Lexus announced recently that a number of changes are coming to its model line-up, including the new infotainment system seen on the freshly unveiled NX model. The news comes from a MotorTrend report. Speaking to the Japanese car maker’s Global Head of Marketing, the publication also found out that the upcoming models will not longer have a Lexus badge at the back, but lettering instead.
According to Brian Bolain, quoted by MotorTrend, all future cars will adopt this style that was first showcased by the new Lexus NX. The name of the brand will be spelled out using lettering on the boot/tailgate. The second car to adopt this styling will be the 2022 Lexus LX, only to be followed by more models later down the line.
“We need some way to signify that change is coming to Lexus, and this may seem like a dumb way, but it catches your eye,” said Bolain. This wouldn’t exactly be ground braking as a number of other car makers have been using this approach at the back of their cars for quite some time now. However, as Bolain mentioned, Lexus is entering a new era, one that will include a lot of electric vehicles, and a change was needed.
And while the debate about lettering or badging at the back might be subjective, there was an even more important update needed inside: the infotainment system. Lexus has been criticized for nearly a decade for its counterintuitive on-board systems, especially for that trackpad that was almost impossible to use. Those days will soon be gone, as Toyota and Lexus invested millions of dollars into the making of a new, in-house system, that’s actually easy to use.
Once again previewed by the new NX, the touchscreen-based system uses Google Maps navigation as a native feature and apps like Apple Music and Amazon Music are offered as well. Of course, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay will also be offered. And while you may think that Lexus would wait for facelifts or new models to come to roll out this new system, that won’t be the case as per Bolain: “There’s a very quick window, something like 30 months or so, but we’re not waiting for major changes. We’re doing it fast.”
