Stormer On The Lexus Horizon
Sydney Morning Herald
Friday April 25, 2003
A high-performance 4WD concept pits the luxury brand against Europe - but production may take three years. By Christopher Jensen.
Toyota is poised to join Europe's heavyweights with a high-performance four-wheel-drive.
Its Lexus HPX concept will follow the bahn-storming tracks of the Porsche Cayenne, BMW X5 4.6i and Mercedes-Benz ML55.
Unveiled at last week's New York motor show, the HPX shares underpinnings and major components with the Lexus GS430 sports sedan sold in the US and Europe.
The HPX - for "high performance crossover - uses a 4.3-litre V8, with a five-speed automatic transmission powering all four wheels. The suspension is height-adjustable.
The styling, by Toyota's Calty design studios in California, is described by the studio's vice- president, Kevin Hunter, as "an intelligent evolution" of the 4WD and "a dynamic profile that expresses speed and agility".
With an overall length of 4927mm, it
is about 200mm longer than the Lexus
RX330 which has just arrived in Australian showrooms.
It has bucket seats for the first and second rows of seats; the third row of seats - with far less leg room and evidently only for children - folds into the floor when not in use to provide a practical load space.
A production version of the HPX seems likely as a 2005 or 2006 model in the US, says analyst Jeff Schuster of JD Power and Associates.
But Lexus officials insist that there are no immediate plans to produce the HPX and currently it is only a concept.
This is also the official line from Japan, where unofficial comment is that it is a "very futuristic model".
However, Toyota Motor Corporation does not idly make concept vehicles. These days, any concept the company reveals tends to be a sounding board for a future production model.
The unofficial Toyota comment could be interpreted to mean a production version of the HPX is likely to be well down the track.
The "donor" GS340's model life will end in late 2004, so a production vehicle on the present platform makes little sense - realistically, a production HPX would use the platform of its replacement.
There are further complications. From 2005, when Lexus will become a brand name in Japan as well as in overseas markets, the Lexus model range is expected to be rationalised.
In order not to dilute the impact of the Japanese Lexus launch, a bold new HPX production vehicle likely would be held back at least until the brand was established.
At this rate, it could easily become the replacement of the RX330, rather than an additional model in the range.
© 2003 Sydney Morning Herald