Autocar UK – 31 July 2019

NEWS

14 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 3 1 JULY 2019

CONFIDENTIAL

“THERE’S NO

alternative to electricity

to cut emissions and make

mobility CO 2 -free,” VW

Group chairman Herbert

Diess said, despite Audi

recently restarting its

hydrogen powertrain

research. The group’s

vehicles are responsible for

1% of all transport-related

emissions worldwide and it

is committed to becoming

carbon neutral by 2050.

RENAULT WILL NOT

quit the small car segment,

unlike some brands,

according to its Europe boss

Jean-Christophe Kugler.

“I ’ v e b e e n a sk i n g my t e a m

to investigate deeply this

segment” he said. “Let’s look

at it and understand what

is the evolution in the main

c it ie s.” K u g le r a l s o c l a i me d

car sharing could make the

Twingo – now dropped from

the UK – more viable.

ONE OF THE biggest

challenges in developing the

new Porsche 911 was making

sure that all the interior trim

colours matched, according

to the fi rm’s quality control

boss, Frank Moser. He

noted the 11 interior colours

offered on the new 911 had

to work with 16 equipment

levels and across 300 visible

parts featuring 51 different

m at e r i a l s , pr o duc e d b y 76

different suppliers.

THE GROWING UPTAKE

of EVs is going to have major

effects on the rest of the UK

car industry when it comes

to taxation, according to

Ssangyong’s UK MD, Nick

Laird. “Manufacturers

invested big in diesel

technology for 20 years

because that’s what all the

signals the governments

were giving. The government

needs to fi nd that [missing

fuel duty] from somewhere.”

First Lexus EV is city hatch

Lexus’s first electric car will be unveiled in concept form in October

L

ex u s w i l l m a ke a l o n g -

awaited transition into fully

electric propulsion with

a forward-thinking small

E V th a t i s s e t to b e r eve a l e d i n

concept form at the 2019 Tokyo

motor show.

The as-yet-unnamed concept

takes the form of a tall, boxy

and city-friendly hatchback

that wears a more futuristic

design than any model in the

brand’s 2019 line-up.

“We feel that our future

could resemble this design,”

Lexus vice-president Koji Sato

told Autocar.

Next-level infotainment

technology displayed on a pair

of screens positioned on either

side of the steering wheel will

characterise the interior.

Although technical details

and the production date for the

first Lexus EV remain under

wraps, Sato acknowledged the

need to create a product that’s

competitive and compelling.

The firm is pouring a significant

amount of money into the

development of the powertrain

technology it needs in order to

honour its pledge of offering an

electrified variant of every car

it sells by 2025.

Engineers are designing a

platform to underpin electric

cars. It will likely be shared

with Toyota, Lexus’s parent

company. The two brands

jointly plan to launch 10 electric

models by 2025. Lexus is also

placing a big research focus

on in-wheel electric motors,

although Sato conceded it

will take years to make the

technology a reality.

“We expect four wheels

operating independently will

offer greater agility, stability

and excitement,” he said. “We

will continue to pursue this

exciting opportunity.”

Meanwhile, Lexus design

b o s s Ko i c h i S u g a i s d efi n i n g th e

design of a production Lexus

EV. Final design hasn’t yet been

signed off by Toyota president

Akio Toyoda, but he told

Autocar the spindle grille won’t

disappear completely.

“Cooling still needs to

happen,” said Suga.

“The spindle grille is also

a representation of

personality, and it’s the

face of the car, so it’s really a

necessary part of the brand

identity. But because it’s an

EV, [customers] are also going

to expect something that’s

futuristic, something more

non-traditional.” The Tokyo-

bound concept will hint at the

direction he wants to take.

Lexus also plans other

alternatives to the petrol

engine, including plug-in

hybrids and hydrogen fuel cells.

Sato hailed the company’s

expertise in hybrid technology

as a major advantage.

“The hybrid technology

is our core. Our expertise in

electrical control technology

and battery technology can

be used for other types of

alternative powertrains, even

fuel cells,” he said.

However, the widespread

availability of a fuel-cell-

powered Lexus is strongly

linked to the growth of the

infrastructure. Sato stressed

Lexus can’t solve that problem

alone, but he emphasised his

te a m i s “ n eve r g i v i n g u p o n th i s

technology”.

Sato also claimed Lexus

needs an entry-level car to

lure buyers moving up from

non-luxury brands into

showrooms. The CT – ditched

in the US but still on sale in

Europe – is well overdue a

replacement, but the brand is

said to be weighing up sales

of the new UX crossover to

see when or if a new version

is needed. However, Autocar

understands it’s pencilled in for

2021 behind the scenes.

At the opposite end of the

spectrum, Sato emphasised

Lexus is not currently planning

a follow-up to the limited-

edition, V10-powered LFA,

released in 2010.

“ I l ove i t b u t we n e e d

your help. We need strong

requests for a new LFA from

the media. This can help us

proceed,” Sato said.

RONAN GLON

New EV will have a

more futuristic look

than other Lexus cars

Lexus’s trademark spindle grille will be reworked for the new EV There are no plans for a new LFA, even though Lexus wants one

IMAGE