This is the Lexus LF-Ch concept, which the company says is a “clear visualisation” of its first entry into the highly competitive European premium hatchback segment.
It will be unveiled at the Frankfurt motor show next week as Lexus celebrates its 20th anniversary.
“There are risks in lowering Lexus into this segment,” a company source told Autocar, “but we don’t have a choice. We have to be there.”
Lexus says the bold new five-door hatch is designed specifically to appeal to a new, younger generation of buyers, with “compact dimensions, stylish packaging, unparalleled levels of quality and refinement, and sophisticated on-board technology”.
Aimed directly at the next-generation BMW 1-series and Audi A3, the production version of the 4.3m-long, front-drive LF-Ch is expected to appear later next year.
So far, only this five-door car has been given the green light for production. However, a compact SUV cannot be ruled out, given the booming nature of the market.
Although Lexus is not revealing the technical specification of the car ahead of its pubic unveiling, Autocar understands that the production version of the LF-Ch will distinguish itself from rival models by being available only as a hybrid (combining a petrol engine and electric motors). It will be able to run in fully electric mode for short distances. In the western European markets, Lexus is positioning itself as a 100 per cent hybrid brand.
Lexus is expected to challenge the dominance of diesel engines in this sector by emphasising the low-pollution credentials of petrol/electric hybrid drivetrains. The hybrid’s low levels of particulates and nitrogen oxide emissions, as well as its CO2 efficiency, will appeal in Europe, where many city centres are being converted into low-pollution zones.
The exterior is based on the same ‘L-finesse’ design philosophy as the rest of the Lexus range, but it has been tweaked to fit this market.
“We recognise that in this sector our styling might not have enough emotion or intrigue,” a Lexus source told Autocar. “We’re trying to combine simplicity and intrigue and want to avoid being as clinical as Audi.”
The LF-Ch project was led by the company’s European arm but was completed by the CALTY design studio in southern California. The exterior is a thinly disguised version of the final car, which will get less extreme bumper designs and production detailing such as conventional door mirrors and smaller wheels.
Less is known at this stage, however, about the interior, which could leave rival premium brands standing. The concept reflects the trend to radically reduce the number of switches and buttons (a move influenced by Apple’s iPhone) and use much more dramatic surfaces and volumes for the dash and console styling.
Lexus is certain that the premium C-segment (which includes the 1-series, A3, Volvo C30 and Alfa Romeo’s forthcoming 147-replacing Milano) will become the “centre of gravity” in the European premium market. The company estimates that the segment will account for a million new cars next year, a figure that doesn’t include compact SUVs such as the forthcoming Audi Q3 and BMW X1.
“We believe the C-premium sector is about to become the largest part of the premium car market,” said the Lexus source. “And once it becomes the largest it will stay the largest.
“It will also become the centre of gravity for the premium market in Europe; it will affect the perception of all premium brands.”
Lexus market research suggests that what it calls ‘premium downsizing’ has become apparent in Europe over the past 12-18 months. Buyers are migrating to premium models in the Golf and Fiesta segments. This is not just a reaction to the recession; some buyers are moving up from mainstream brands, while older ones are downsizing.
The upshot, say insiders, is that it became imperative for the Lexus product development team to secure an entry into the vital C-segment.
“This Lexus is a very, very important model for our future in the EU,” said our source. “We began the project in 2007.
“That was when we made our first clear request to the Lexus management for a car like this. It was our biggest priority to become a younger premium brand. We established that younger buyers regarded the Lexus brand as credible, respected, and that it had design integrity, but was otherwise fairly conventional.
“So we need the LF-Ch to introduce affordability, interior flexibility and driveability. It needed to be more fun to drive, more agile, and deliver more emotional connection and dynamism for the buyers.”
Meanwhile, the market for larger premium cars and SUVs is in what’s likely to be an irreversible downward spiral in Europe, according to senior Lexus sources.
“These segments are declining. Downsizing is an unstoppable contraction. The combination of CO2 output laws, increased congestion and the issue of social responsibility makes it almost inevitable.
“There’ll be some recovery in a few global markets, but it will become increasingly socially unacceptable to buy big cars, especially in Europe.”
Source: Autocar
It will be unveiled at the Frankfurt motor show next week as Lexus celebrates its 20th anniversary.
“There are risks in lowering Lexus into this segment,” a company source told Autocar, “but we don’t have a choice. We have to be there.”
Lexus says the bold new five-door hatch is designed specifically to appeal to a new, younger generation of buyers, with “compact dimensions, stylish packaging, unparalleled levels of quality and refinement, and sophisticated on-board technology”.
Aimed directly at the next-generation BMW 1-series and Audi A3, the production version of the 4.3m-long, front-drive LF-Ch is expected to appear later next year.
So far, only this five-door car has been given the green light for production. However, a compact SUV cannot be ruled out, given the booming nature of the market.
Although Lexus is not revealing the technical specification of the car ahead of its pubic unveiling, Autocar understands that the production version of the LF-Ch will distinguish itself from rival models by being available only as a hybrid (combining a petrol engine and electric motors). It will be able to run in fully electric mode for short distances. In the western European markets, Lexus is positioning itself as a 100 per cent hybrid brand.
Lexus is expected to challenge the dominance of diesel engines in this sector by emphasising the low-pollution credentials of petrol/electric hybrid drivetrains. The hybrid’s low levels of particulates and nitrogen oxide emissions, as well as its CO2 efficiency, will appeal in Europe, where many city centres are being converted into low-pollution zones.
The exterior is based on the same ‘L-finesse’ design philosophy as the rest of the Lexus range, but it has been tweaked to fit this market.
“We recognise that in this sector our styling might not have enough emotion or intrigue,” a Lexus source told Autocar. “We’re trying to combine simplicity and intrigue and want to avoid being as clinical as Audi.”
The LF-Ch project was led by the company’s European arm but was completed by the CALTY design studio in southern California. The exterior is a thinly disguised version of the final car, which will get less extreme bumper designs and production detailing such as conventional door mirrors and smaller wheels.
Less is known at this stage, however, about the interior, which could leave rival premium brands standing. The concept reflects the trend to radically reduce the number of switches and buttons (a move influenced by Apple’s iPhone) and use much more dramatic surfaces and volumes for the dash and console styling.
Lexus is certain that the premium C-segment (which includes the 1-series, A3, Volvo C30 and Alfa Romeo’s forthcoming 147-replacing Milano) will become the “centre of gravity” in the European premium market. The company estimates that the segment will account for a million new cars next year, a figure that doesn’t include compact SUVs such as the forthcoming Audi Q3 and BMW X1.
“We believe the C-premium sector is about to become the largest part of the premium car market,” said the Lexus source. “And once it becomes the largest it will stay the largest.
“It will also become the centre of gravity for the premium market in Europe; it will affect the perception of all premium brands.”
Lexus market research suggests that what it calls ‘premium downsizing’ has become apparent in Europe over the past 12-18 months. Buyers are migrating to premium models in the Golf and Fiesta segments. This is not just a reaction to the recession; some buyers are moving up from mainstream brands, while older ones are downsizing.
The upshot, say insiders, is that it became imperative for the Lexus product development team to secure an entry into the vital C-segment.
“This Lexus is a very, very important model for our future in the EU,” said our source. “We began the project in 2007.
“That was when we made our first clear request to the Lexus management for a car like this. It was our biggest priority to become a younger premium brand. We established that younger buyers regarded the Lexus brand as credible, respected, and that it had design integrity, but was otherwise fairly conventional.
“So we need the LF-Ch to introduce affordability, interior flexibility and driveability. It needed to be more fun to drive, more agile, and deliver more emotional connection and dynamism for the buyers.”
Meanwhile, the market for larger premium cars and SUVs is in what’s likely to be an irreversible downward spiral in Europe, according to senior Lexus sources.
“These segments are declining. Downsizing is an unstoppable contraction. The combination of CO2 output laws, increased congestion and the issue of social responsibility makes it almost inevitable.
“There’ll be some recovery in a few global markets, but it will become increasingly socially unacceptable to buy big cars, especially in Europe.”
Source: Autocar
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