Lexus LX History and Information

Sports utility vehicles have really become very popular not just in North America but even in places of the world where owning larger vehicles is not really typical. However, the North American market still remains the dominant SUV market and if an SUV can sell well there, then chances are that it can sell well anywhere in the world. This is the philosophy that the Toyota Motor Corporation had when they had their luxury arm of vehicles in Lexus design a full size SUV model that could compete with a number of other full size SUV models that were already in the market. The result was the Lexus RX which came into being in 1996 and ever since has been a force in both the Lexus markets and the SUV markets.

The Lexus LX has been produced in three generations and the general consensus amongst people within the car industry is that the Land Cruiser was the inspiration for all three. This is not particularly shocking a discovery, since the Land Cruiser has been one of Toyota's best performing vehicles on a consistent basis. The "let sleeping dogs lie" attitude was in play in the basing of the LX on the Land Cruiser and three generations later the effects have been overwhelmingly positive.

Lexus LX First Generation

The first generation came to life in 1996 at the New York International Auto Show and was incarnated tangibly in the form of the LX 450. The similarities between the full size LX 450 and the Land Cruiser were obvious right away.

In addition to functional reasons, there were also political and economic reasons for the creation of a full size SUV line that was similar to the Land Cruiser. The Land Cruiser was primarily manufactured in Japan and during 1996 when the LX 450 came into play there was the possibility of a high 100% tariff being placed by the United States on Japanese imported luxury vehicles. Of course, the Lexus 450 was manufactured in North America and therefore was a sort of "back door" way for Toyota to get full size SUVs being sold in the country even if the tariff happened.

As it turns out, it was unnecessary to do so, but by the time the trade war had gone away the LX 450 had become so popular that it was obvious the Lexus LX line of SUV models was here to stay. The LX 450 first generation, initially a quickly thrown together design, was mothballed a year later in 1997 and plans were laid down for the continuation of the LX line in the guise of a second generation upgrade to the LX 450.

Lexus LX Second Generation

A few months after the official cancellation in production of the LX 450, the LX 470 made its debut to the world. The second generation LX series was still based very heavily on the Land Cruiser, but there were a number of additional differences between the two that made the LX 470 much more of its own full size SUV model relative to the Land Cruiser than the LX 450 ever could claim to be.

The main part of the LX 470's appeal lay in the power that it was able to provide consumers with, its engine and the 4.7 litre displacement that the engine had. Added to this was a four-cam v-shaped configuration for eight different cylinders and four valves being placed within each cylinder. This resulted in a large amount of power and a gigantic amount of torque; both of which were very welcome pieces of information to consumers that were interested in getting as much as they possibly could from this full size sports utility vehicle.

The inside of the SUV was even better. The sound system included 11 speakers and was one of the best in an SUV at the time and this combined with a rear view camera and wireless connections right within the vehicle itself made the LX 470 a big hit with families that were looking for versatility inside and power outside. The high safety rating that the LX 470 receives from a number of independent services as well as the constant awards for excellence in luxury vehicle design drove sales through the roof for the LX 470 almost right up until its eventual mothballing early on in the year of 2007.

Lexus LX Third Generation

The Lexus LX third generation is so new that it has not even started selling yet; the second generation vehicles that have already been produced being the cars from the LX line that are currently in car dealerships. The third generation model has been shown off to the world at the NY International Auto Show and it has been christened the Lexus LX 570.

As the name might imply, the LX 570 has an engine that has a 5.7 litre displacement and capable of just under 400 HP and just over 400 foot pounds of torque. This engine is the most powerful engine ever designed and created by Toyota and many car enthusiasts will also know that it is the same engine as the one that is used within the Toyota Tundra. It's a very powerful and very reliable engine.

Another striking point about the LX 570 is that it's a complete redesign; no more do the majority of the features from the LX series come directly from the Land Cruiser. Instead, the third generation of Lexus LX vehicles will do more to establish the independent identity of the LX SUV than either of the first two generations ever did. Times have changed and the LX no longer needs to act as a temporary bandage or a crutch for the Land Cruiser, but rather can branch off and find its own identity. What that identity will be is anybody's guess, but if the LX 570 is able to pick up where the LX 470 left off, the path towards finding it will be very lucrative for the Toyota Motor Corporation.