A new report has come out saying Lexus is looking into further stiffening up its cars in the interest of chasing German brands on drivability and achieving a consistent “driving taste” across its lineup. The first thought I had when I read this was, “Why?”
The quotes come from Automotive News, which cites Lexus project manager Toshinori Ito as saying, “We are aiming for the same driving taste, no matter what Lexus model you are riding in.” Lexus has been benchmarking the likes of Porsche, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Audi for years now, but the company has concluded that its cars still aren’t up to snuff, specifically when it comes to body rigidity.
Before, Lexus engineers mostly focused on making rear modules stiffer, but it now says it must make rigidity enhancements throughout the front, too. A slightly funny realization when you remember Toyota is the second-biggest car company in the world. It’s like if McDonald’s just now learned that salt and fat are what make food taste good. Ergo, additional supports are being added to “the front module and to the front and rear tunnel segments” on all Lexus products. The electric RZ was apparently launched with these, and they were also added to the NX as updates over the last two model years.
“We didn’t fully understand the four body positions,” said Ito. “We learned about it from studying the competition. When we realized it, we wanted to add it to all Lexus models.”
Look, I like a great-handling luxury car as much as the next enthusiast, but in 2024, I feel like everybody is chasing sport. Lexuses are sporty now. Toyotas are sporty now. Cadillacs are sporty now. Mercedes-Benzes are sporty now. Electric freakin’ Hyundais are sporty now. When everybody is stiffening their stuff up and, let’s face it, trying to be the next BMW, who is making cars for people who just want to cruise?
As someone who has driven much of Lexus’ modern lineup (and those of the German competition), the brand has come a long way and its cars drive perfectly fine. Lexus isn’t wrong when it says its own products aren’t quite as sharp as they could be—even if you get the top-shelf LC or IS 500, they aren’t as precise in the hands as the competing M8 or M340i. But I’d argue that’s part of what gives them their charm.
They ride softer and have a friendlier, more fluid personality that I find quite endearing on, say, a long road trip or a sleepy Monday morning commute. Perhaps I’d be singing a different tune if Lexus said it’s stiffening up only its sport-oriented cars, but that’s not the message here. Are RX buyers necessarily crying out for a stiffer RX? I’m not sure they are.
All that being said, what do I know? If Lexus engineers can make their cars more fun to drive without any significant penalty in ride comfort or cost, more power to them. But I can’t help but wonder how much better cars could be in other areas if automakers didn’t feel like they had to devote so many resources to on-road athleticism. Like the absolute saturation of superhero movies, engineering every luxury car as if driving to work is a contact sport has produced some fun results, but I feel like it’s also one of those early 21st-century tropes that won’t age well as public priorities and tastes shift.
Got a tip or question for the author? You can reach him here: chris.tsui@thedrive.com