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Genesis wins J.D. Power Tech Experience Study for third straight time

The results are out for the J.D. Power 2023 U.S. Tech Experience Index (TXI) Study, which "focuses on the user experience with advanced vehicle technology as it first comes to market and is an early measure of problems encountered by vehicle owners." Its measurement metric is problems per 100 vehicles (PP100), same as with the J.D. Power Initial Quality Study (IQS). The takeaway this year isn't that owners aren't using advanced technologies, as was the case with the 2022 study, or that they're having more problems with them overall. It's that owners of battery-electric vehicles are having more problems with advanced tech than owners of ICE-powered vehicles. According to the study, 17 of 21 features that can be had on both propulsion types — such as remote parking assistance and gesture controls — get lower satisfaction ratings by owners of BEVs, in some cases nearly 20 PP100.  The survey organization says this tracks with what its found in the IQS, where total vehicle problems were "46% higher among BEVs (excluding Tesla) than ICE vehicles and satisfaction is lower among owners of BEVs across nine of 10 APEAL categories than among owners of ICE vehicles." Findings regarding biometric measurements are among those that go against the overall study findings. Whether a fingerprint reader or an eye tracker, car owners in general said "they do not consider them to be useful." In terms of ease-of-use and satisfaction, plug-and-charge capability on EVs gets good marks. This allows EV owners to plug into a public charger and have payment taken care of automatically; the vehicle communicates with any charging station compatible with an automaker's plug-and-play system, so the vehicle can automatically submit a bill for the charging session to a central owner account with no further action needed at the station. Survey respondents noted a mere 6 PP100 and an 88.9% satisfaction.    Among manufacturers, repeat winners took the top prizes. Genesis earned the highest rank for innovation overall and among premium brands for the third straight year. Hyundai not only won the tech innovation banner for mass market brands for the fourth straight year, ahead of Kia, GMC, Ram and Subaru, Hyundai finished in second in the overall standings. On that overall chart, the top five are Genesis, Hyundai, Cadillac, Lexus and BMW. On the premium chart, Genesis is followed by Cadillac, Lexus, BMW and Mercedes-Benz in the top five. It wasn't close from the first to the rest, though.

Will.i.am and Lexus make music on a runway with frickin' lasers

There's no doubt that an engine can make some fabulous sounds, but they don't technically fit the definition of music. In a spectacular recent stunt from Lexus, Will.i.am, and a huge team of technicians, a trio of NX CUVs actually became an instrument while driving down a runway to play the artist's song #thatPOWER. All that was necessary to get it done was the help of a whole lot of lasers and some very precise driving. The team rigged up 350 audio-sensitive lasers and lights to make this stunt possible, and it essentially turned the runway into a real-world version of the Rock Band video game interface. The three NXs needed to drive not only in the right location but also at the right speed to keep the song's tempo going. While what you see here was reportedly shot in just one night, setting everything up took 65 people over seven days. The awesomely named light artists, Marshmallow Laser Feast, designed the actual layout. The end result of all of the hard work definitely looks impressive in this video, but it also appears like this was a very difficult stunt to actually get right. A lot of the faces at the end of the clip were wearing a look of relief of finally doing things successfully. will.i.am AND LEXUS CREATE LASER AND SOUND SPECTACULAR ON EPIC STREET 'STAVE' FRONTMAN CHALLENGED TO NAVIGATE GIANT VISUAL INSTRUMENT IN ALL NEW LEXUS NX Brussels 30th July 2015 - #NXontrack - Lexus Europe, today unveiled an innovative audio-visual film which sees global entrepreneur and musician, will.i.am challenged to create a remix of one of his most iconic tracks, #thatPOWER in a breath-taking music, art and technology spectacular. . Played out on a disused runway lined with more than 350 projected mapped motion and audio sensitive lasers and lights, the front-man battles against speed and rhythm to conduct and navigate a trio of striking Lexus NXs', hitting the laser 'targets' at the correct tempo to synchronise with his smash hit. The unprecedented live event, shot in one night last week, sees the musician's skills put to the test as he joins three stunt drivers including 2013 Blockbuster, Rush frontman, Niki Faulkner, to take on the colossal 'sound-road', race against rhythm and successfully complete the challenge in the limited hours of darkness available before the sun rises. Speaking about the video, will.i.am said: "Working with the stunt guys to hit the laser targets in time with the music wasn't easy to get right but the result was awesome.

Lexus planning second flagship alongside LS sedan

Lexus is planning to launch another flagship to slot alongside the LS sedan, but we don't know if it will be a coupe or a crossover. The coupe has been the persistent rumor. Lexus showed the two-door LF-LC concept in 2012 and a production model could borrow its underpinnings from the LS sedan. It's tipped to wear the letters LC or to revive the SC nameplate. The previous SC launched in 1991 as a fixed-roof coupe and offered inline-six or V8 engines. It was replaced in 2001 with the SC430 that had a V8 and a folding hardtop. While the coupe idea may seem like the leading candidate, the company's ambiguity is leading to speculation that the new flagship could adopt a different body-style altogether. "We need a flagship," Lexus general manager Jeff Bracken told Reuters. "It doesn't have to be a sedan." "In addition to the LS, there could be another flagship in our lineup," Bracken said. "We'll define what it is in January." The comments suggest something will be revealed at the Detroit auto show and could open the door to a new flagship SUV or crossover. That position is currently held by the LX 570, which is closely based on the Toyota Land Cruiser. However, sales of the LX have been less than stellar. From the 14,000-plus units Lexus sold of the original LX 470 when it launched in the US back in 2000, annual sales have dropped to just over 4,000 the last few years. Mercedes regularly sells over 25,000 of its GL-Class crossovers each year in the US alone. Last year Audi sold 18,000 Q7s here despite its imminent replacement. Land Rover sold nearly 13,000 Range Rovers last year and another 18,000 Range Rover Sports. Meanwhile, Cadillac typically sells between 20,000 and 30,000 Escalades every year, down from the 50,000-60,000 it sold a decade ago. A facelift is due for the LX that ought to spike sales a little, but Lexus will need more than a refresh to catch up with those rivals. In the meantime, it reportedly plans to roll out a three-row variant of the new RX before its lifespan is over. "We don't want to wait for a next generation" to give the RX the added seating capacity many customers are demanding, said Bracken. Related Video: