Lexus LF-Gh Hybrid Car concept at the New York auto show 2011
The Lexus GS sedan can be considered the Jan Brady of luxury sedans. Evidently, Lexus’s middle child is ready to shake things up, and will strut its stuff as the Lexus LF-Gh hybrid concept on the show stand at the 2011 New York auto show.
The Lexus LF-Gh measures 192.5 inches long by 73.6 inches wide, making it about 2.5 inches longer and almost two inches wider than today’s GS450h. Also worth noting are the separate L-shaped banks of LED running lamps up front and the sharp sheetmetal-to-bumper cutline at the rear. Lexus says that the LF-Gh concept “explores a minimization of traditional features such as side mirrors and door handles,” the result of which looks pretty cool here but definitely won’t make production.
The future of design at Lexus is before your eyes. The core concept behind the LF-Gh Hybrid Concept: balancing style and funcitonality, with an eye to performance, efficiency, and "environmental compatibility."
These design themes and cues will "migrate" into future Lexus vehicles, says the company, even though some are "often considered contradictory and difficult to execute together,” said Kengo Matsumoto, general manager, Lexus design division.
Hybrid power drives the LF-Gh Concept, so it gets blue LED hybrid badges on the grille and trunk lid.
Defining characteristics: A yet unspecified hybrid powertrain Chances of being mass-produced: This is the next-generation GS; design language will come to all models
The LF-Gh stays pretty much true to form and function as the 2011 GS 450h. The grille is shaped by a repeating “spindle” design that resembles sports fabric rather than metal from afar. The wide front fenders have receded air inlets up front and vertical LED fog lamps. The rear features similar air inlets, formed underneath the ends of each rear taillamp. There’s a new analog clock with a “three-dimensional” face, according to Lexus. The dimensions given for the concept and its rear-wheel-drive layout make us believe it’s the next-generation Lexus GS, though it could replace the GS and the ES in a bid by Lexus to be taken more seriously as a performance luxury division. The luxury make didn’t reveal any specs about the hybrid powertrain but says it’s a “Lexus Hybrid Drive.” Every Lexus hybrid currently features a different powertrain and power rating, so it’s hard to speculate on what hybrid system a production LF-Gh would get if not something entirely new.
