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Lexus prices the new 2021 IS below most of its main rivals

As an outlier in a shrinking segment, the 2021 Lexus IS faces an uphill battle. Product planners know this, so they've priced the new model below most of its main rivals without compromising on content or performance. Unveiled in June 2020, the 2021 IS range consists of the entry-level 300 and the sportier 350 F-Sport, and each is offered with rear- or all-wheel drive. Pricing for the rear-wheel drive IS 300 starts at $40,025 including a mandatory $1,025 destination charge, which represents a mere $440 increase over the outgoing 2020 model. Adding all-wheel drive raises that figure to $42,025. Motorists who step up to the 350 F-Sport will need to pay $43,925 if they want power sent to the rear axle, or $45,925 if they want it channeled to the four wheels. The list of standard features includes 18-inch wheels (an inch bigger than before), numerous electronic driving aids, power-adjustable front seats (10-way for the driver; eight-way for the front passenger), dual-zone automatic climate control, and an eight-inch touchscreen that's nearly five and a half inches closer to the driver than the outgoing model's. Motorists can pay extra for 19-inch wheels, a power-operated moonroof, and a 10.3-inch touchscreen. And, at last, the IS is available with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity. Lexus shuffled its trim hierarchy for 2021, so the F Sport package is no longer available on the IS 300, but it's fitted to every IS 350 built for the American market. It bundles a cold-air intake, a specific exhaust system, a sound generator, 19-inch wheels, a sprinkling of F Sport badges, plus a body kit that adds bits like a rear spoiler and a diffuser integrated into the rear bumper. Heated and ventilated front seats are included, too. 2021 Lexus IS View 25 Photos Power for the rear-wheel drive IS 300 comes from a turbocharged, 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine, which develops 241 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque. It's bolted to an eight-speed automatic transmission. While you'd assume the all-wheel drive model simply gains a pair of driven wheels, the transformation is more complex. It also receives a 3.5-liter V6 with 260 horsepower and 236 pound-feet of torque on tap, plus a six-speed automatic transmission. Lexus notes the system can send up to 50% of the engine's output to the front axles. Selecting the IS 350 brings an evolution of the 3.5-liter six that's rated at 311 horses and 280 pound-feet of twist.

Toyota to enter modern turbo four-cylinder era with Lexus crossover

Toyota has sat quietly on the sidelines as many of its competitors have armed themselves in recent years with lower-displacement turbocharged four-cylinder engines in an effort to gain better fuel efficiency numbers and flatter power curves. It's a strategy largely shared by fellow countryman Honda, who turned away from offering forced-induction four-cylinder models in North America after its first-generation Acura RDX failed to find buyers. Toyota itself has no lack of experience with turbo fours, having built some humdingers for cars like the MR2 and Celica All-Trac back in the 80s and 90s. It's also offered factory-warranted turbos through its TRD performance parts division more recently.
Now, Automotive News is reporting that the world's largest automaker is finally poised to rejoin the turbo-four production-car fray in North America, but it won't be a sports car that delivers the first force-fed punch, it will be a new small crossover model for Lexus. We first showed you spy shots of the NX last week in mule form, and Automotive News says the small softroader will carry a 2.0-liter turbo four in its engine bay when it rolls on to world markets in 2014 or early 2015. That model, the NX 200t, will be joined by the NX 300h, a hybrid variant. It isn't immediately clear when US buyers will see the turbo model, however, it's possible that the hybrid could bow first - the story quotes an anonymous company source suggesting that Americans might not see the engine offering until sometime in 2015.
AN further posits that the new 2.0-liter will likely supplant the company's 2.5-liter V6 in the IS sedan and the same-displacement four-cylinder in the Toyota RAV4, but does not indicate where the new engine will be built.

Lexus: No plans for LFA replacement anytime soon

Supercars are fantastic in terms of their raw performance, sound and ability to inspire interest in an automaker. They aren't so good at actually making money, even for giant, global automakers like Toyota. And if you are holding out hope that Lexus might be fibbing about there being no plans for an LFA successor, we have some bad news. "I think you will see us do some incredible things in the future, but probably not a $375,000 supercar anytime soon," Lexus Executive Vice President Mark Templin told Automotive News. The issue comes down to the LFA's cost to develop and massive price. Lexus built just 500 of the V10 supercars from 2010 through 2012. Templin said that the plan was originally for a much more modest vehicle with a steel body. However, that intention changed to plans for an aluminum exterior and eventually evolved further to carbon fiber during the course of its engineering. Templin is clear that Lexus isn't giving up on more accessible performance with its F sub-brand models, but more supercars aren't coming, at least not anytime soon. He previously suggested that the LFA was a generational model with a 30-year wait for the next one. These days, the workshop that built the LFA has been converted for a much less powerful but perhaps more important vehicle. Toyota now uses it to build the Mirai with the company's hydrogen fuel cell powertrain. Related Video: Featured Gallery 2012 Lexus LFA: Review View 30 Photos News Source: Automotive News - sub. req.Image Credit: Copyright 2015 Drew Phillips / AOL Plants/Manufacturing Lexus Toyota Coupe Performance Supercars supercar lexus lfa