Club Lexus picked up on a sparsely attended NYIAS (New York International Auto Show March 21-30) closing session with Lexus/Toyota at the "Toyota Live!" event that was mostly overlooked by the automotive press.
During the news review portion of the interactive show, Lexus discussed several upcoming changes to their model line as well as new vehicles that will make their way onto showroom floors near term (defined as model years 2009 - 2011). The one that caught us by surprise was the reveal of a planned small vehicle in the Lexus lineup termed a "compact luxury hybrid".
Said an unnamed corporate spokesperson at the event "Given the pressure of rising fuel costs and requests from many of our loyal customers and dealers, Lexus is planning to rapidly bring to market a compact luxury hybrid vehicle, currently called the LF-Ch". When asked for more details on how quickly Lexus plans to bring this auto to a showroom near you, the spokesperson shared that existing and new mechanical platforms will be married with an all-new luxury interior design for a compact vehicle that should begin to be available in late 2009.
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