Looks are an important attribute for any kind of car – and de rigueur for coupes, where styling plays a much more important role than other factors such as space or fuel economy.
At this year’s Detroit Motor Show, the Lexus LF-LC concept received raving reviews for its looks, which were created by the company’s Calty design studio in California. At the time, Calty president Kevin Hunter said that the aggressively styled concept “embodies our vision of what a premium sports coupe could be”.
Lexus USA vice president and general manager Mark Templin added during its launch that the coupe concept was meant to “push the boundaries of performance, style and technology.”
At the Detroit show, the only information released about what lies under the skin was that the concept was a hybrid. However, Lexus revealed on Monday that it will be showing an evolution of the LF-LC featuring a 500hp hybrid powertrain and all-wheel drive at the Australian International Motor Show in Sydney this fall.
Recently, Templin hinted that Lexus may indeed proceed to build a production version: “The LF-LC was a smash hit”, he told British publication Autocar adding that “everyone is asking us to build that car without a change.”
With the LFA out of production, Lexus could certainly do with a new “halo” car. If it gets the green light, the production model will most certainly be a hybrid and won’t hit the market until 2016.
Templin added that, even though the Japanese luxury carmaker is in no hurry to expand its portfolio, it is contemplating the launch of a new, Audi Q5-rivalling SUV in 2015 as the rising popularity of this segment makes a model placed below the RX a very interesting proposition.
Last, but not least, he said that Lexus “is absolutely dedicated to hybrids” and expects to have at least eight models in its range by 2015, among them a variant of the third generation IS compact executive saloon.
By Andrew Tsaousis
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