2006 Lexus GS
Up against the BMW 5 Series and Mercedes E Class, Lexus' GS sedan may have the toughest competition of any vehicle in its line. But it's a conservative market segment and yet the next GS (shown at Detroit and on sale next year) takes some daring chances.
The biggest chance is the addition of all-wheel drive to the mix-the first time AWD has found its way onto a Lexus car. The all-wheel-drive system will be integrated with a new "Vehicle Dynamic Management" (VDM) system that is the latest generation of Lexus' stability control system. Rear-drive fans need not fret, as all-wheel drive will only be an option and, at least at first, will only be available on six-cylinder GS300 models.
But it's not the same old six in that GS300. The iron-block straight-six that powered previous GS models (and the old Toyota Supra) has gone to engine heaven and is replaced by a new 3.0-liter V6 making 245 hp. Right now, Lexus isn't releasing any details about the new V6, though we're sure it's all-aluminum and carries an entire alphabet's worth of variable valve timing, variable valve lift and variable volume intake technologies. The 300-hp, 4.3-liter, DOHC, 32-valve V8 returns from the previous GS intact.
Both the V6 and the V8 will be lashed to a new, sequentially shiftable six-speed automatic transmission. The "Adaptive Variable Suspension" will allow the driver to choose between four damping settings ranging from normal to sport. Of course, the interior is more luxurious than ever, with "ultra-premium" wood milled from trees that actually volunteered to die in order to become part of a Lexus, polished metal and leather trim (we hear the cows put up a fight). A tire pressure monitoring system will also be part of the package and, as on the RX330 SUV, the headlights will turn with the steering in order to illuminate around corners.
Notes From The Detroit Auto ShowIs nitrous now mainstream? Ford's Bronco concept vehicle included nitrous injection on its diesel engine. How long before nitrous becomes a standard feature of some production car?
The sport compact ethos has even spread to Jeep, which introduced its Jeep Trail Rated campaign anime-style, complete with a girl in boots and all.
At least two concept cars, the Hyundai HCD8 and the Saturn Curve, used Ferrari-style metal gated shifters. That comes just as Ferrari itself increasingly relies on paddle-shifted transmissions for its cars.
Nissan mega-boss Carlos Ghosn personally promised us that the next Skyline GT-R will be coming to America by 2007 and that its performance benchmark is the Porsche 911. He also promised that, like the 350Z, it will deliver a lot of performance for the money.
Ghosn also told us that what's holding Nissan back, if anything, is a lack of qualified and capable engineers. It's just hired another thousand engineers and plans on breaking through that bottleneck to produce more exciting products.
"Design DNA" is already an overworked and trite phrase at virtually every car company. What's the new, soon-to-be-over-used term? "Mass individualization."
While the domestic manufacturers were concentrating on cars at this show, the Japanese were showing almost nothing but trucks-including a wacky Pilot-based pickup from Honda called the "SUT." Go figure.