based on what we know a few conclusions can be drawn. We know that BMW and Toyota are working on a joint product. We've seen mules testing out in the wild. In BMW guise, the possibly Austrian-built car will more than likely powered by turbocharged inline four and six-cylinder engines. Unless Toyota wants to use Bimmer power, they'll need to shoehorn one of their own under the hood. That leads us to this rumor of a twin-turbocharged V6 that will presumably power the new Lexus GS and LS. Japanese automotive publication Mag-X first reported on this engine. It was then picked up by YouWheel and Car Keys. Mag-X cites Toyota insiders and even gives an engine code, 943F. This engine allegedly will make more than 400 horsepower and more than 300 lb-ft of torque. While unconfirmed, this makes sense for Lexus. Nearly every luxury competitor has a six-cylinder engine with forced induction. While Toyota has previously had turbocharged inline-sixes, they've never produced a factory turbo V6. Every automaker is downsizing engines in an effort to meet fuel economy and emissions regulations. Toyota and Lexus will follow suit. Taking that V6 and tuning it for a performance application is a solid, if unverified, possibility. Related Video:

Satisfaction with dealer service rises, Lexus and GMC are tops

During the economic downturn, many car dealerships counteracted their slowing income by focusing on things that would set them apart from competition - things like the quality of customer service they provide. When the economy picked up and more sales and service followed, many also first invested those funds back into the business, improving their dealership facilities and service centers.
It looks like those investments are paying off, as J.D. Power and Associates' latest Customer Service Index Study shows that overall consumer satisfaction with dealer service has increased to 797 (on a 1,000-point scale), up from 787 in 2012 and 29 points higher than the score in 2011. The study also finds that people are more satisfied with the service they get at dealerships compared to independent service providers, despite the much higher average out-of-pocket cost per visit ($118 vs. $44).
Note, however, that this study only looks at how people are treated by a dealer's service department during the first three years of ownership (the survey is based on responses from 91,000 owners and lessees of 2008 to 2012 model year vehicles), so we're talking about the experience had when bringing a car in for repair or maintenance work, most likely under warranty. In fact, maintenance work is increasing in share and accounted for 77 percent of service visits (up from 72 percent in 2012 and 63 percent in 2011). This helps explain why customer satisfaction has also risen, since a properly maintained car is one that's less likely to require a dealer visit for an unexpected repair.

Lexus goes from land yachts to water yachts with this boat concept

Just this week, Lexus unveiled its fully redesigned flagship, the LS sedan. But the term "flagship" seems a bit misplaced now that Lexus has revealed an actual ship. Well, the Lexus Sport Yacht may be a bit small to be called a ship, but it's as close as many automakers will get. According to Toyota, the idea for the boat came about when the company's CEO, Akio Toyoda, was trying out one of the marine division's new yachts that use Toyota diesel engines. He wanted to see what a sporty, luxury yacht using Lexus design would be like. At his behest, the Toyota Marine Department and Lexus got to work on the concept you see here. More than a clay model, this is a fully-functional nautical machine. The Lexus Sport Yacht was constructed from carbon fiber by Marquis-Carver Yacht Group in Wisconsin, and has a pair of V8 engines shared with the Lexus RC F (and GS F, and LC500). You can even see through the clear engine compartment cover that they share the same bright blue-painted intake manifolds. Compared with the automotive applications, each engine makes a bit less power at 440 horsepower. When you have two of them, though, that becomes less important. Together the engines' roughly 880 horsepower can propel the boat to a top speed of 49 mph. The Lexus Sport Yacht comes complete with many luxury amenities. There's seating for eight on the deck. Two of those seats fold out from either side of the captain's chair "for very special guests." The captain also has access to a pair of touchscreens, a small one in the wheel and a massive one ahead of it for instruments and other information. Down below, the forward passenger cabin is loaded with leather, wood, air conditioning, a table, and sofa seating for six. The yacht's galley has a sink, refrigerator, and stove, and the bathroom comes complete with a shower. Don't expect to see the yacht on sale anytime soon, since this is just a concept at the moment. That being said, luxury automakers, including Aston Martin and Mercedes, have started competing in the yacht market. And while Toyota's marine division hasn't built a pleasure boat since the Epic line, it probably wouldn't be too difficult for the company to start building this Lexus. Related Video: