Lexus Automobile

Toyota Motor Corp.'s Lexus automobile has won the top rating in customer satisfaction for the third year in a row, J.D. Power & Associates said. Lexus had a satisfaction index score of 175, five points ahead of rival Infiniti, which is made by Nissan Motor Co. Both luxury cars are known as expensive but reliable. The least expensive Lexus model, the ES300, sells for about $28,000; an Infiniti G20 fetches $21,400.

And now, the Lexus hybrid. Toyota Motor Corp.'s investigation into brake problems with its Prius hybrid bled over to the Prius' upscale cousin, the Lexus HS 250h hybrid, on Thursday. The mechanical parts that make up the brake system in the Lexus model are identical to those in Toyota's 2010 Prius, but the two gas-electric hybrid cars use different software systems to control the way the brakes are used, said Brian Lyons, a Toyota spokesman. Still, he said, the Lexus is now part of Toyota's investigation.

Federal safety regulators have sharply rebuked Toyota Motor Corp. for issuing "inaccurate and misleading" statements asserting that no defect exists in the 3.8 million vehicles it recalled after a Lexus sedan accelerated out of control in San Diego County, killing four people. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued a statement Wednesday that the recalled Toyota and Lexus vehicles do have an "underlying defect" that involves the design of the accelerator pedal and the driver's foot well.

Federal safety regulators have sharply rebuked Toyota Motor Corp. for issuing "inaccurate and misleading" statements asserting that no defect exists in the 3.8 million vehicles it recalled after a Lexus sedan accelerated out of control in San Diego County, killing four people. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued a statement Wednesday that the recalled Toyota and Lexus vehicles do have an "underlying defect" that involves the design of the accelerator pedal and the driver's foot well.

And now, the Lexus hybrid. Toyota Motor Corp.'s investigation into brake problems with its Prius hybrid bled over to the Prius' upscale cousin, the Lexus HS 250h hybrid, on Thursday. The mechanical parts that make up the brake system in the Lexus model are identical to those in Toyota's 2010 Prius, but the two gas-electric hybrid cars use different software systems to control the way the brakes are used, said Brian Lyons, a Toyota spokesman. Still, he said, the Lexus is now part of Toyota's investigation.

If I had a hammer, I'd hammer in the morning, I'd hammer in the evening and all over the Lexus HS250h until I beat it into something that vaguely resembled a luxury car. I'd start by chiseling off the Ford Fusion-like grille, then I'd go to town pounding some rakishness into the hood and then I'd ding and dent some character into the fuselage. Anything. Just make the boring stop. This is one of those instances that defy the notion that automotive styling is subjective.

Lexus is sticking its money where its agency is. Team One Advertising, the same agency that has helped drive Lexus to impressive sales, sped off Thursday with the estimated $20-million to $30-million annual ad business for the newly formed national Lexus Dealer Assn. The El Segundo-based agency already handles the estimated $60-million-plus national ad business for Lexus. The new account is among the largest awarded on the West Coast in months.

The first in what stands to be a steady drumbeat of increases in the price of Japanese cars was announced Friday by market leader Toyota and its Lexus luxury-car division. Toyota, in a move sure to be mimicked by other Japanese makers, said it was boosting prices an average of 3.2% or $432 per vehicle. Lexus slapped a 5% increase on its cars, a jump in one case of $2,100. Also announcing a price increase was Saturn, the new small-car subsidiary of General Motors Corp.

Until now, the rules of advertising have always been simple enough. Assume that the viewer has the intelligence of an artichoke. State the name of the product at least once every millisecond. Don't ever advertise such sure-fire snoozers as the safety features of products. Avoid those larger-than-life--if not murky--issues like the eroding environment. Keep the length of TV commercials to a manageable minute, at most.

Considering the precarious state of world oil supplies and the increasing misery at the pump, it might seem any company hawking a pair of new luxury sport sedans is as out of touch as a Russian street vendor selling Romanov trading cards in 1918. We may find our way out of this wilderness but it won't be at the wheel of rubber-boiling nouveau-riche rockets like the 2006 Lexus GS sedans. And yet ...

If I had a hammer, I'd hammer in the morning, I'd hammer in the evening and all over the Lexus HS250h until I beat it into something that vaguely resembled a luxury car. I'd start by chiseling off the Ford Fusion-like grille, then I'd go to town pounding some rakishness into the hood and then I'd ding and dent some character into the fuselage. Anything. Just make the boring stop. This is one of those instances that defy the notion that automotive styling is subjective.

Toyota Motor Corp. is recalling 34,400 Lexus GS and IS luxury sedans to fix fuel pipes that can crack and potentially allow gasoline to leak. The recall affects 2006-model GS 300 and IS 250 cars, Toyota's Torrance-based U.S. sales unit said. Lexus, the top-selling U.S. luxury brand, said it had received no reports of accidents related to the flaw. Nissan Motor Co. is expanding a U.S.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has upgraded an investigation into the 2007 Lexus ES 350 sedan after at least 12 people were injured when it accelerated without warning. The government agency said an all-weather floor mat, found in the majority of the vehicles that reported the problem, could trap the gas pedal, causing acceleration.

These days no one scoffs at Toyota Motor Corp., the world's most profitable auto manufacturer with an apparently fine-tuned sense of what drivers want. So it may be hard to recall the skepticism in the 1980s when this Japanese company, known then for engineering dependable cars at affordable prices, announced plans to crash the luxury car club controlled by iconic names such as Mercedes, BMW and Cadillac.

IF watchers of automotive styling wondered where all the flares, waveforms and undulations went on the latest BMW 3-series, I've found them: They're on Lexus' new IS sport sedans. Inspired by the company's new design language, called L-Finesse -- which sounds like the name of a Mexican wrestler -- the luxury division of Toyota has managed, not quite consciously, to build the 3-series that Munich would have built if they hadn't gotten a straitjacket on design chief Chris Bangle.

Toyota Motor Corp. will begin selling its Lexus brand in Japan on Aug. 30 to increase its share of the luxury segment in the world's second-largest auto market. Four sedan models that are sold under the Lexus brand in the U.S. but under the Toyota brand in Japan will get the Lexus nameplate in Japan by next year, the company said. The automaker aims to sell as many as 60,000 units a year. Toyota is bringing home its luxury brand, developed in 1989 for the U.S.

Toyota Motor Corp. is recalling 34,400 Lexus GS and IS luxury sedans to fix fuel pipes that can crack and potentially allow gasoline to leak. The recall affects 2006-model GS 300 and IS 250 cars, Toyota's Torrance-based U.S. sales unit said. Lexus, the top-selling U.S. luxury brand, said it had received no reports of accidents related to the flaw. Nissan Motor Co. is expanding a U.S.

Toyota Motor Corp.'s Lexus brand remained the top nameplate in an annual quality study released by J.D. Power on Wednesday, and 10 vehicles from the Japanese automaker won the highest scores in 18 segments of the market. General Motors Corp., which has lost U.S. market share this year, had five vehicles winning top marks in quality. Its Hummer lineup of SUVs scored the biggest improvement among brands, J.D. Power & Associates said.