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Lexus is hedging its bets with the British cops. At the annual National Police Fleet Managers conference that will take place in early September in the UK, the luxury automaker wants police fleets to seriously consider its hybrid vehicles - the RX 400h and the GS 450h, both of which will be presented in police livery - but is also bringing along the standard (i.e., non-hybrid) line-up. The company is trying to sell this as a way to demonstrate "the strength in depth of the Lexus brand," but I can't help but think that this is really just and admission that Lexus' hybrid prices are a bit too high. Lexus' PR release is after the jump, but the only worthwhile line is this one:

For police and other public and emergency service users, Lexus hybrid power delivers premium quality and proven reliability with more attractive running costs and better environmental performance than many of its premium segment rivals.

It's not that law enforcement and alternative fuels can't go together (see the E85 Interceptors), but do police really need a premium, luxury vehicle to do their duty?

[Source: Lexus]

Click above for complete high-res gallery

Pebble Beach is known for its uber-luxury resorts as well as holding one of the finest car events, the Concours d'Elegance. In order to celebrate its partnership, Lexus is going to launch fifty LS 600h flagship luxury sedans, as well as 300 SC 430 hardtop convertibles. The special edition LS 600h includes special exterior paint, pampering alabaster and black leather trim interior with Dark Grey Bird's-eye maple wood trim (not that this sounds all that green). The LS includes also a new security device, the Advanced Pre-Collision System (APCS), which detects pedestrians in the vehicle's path, as well as a driver Monitor System that helps warn drivers if it senses an obstacle ahead of the car and that the driver's head is not facing forward. The LS 600h L is the fourth vehicle model to receive a Pebble Beach Edition package and it'll be on sale in October.


[Source: Lexus]

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Take one baby boomer favorite - The Fonz - stick him in a boomer dream car - a Lexus RX 400h - and send him off on a cross-country trip through the UK, teaching kids the value of reading. This is the idea behind an effort between Lexus and First News to support the Government's 2008 National Year of Reading.

Yes, Henry Winkler and Nicky Cox, editor of First News, are touring schools across the country in a Lexus RX 400h for the next week or so, visiting almost a dozen schools to promote reading - especially Winkler's series of children's novels about Hank Zipzer, the World's Greatest Underachiever.

While he's cruising through the British countryside, Winkler should feel pretty much at home as he drives an RX 400h in the U.S. Read more about the tour at this site.


[Source: Lexus]

For as small a MPG bump the Lexus hybrids get compared to the non-hybrid versions, Toyota sure is able to ride them for a lot of publicity. Take a move by London's BlueSky Chauffeurs, an executive car hire company that will start cruising the city streets in LS 600h and the RX 400h hybrids. BlueSky is trying to move into the ever-more-crowded luxury/eco-friendly market, and the company's managing director, Leroy Barr, said that these vehicles play to customer's vanity. "Executives are getting younger and like to be seen in cars that reflect their status, but equally in this economic climate they don't want to be over-ostentatious," Barr said in a statement (pasted after the break).

The luxury is all inside - leather upholstery, multimedia and navigation package, GPS units - and apparently that little "h" on the rear badge will be enough to make any accusations go away.

Usually, when a corporation donates something and then says the reason is to "raise awareness," what do you think of? Breast cancer, perhaps? Or maybe some wetlands somewhere? A bay, maybe. Well, Lexus has a different idea. Here's the first graph of a press release sent out today:

Lexus corporate has recently supplied the Professional Footballers Association (PFA) with four Lexus RX 400h vehicles helping to raise awareness of the hybrid range among its players. [emphasis added, read the full thing after the jump]

Hm. That's bold. Lexus gave a small number of soccer players the chance to use the 29mpg (U.S.) hybrid SUVs. But the real excitement for Lexus is the chance to show off. Nigel King from Lexus Corporate said in the statement that, "The training ground car park of any premiership football club will display an array of prestige cars. This is a great opportunity to highlight Lexus Hybrid Drive in this sporting environment." Olé?

While it's no surprise to hear that Lexus will be showing off a more luxurious version of the Prius hybrid sedan, Inside Line is reporting that the upcoming model will be priced over $30,000 and possibly have an older brother in the form of a dedicated hybrid crossover utility vehicle. Based on Toyota's midsize sedan architecture, the crossover vehicle would be similar in size to the hybrid RX that Lexus already sells in pretty good numbers. We have no information on whether Lexus plans to offer both hybrid utility vehicles at the same time.

According to IL's sources, the un-named Lexus Prius model will appear sometime in calender year 2010, which should be about a year after the third-generation Prius arrives. The hybrid CUV would follow a year later in 2011. Again, rumor has it that the Lexus hybrids could be the first application of lithium ion batteries in a Toyota-built hybrid vehicle.

[Source: Inside Line]

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Lexus would like to remind drivers who frequent the city of London that the GS450h is a credible sports sedan which falls well below the maximum penalty which will be in effect as part of the upcoming Congestion Charge. Emitting 185g/km of CO₂ will allow for a daily charge of £8, as compared to the £25 maximum penalty which many performance and luxury vehicles will be subject to.

We're not going to dispute the facts as presented by Lexus, but we'll also stop well short of suggesting that the GS 450h is the eco-friendly choice (there are certainly other options). Still, its comparatively low emissions, along with its 35.8mpg in the combined cycle, give a possible reason to choose it over some of its rivals, if for none other than to save some extra cash.

After the break, Lexus provides a chart comparing the power, acceleration, CO₂ emissions, combined fuel economy and congestion charges of the BMW 540i, Jaguar XF and Audi A6 4.2 V8 FSI against its own GS450h. Very thoughtful of them, wouldn't you say?

The Asia-only Toyota Crown model (pictured) is the latest Toyota to get a hybrid powertrain option but it certainly won't be the last. Toyota president Katsuaki Watanabe told Automotive News (subs req'd) in Geneva today that sometime in the 2020s, every Toyota will be available with a hybrid engine. If you think you might have read this before somewhere, you're right. Back in January, Watanabe said the same thing and even that wasn't the first time. Toyota's "all-hybrid" message is repeated at pretty much every major auto show. We're not against a line-up like this, we just hope these hybrid powertrains - when they arrive - will actually save fuel, instead of adding questionable value to vehicles like the Lexus LS 600h.

[Source: Luca Ciferri / Automotive News Europe]

Click the Lexus LS600h for a high res gallery

Lexus has announced that they sold 16,800 vehicles with Lexus Hybrid Drive (aka Hybrid Synergy Drive) in Europe in 2007, their best performance yet. Toyota's premium brand is dominating the premium hybrid segment in Europe. Not hard to do considering they are the only manufacturer offering premium hybrids. Thirty-eight percent of all the Lexus models sold in Western Europe last year were hybrids, up from twenty-six percent in 2006. Interestingly the LS600h has accounted for fifty-six percent of LS sales since its launch in July. Here in the U.S., the LS600h accounts for well under ten percent of sales. Similarly, the RX400h accounts for eighty-six percent of RX sales in Europe while, here they were only about seventeen percent last year. Given the relative disinterest in hybrids in Europe, these numbers seem unusual.


[Source: Lexus]

If paying $100,000+ to drive a Lexus LS600h hybrid is too rich for your blood, well, you're out of luck. But, if you would like to try the not-quite-as-expensive Lexus RX 400h luxury SUV (above) or the GS 450h performance sedan, well, then the UK's Green Motion Vehicle Rental would like to invite you to rent a car from them. Green Motion will soon offer these two Lexus hybrid models "as part of their expansion to their green rental options." If you know that Lexus hybrids aren't really as green an experience as other hybrids and want to see what else Green Motion's got that would qualify them to use the name, check out the low-energy lighting systems and biodegradable chemicals for valeting vehicles

[Source: Lexus]

Lexus hybrids are green in name only. The battery power offered by the hybrid drivetrain is used mainly for a power boost instead of making a serious dent in emissions or greatly increasing the mpg ratings of the vehicles. Given that a green image is more important to Lexus than actually going green, it's not surprising that the Project GreenHouse event the company is sponsoring at the Sundance Film Festival in January in Park City, Utah is more style than substance.

As the Lexus press release (available after the break) itself says, "Eco-luxury lifestyle options, eco-fashion, and carbon-offset programs highlight this year's initiatives." Eco-luxury? Give me a break.

Lexus calls Project Greenhouse, now in its second year, "a unique platform that brings awareness to global environmental issues through a lifestyle event showcasing responsible eco-luxury living." The show will feature a performance by musician John Legend (pictured) and "complimentary rides to the exclusive site in the world's first luxury hybrid vehicles, including the Lexus RX 400h luxury hybrid utility vehicle and the Lexus LS 600h L luxury hybrid sedan." Well, isn't that special?

Luckily, not many of us can afford Lexus hybrids because if we all went "green" the way Lexus advocates, the project greenhouse would be the earth's atmosphere. That's not good.

[Source: Lexus]

USA Today asked 90 CEOs what they drive and thirteen percent said they drive a hybrid. Here are the some of the reasons the CEOs gave for choosing a hybrid:

• Phil Libin, CEO of the Sunnyvale, California technology company EverNote, says his Lexus GS450 is like "driving a giant Bluetooth headset. ... Hybrid-ness means several extra screens of status indicators."
• Bob Peterson, president of Melton Truck Lines, does not think his Camry hybrid is as "manly" as the GMC Yukon Denali SUV he traded in but he was tired of sending oil money to Venezuela and Iran.
• Bert Hancock, owner of Robert Hancock property management, says "this is Warren Buffett country, where people are suspicious of those with flashy jewelry and big cars." Bert says his employees will think he is a "pompous jerk" if he drove a black Hummer.

Ralph Bianculli, CEO of supply distributor Paradigm Group (and driver of an '07 BMW) says before you object to CEOs "prancing about in a gas-guzzling foreign car" ask yourself: if you needed a surgeon, would you want one that drives a '07 Mercedes or a '95 Chevy Malibu? Pictured above is Patrick Sweeney, CEO of Odin Technologies, with his Prius. That's an airport in the background. He is also a pilot.

Related:

• Video: 12 consumers consider buying a hybrid
• 100 Silicon Valley executives to drive plug-in hybrids

[Source: USA Today]

Toyota has just released their hybrid vehicle sales results for the year through October and the results are mixed. The Prius continue on a strong growth path with global sales up twenty-six percent although Japanese sales were stagnant. The Camry Hybrid is up forty-seven percent and the new Lexus LS600h is off to a strong start. Lexus dealers have already moved 6,093 examples of the $104,000 hybrid luxury sedan. The other two Lexus hybrids, the RX400h and the GS450h, are both down significantly, as is the Highlander hybrid. Highlander sales are probably due to lack of availability as production of the new 2008 model only recently started. Overall Toyota hybrid sales are up fourteen percent through October. Stay tuned here at AutoblogGreen in the next few weeks when we'll have a full review of the new 2008 Highlander hybrid in the ABG Garage.

[Source: Toyota]

Thanks to Lascelles for finding this wonderful video showing the most daring concepts from Toyota and Lexus during the Tokyo Motor Show. Although in German, we can glimpse quite a number of interesting concepts such as the Hi-CT, the Rin, the i-Real (which promises unlimited mobility, according to the engineer) and production ready models such as the Crown Hybrid, which owns a lot to the Lexus LS600h.

Just before the Lexus come up, a German engineer from Toyota speaks about the 1/X, weighing just 926 lbs., the car is literally a third of the weight of Toyota's current green car standard, the Prius. Featuring a 500cc engine plus a hybrid electric motor with plug-in capability, this car could deliver 2 l/100 km (that converts to an amazing 117 mpg).

Then the video shows two Lexus cars with hybrid powertrains: the ISF (arriving in Europe in 2008) and LF-XH.

[Source: YouTube]

No small percentage of Lexus buyers will gladly pay the hybrid premium for better-performing luxury cars. In the UK, almost a third (28 percent) of new Lexus models sold are hybrid versions, according to Just-Auto (subs req'd)
While the RX 400h is the brand's best-selling hybrid model (80 percent of UK sales), let's not forget the world's most expensive production hybrid, the LS 600h (pictured) and that the Lexus GS 450h sedan sells more than the non-hybrid version in the UK. Overall, Lexus sold 3,381 vehicles in the UK in September, and about 1,000 of those were hybrids.

[Source: Just-Auto]