VIDEO: Lexus Sets the Bar High, Chains Four Cars on LS in New TV Ad

In another sign that luxury automakers in the U.S. are raising the stakes -or so to speak- with their latest commercials, following Audi's recent A8 ad, Lexus has released a new TV spot as part of an advertising campaign to demonstrate how far the company goes to achieve perfection.

This particular broadcast ad is titled “Chain” and it shows a crane slowly lifting the front end of a LS, which is attached to four more Lexus models (RX, GS, ES and IS) using nothing more than cables and stretch bars. At the end of the spot, a $375,000 LFA comes into the shot and parks directly below the chain of vehicles weighing a total 21,000 pounds.

The key point here is that the commercial is real and that no special effects were used for its creation as Lexus proves in the 'Behind the Scenes" video.

“It isn’t enough to just say that we pursue perfection, we want to demonstrate the great lengths we go to in our pursuit,” states Dave Nordstrom, vice president of marketing for Lexus.

“The new broadcast spot allows us to focus on the foundation of our vehicles, the chassis, and show its almost unbelievable strength. In fact, we feared that it would be so unbelievable, we invited a physicist and structural engineer to witness the shoot, to prove that it did, in fact, occur without the use of special effects or computer generated-imagery.”

_______________________________VIDEOS_______________________________

Toyota Settled an “Unintended Acceleration” Lawsuit with US$10 Million

The families of four people killed in an accident allegedly caused by the now infamous “unintended acceleration” throttle-gate, sued Toyota earlier this year and reached a settlement in September. At the time, the amount was not made public, but now, the Los Angeles Times is reporting that a lawyer representing Bob Baker Lexus of San Diego, California, a defendant in the case, has revealed that the Japanese maker agreed to pay US $10 million.

The tragic incident, which lead to the death of California Highway Patrol officer Mark Saylor and three of his family members, occurred after the dealership lent him a 2009 Lexus ES that allegedly had the aforementioned defect.

Initially, Toyota and the plaintiffs agreed to keep the deal confidential and the manufacturer neither admitted nor denied liability.

In the aftermath of the disclosure, Toyota released an official statement saying that it was disappointed that the sum was made public, as the involved parties “reached a private, amicable settlement through mutual respect and cooperation without the involvement of the courts”.

Furthermore, the automaker considers that, by making the settlement deal public, Bob Baker Lexus is trying to shift the attention away from its own litigation case with the families.

“Our deepest sympathies remain with the friends and family of Mark, Cleofe and Mahala Saylor and Cleofe’s brother Chris Lastrella”, Toyota said in the statement. “However, as in the past, Toyota will continue to defend itself vigorously against the misleading allegations Bob Baker Lexus is making against Toyota. Toyota is not, however, in a position to address the additional negligence claims the families have against Bob Baker Lexus that are independent of Toyota”.

By Csaba Daradics

Source: LA Times & Automotive News

_______________________________GALLERY_______________________________

Fatal Accident Prompts Toyota and Lexus to Warn Drivers to Remove Floormat Due to Risk of Accelerator Getting Stuck

The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA) and Toyota have eleased an official announcement to warn drivers of seven Toyota and Lexus models that there's a possibility that the accelerator pedal may get stuck in the full open position due to an "unsecured or incompatible driver's floor mat." Even though it may not sound serious at first, Reuters reported that the U.S. government said it has received reports of 100 incidents related to this problem including 17 crashes and 5 fatalities involving Toyota and Lexus vehicles.

In one of these accidents, it was reported that an off-duty California state trooper and three members of his family were killed in a 2009 Lexus ES350 crash in San Diego. Reuters said that before the crash, a passenger of the ES350 has called the police to inform them that the accelerator was jammed and the car had reached 120mph (193km/h) at that time.

Although the San Diego incident is still under investigation, meaning that it is not yet confirmed that the floormat is to blame, Toyota said that it wanted to take precautionary measures on the matter.

"Obviously the tragic accident in San Diego was certainly an eye opener for all of us and we've paid very, very diligent attention to moving forward to try to make sure autoofcars2011.blogspot of us will be reliving that kind of a very tragic situation," said Toyota spokesman Irv Miller.

Overall, Toyota is planning to issue a safety recall on around 3.8 million vehicles due to the issue with the driver's floor mat.

The affected Toyota models are the 2007-2010 Camry, 2005-2010 Avalon, 2004-2009 Prius, 2005-2010 Tacoma and 2007-2010 Tundra.

The Lexus modes affected by the recall are the 2007-2010 ES 350 and 2006-2010 IS 250 and IS 350 sedans.

Surprisingly, this is not the first time that Toyota has faced a problem with the driver's floormat as in September 2007, the firm recalled an accessory all-weather floor mat sold for use in 2007 and 2008MY Lexus ES 350 and Toyota Camry sedans because of similar issues.

The Japanese company said that until it "develops a remedy", it is asking the owners of the above models to "take out any removable driver's floor mat and NOT replace it with any other floor mat."

In the case that drivers are confronted with a jammed accelerator pedal, here's what Toyota recommends that they do:

From Toyota and Lexus Press Release: Should the vehicle continue to accelerate rapidly after releasing the accelerator pedal, this could be an indication of floor mat interference. If this occurs, Toyota recommends the driver take the following actions:

First, if it is possible and safe to do so, pull back the floor mat and dislodge it from the accelerator pedal; then pull over and stop the vehicle.

If the floor mat cannot be dislodged, then firmly and steadily step on the brake pedal with both feet. Do NOT pump the brake pedal repeatedly as this will increase the effort required to slow the vehicle.

Shift the transmission gear selector to the Neutral (N) position and use the brakes to make a controlled stop at the side of the road and turn off the engine.

If unable to put the vehicle in Neutral, turn the engine OFF, or to ACC. This will not cause loss of steering or braking control, but the power assist to these systems will be lost.

-If the vehicle is equipped with an Engine Start/Stop button, firmly and steadily push the button for at least three seconds to turn off the engine. Do NOT tap the Engine Start/Stop button.

-If the vehicle is equipped with a conventional key-ignition, turn the ignition key to the ACC position to turn off the engine. Do NOT remove the key from the ignition as this will lock the steering wheel.

Via: Toyota & Lexus, NHTSA and Reuters

2010 Lexus ES350 Facelift with Mild Cosmetic Revisions and Interior Enhancements Officially Revealed

Apparently it's that time of the year for Lexus. Only days after the unveiling of the gently facelifted LS and GS model series in Frankfurt, the Japanese luxury firm rolled out the North American market 2010 ES350 sedan. For the new model year, the ES350, which is nothing more than a tarted-up Toyota Camry, receives some minor cosmetic tweaks in the form of a more prominent grille with additional chrome surroundings, reworked headlamps and tail lights, a new front bumper with revised lower intake and integrated fog lamps and chrome body side moldings.

The newly designed 17-inch aluminum alloy wheels with a split five-spoke design and four new exterior colors (Truffle Mica, Peridot Mica, Satin Cashmere Metallic and Cerulean Blue Metallic) complete the exterior updates.

Inside, the ES350 facelift gets new steering wheel controls, updated trim choices and driver's seat memory while the revised center console now offers more storage volume than before. Other changes include the rear coat hooks and an Eco Drive indicator that are now standard across the range while all models come equipped with a total of 10 standard airbags thanks to the addition of new rear seat-mounted side airbags.

Finally, Lexus updated the audio packages and added a new hard disc drive (HDD) navigation system to the ES350's optional equipment list.

There are no changes under the hood as the ES 350 continues to be offered with an aluminum 3.5-liter V6 producing 272 horsepower at 6,200 rpm and 254 lb.-ft. peak torque at 4,700 rpm. Power is transfered to the front wheels through a six-speed automatic transmission

The revised 2010 ES 350 sedan will arrive at U.S. dealerships later this month priced from $35,675 (including delivery, processing and handling fee) which represents an increase of $330 or 0.9 percent over the 2009MY.

Subtly Facelifted 2010 Lexus ES350 Scooped in Dealership

Based on these photos that were taken in dealer showroom (located in Taiwan, according to some readers) and published by our friends over at WFC, Lexus has updated the Asian market ES350 for the 2010 model year. The cosmetic changes are extremely subtle as they are limited to a more prominent front grille with additional chrome trim, a redesigned front bumper with a single opening and new fog lights along with a new design for the tail lamp crystals and the addition of turning signals on the exterior mirrors.

While Lexus has not announced any plans to revamp the North American market ES350, it wouldn't surprise us at all if the Japanese firm introduced a 2010MY with the same exact changes as the Asian market model before the end of the year.

Via: Worldcarfans

2010MY Lexus ES350

_______________________________________________________________

2009MY Lexus ES350 - North American Model

Chicago Show: Lexus ES 350 & RX 350 Pebble Beach Editions

Lexus introduced two limited versions of its ES 350 sedan and RX 350 crossover at the Chicago Auto Show. Both Pebble Beach editions of the RX and ES feature signature colors, extra options and unique badging and their production will be limited to 6,000 vehicles each.

Available from mid-February, the RX 350 Pebble Beach Collection will be offered in three colors: Classic Silver Metallic, Obsidian Black and Truffle Mica. The RX features included new 18-inch wheels, chrome grille, color-keyed rear spoiler, special interior trim combination, customized floormats and exterior badging with Pebble Beach Company's signature logo. The base MSRP of the FWD RX 350 is $37,500 and $38,900 for the AWD model. -Continued

The ES 350 Pebble Beach Edition that will be available from mid-March is offered in the exclusive Truffle Mica color, as well as Tungsten Pearl Silver and Obsidian Black. The 7-spoke 17-inch wheels come with an exclusive liquid graphite finish while the interior of the ES features semi-aniline leather and a wood and leather steering wheel. The ES Pebble Beach Edition also features Pebble Beach Edition logoed floormats and special badging on the front fenders. Prices for the ES will be announced at a later date.