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Lexus Announces Upcoming Entry-Level Model

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2019 Lexus UX
Photo: Lexus

Want something a little smaller than the Lexus UX subcompact crossover? Well, you’re in luck. Lexus boss Pascal Ruch confirmed that the automaker is planning to introduce a small, electrified, entry-level vehicle to replace the CT 200h.


Check Out: 2019 Lexus models


However, the CT 200h isn’t going away anytime soon — Lexus plans to keep selling the model until 2021. Therefore, we’re unlikely to get the new Lexus until its predecessor goes off the market.

Known details and speculation

Furthermore, we don’t know what this new model will look like — will it be a sedan, a hatchback, or a crossover? It’s anyone’s guess. It’s confirmed to have some form of electrification — it may even be the first fully-electric Lexus.

Despite the fact that Lexus previously held animosity toward EVs, the automaker has changed its tune in recent years — no doubt due to the EV boom in Europe and Asia. Although Lexus mostly sells internal combustion-powered vehicles in the United States, the automaker primarily sells hybrids in Europe, Japan, and China. In the future, Lexus hopes for 50 percent of its vehicle sales to be hybrids. At that rate, adding a fully electric vehicle seems to be a natural progression.


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When the new model arrives, we can expect it to use the new Toyota New Global Architecture platform. TNGA cars boast a lower center of gravity, responsive steering, reduced side-to-side rolling, lighter powertrains, enhanced visibility, and more legroom. They’re built from lightweight aluminum and durable high-strength steel, giving them better efficiency.

Source: Autocar, Toyota