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| Speaks to Style |
As an automotive enthusiast, I was looking forward to what was going to come out of Lexus' F division. The LFA was a teaser that brought about ideas of great iconic sport touring machines. When the ISF was released with upwards of 400bhp, I was gleefully motivated to look for their new offerings along this line. When the word came of the new GSF Sport, I though this car would be an "M5 eater" and would display the mechanical genius within the Toyota brand. I know the company that brought us the last generation Supra could produce an amazing, monster powered, four door as good or better than that of BMW or Mercedes.
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| Stands for Power! |
BMW has produced the M line for many years and their purpose is to upgrade the power plant in every model they touch. They simply, make the car better in every way, beginning with the power output and briskly moving to the interior features in addition to changing the exterior to set it apart from the other basic models. When the automotive world hears the M moniker attached to the BMW brand, we all immediately think of power. The M3 is, and has been, produced with class leading power. The M5 has been the way to have sports car performance while retaining the ability to cart the family around town at the speed limit. The team out of Bavaria has been on their job. If they have not built the ultimate driving machine then they certainly have made many people believe it. Most importantly those who test drive these vehicles.
Unfortunately the F Sport badge is only speaking to styling cues. Yes the interior is beautifully done with the double stitching in the leather and the ergonomics are great but power is unchanged. Exterior titanium grey wheels are nice but the handling remains the same. If this was the original goal then I would think of the F badge in the same way I thought of their coach edition released in the nineties the same as Fords Eddie Bauer edition, strictly style improvements. But Lexus is tricking the public with their original offerings and now saving money by charging a premium for very little over all change and none under the hood.
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| LFA |
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| AMG63 |
Mercedes has kept younger buyers excited by their brand, year after year by keeping the AMG division working. Let's face it, many luxury amenities offered in these autos lend themselves to the aging public. If left without spice, any brand could become the "Lincoln Town Car" of the automotive world, aged and earmarked for the elderly. You have to keep it fresh and sportiness does this for a brand, articles about track times and Nuremberg Ring jaunts inspire interest. Power is attractive to young people and young people are attractive to older people. Face facts, stay fresh and increase the power plants. I believe Lexus may be aware of this because of the LFA. An incredible car, but too expensive for the "every day" man at nearly $400,000. They built one "beast" of an automobile but they should have spread that design dollar out amongst the entire brand instead of dumping it into one vehicle. It is said that the LFA is a great advertising tool but it barely turns a profit due to the high production costs, that happens when you build a car from carbon fiber. You could have had customers driving around in your advertisements while making a profit. I am hoping, with the emergence of the FRS from Scion and the rumored resurgence of the Supra from Toyota they will take the initiative to "massage" the luxury brand to become the premium brand the can be. The performance teams from AMG and the M brand of BMW have laid a template that can easily be improved upon by a company that has the "lion's share" of the market. Go from flop to F brand, and have the F inspire excitement.
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| GSF Sport 350 |
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