The Lexus LC is one of our favourite cars, an intoxicating concoction of style, panache and performance. But for every person that loves it, there’s another that wishes it were available as a soft-top. Well, the Japanese luxury brand is whetting your appetites with the LC Convertible concept, debuting at the upcoming North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit.
The recipe is a simple one – take one LC coupé and chop off the carbon fibre roof whilst retaining the 2+2 cabin. To its credit, Lexus has managed to do just so without ruining the svelte, swooping design that characterised the hardtop. The upswept beltline has been retained, while a pair of bulges have formed on the rear deck, behind the rear passengers’ headrests.
A few other changes have been made to glitz it up for show car duty – it now sits on larger 22-inch two-tone alloy wheels, and the interior sees the addition of white leather upholstery with yellow stitching for a bit of added pop. Otherwise, it’s the same LC that we know and love, and that’s not a bad thing.
Technical specifications have yet to be released, but we’d expect a production version to soldier on with the same two engine options as the coupé. There’s the LC 500 with a 5.0 litre naturally-aspirated V8 making 471 hp and 540 Nm of torque, mated to a 10-speed automatic transmission, as well as the LC 500h hybrid that pairs a 299 PS/356 Nm 3.5 litre V6 with a 180 PS/300 Nm electric motor for a total system output of 354 hp, along with a four-speed automatic that simulates the feel of a 10-speeder.
“A production version of this concept would be exhilarating in many different ways. You would see its dynamic lines as you approach, hear its engine when you started it up and feel everything around you once on the road. It would engage the senses in a way that is unique and exciting every time you got behind the wheel,” said the car’s chief designer Tadao Mori. We’re inclined to agree.
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Wow!, this is what you call Toyota quality and Toyota designs. Lexus and TOyota designers work hard and never lepak in opis, always making new designs
WTF is Lexus much more expensive than MB or BMW in Malaysia? What stoopid ass strategy is this.