Lexus NY Concept Points to Future Near-Luxury Design

Toyota Motor Corp. is set to unveil the third entry in a series of Lexus concepts next month at the New York Auto Show.

The LF-C (Lexus Future Coupe) is indicative of what direction Lexus designers are headed when penning near-luxury cars, such as the ES 330 sedan, a Lexus spokesman tells Ward’s.

Lexus will unveil the LF-C in New York.

Design cues from two previous “LF” series concepts shown in 2003, the LF-X (Lexus Future Crossover) wagon unveiled in New York and the LF-S (Lexus Future Sedan) exhibited in Tokyo, already are showing up in future production cars that Toyota has unveiled.

“The concepts reflect a new worldwide global change with Lexus in terms of design direction,” the spokesman says. He points to the third-generation GS sedan, unveiled at the Detroit auto show in January and due for sale as an ’06, as an example of a production car inspired by the LF-S concept.

The GS is “the first in a new wave of Lexus products to reflect a new, more passionate direction in styling,” Denny Clements, group vice president-Lexus, said at the Detroit unveiling in January.

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