Lexus LF-LC Concept

After the Lexus LF-LC concept fell victim to an unceremonious early unveiling thanks to some careless souls at Road & Track, Lexus made the decision to publish an additional hi-res image of the supercar in order to try and recover a little dignity. But there was still only a handful of shots showing the car from a limited number of angles, and all the details and specifications of the car remained a secret. Today all the waiting is over. Here it is, the Lexus LF-LC concept in all its glory.

Created by a team of designers at Toyota’s Calty studio in California, the LF-LC concept is designed to explore a future design direction for Lexus. One which is a far cry from the sensible but soulless designs of Lexus’ in the past.

Introducing the concept, Karl Schlicht, General Manager, Lexus Product and Marketing Planning Division in North America, said: “We are in the middle of the biggest change in Lexus’s history, inspired by a new generation of distinctive design.”

“The new GS embodies this with its sculpted spindle grille as our symbol of change. And now, the next chapter of Lexus evolves with this coupe design concept. With its striking looks, this concept hybrid 2+2 hints at the design cues that are coming in a wave of new Lexus models over the next two years.”

The LF-LC’s glass roof has a lightweight, cantilevered pillar with a glass-to-glass join inspired by modern architecture. Distinctive elements include highly sculpted bodywork and polished aluminum trim.

The driver-focused interior of the Lexus LF-LC concept is designed to offer superb visibility, while also feeling comfortable and secure.  Dual 12.3-inch LCD screens provide information and navigation displays. A touch-screen in the centre console is used to control the audio system, climate controls and navigation, with a pop-up touch-screen keyboard for more complex commands. Similar touch-screen surfaces on each door are used to operate the windows, mirrors, seat positions and personal entertainment settings.

Powering the Lexus LF-LC concept is a hybrid drivetrain. But unfortunately the company has been very guarded with the cold hard facts. The only information so far is that the engine is mounted up front and the hybrid drive powers the rear wheels.

Kia GT Concept

Kia has finally revealed the name and some additional details of their latest concept car. Thecar was previewed almost a month ago, but it’s only now that we know it’s called the GT. The Kia GT concept showcases the company’s first rear-wheel-drive platform, while also wearing the brand’s new styling language.

According to Kia, work on the GT concept started back in November of last year – although the idea of producing a sporty RWD car had been bouncing around Kia’s European design studio for some time. Peter Schreyer, Kia’s Chief Design Officer said of the GT: “This concept allows us to explore exciting new design directions, as using a rear-drive layout creates very different proportions compared to a front-wheel drive car. The classic front-engined, rear-wheel drive layout of a performance saloon has distinct appeal not just for the domestic Korean audience, but also for the European and American markets.”

What will appeal to driver’s from almost every corner of the globe is the Kia GT’s drivetrain. Mounted up front is a turbocharged, direct-injection, 3.3 litre V6 which puts out 395 horsepower and 534 Nm (393 lb-ft) of torque. The transmission is handled by an 8-speed automatic unit. There aren’t any performance numbers yet, but with power output figures like that it should see off all but the best equipped German sedans – in a straight line anyway.

The Kia GT’s styling takes some inspiration from the Kia Kee concept from 2007, but it also features similar rounded lines to the quirky Kia POP concept from 2010 – albeit in a much more desirable package.

One of the key goals of the design team was to clearly convey the fact the Kia GT is based on a RWD platform. To do that they decided to give the car a long hood, a cab-rearward profile, muscular rear wheel arches and a neatly rounded tail. The unique a-pillar design is a nice touch, as are the complicated but stylish headlights.

Inside the Kia GT are single-piece bucket seats which seat neatly in the uncluttered passenger compartment. The designers deliberately chose to make the center console high and wide in order to accentuate the car’s sporty drivetrain. The glass instrument panel features three layers of organic LED lights. This not only gives the display a 3D quality, but also allows more information to be served up to the driver at any one time. Buttons mounted on the sporty three-spoke steering wheel allow the driver to select the desired data display.

The large red starter button and twist-and-go transmission selector are combined in a single compact unit, freeing up space on the central transmission tunnel.

Pininfarina Cambiano Concept

At the 2012 Geneva Motor Show, Pininfarina are set to pull the silk sheets off their latest concept car. The Pininfarina Cambiano concept is a sleek looking futuristic concept with a split personality. From one side it’s a sedan, from the other it’s a coupe – but both sides are equally stylish. Logically it’s the driver’s side which gets the single coupe-like door, while the passenger side is fitted with two doors. The rear passenger-side door is hinged at the back, and due to the lack of a b-pillar, when both doors are opened, entry and exit is almost completely unobstructed.

Powering the Pininfarina Cambiano Concept are four 80 horsepower electric motors – one for each wheel. The combined output of 320 horsepower allows the concept to reach 62 mph (100 km/h) in just 4.2 seconds, and continue on to a 186 mph (275 km/h) top speed. A range-extending diesel turbine engine located up front helps recharges the batteries when needed. But with an all-electric range of 120 miles, it should be able to accomplish most journeys without requiring the generator to kick in.

Helping to keep the Cambiano’s fuel consumption down is the relatively low weight of 1,700 kgs (3,748 lbs). That might not be much to shout about for a normal gasoline powered car, but for an electric powered luxury sports car with a large battery pack and generator engine, that’s quite impressive.

The interior of the Pininfarina Cambiano concept looks more like a luxury Swedish hotel reception room than the interior of a sports sedan. The sofa-like white leather seats are complimented by laminated wood flooring, a floating center console, and a brown leather wrapped dashboard and steering wheel. The glass roof, with its unusual inter-crossing structural reinforcements helps fill the cabin with plenty of natural light.

Infiniti Emerg-E Concept

Infiniti have finally published some decent images of their 2012 Geneva Motor Show headline act. Since November they’ve been trickling out snippets of information on the concept, culminating in the announcement earlier this month it would be called the Emerg-E. And while they’re still yet to announce any performance numbers or cold, hard engineering facts, these images speak for themselves.
The Infiniti Emerg-E concept is a mid-engined electric powered supercar with a range-extender engine. The styling isn’t revolutionary, but it does look sporty and handsome from almost every angle. Of particular interest are the large air intakes positioned above and just forward of the rear wheels. When viewed from the rear these blend in nicely with the rest of the car’s lines, but when viewed from the front their considerable capacity for ingesting cooling air is apparent.
On the inside the Infiniti Emerg-E concept has clearly been divided into separate driver/passenger zones. The driver is cocooned in an all-black upholstered space, including a piano-black instrument cluster and door trim. In contrast, the passenger is seated in a primarily white-colored space. The passenger seat is clad in white leather, while the center console, dash panel and door trim are all finished in either white or brushed aluminium.

Chrysler Review GT Concept

Did you like the Lincoln Continental 2025 concept which was displayed at the 2012 Detroit Auto Show? If your answer is yes, then you’ll probably be fairly enamoured with the Chrysler Review GT concept. The exterior design of both cars were penned by Colin Bonathan, and both cars are luxury GTs.

The proportions and stance of the Chrysler Review GT is just as imposing and intimidating as the Lincoln concept, and both cars are characterised by an expansive glass roof and sculpted wheel arches filled with enormous rims.

Up front, the Chrysler Review concept is dominated by Audi-like headlights, and a winged grille which – while a homage to the Chrysler badge – is more akin to that of recent Citroen concepts. From the rear, the concept has a Bentley-like vibe, but at the same time it also has plenty of its own character.

Aside from the pretty computer renderings, there isn’t any other information on the concept. And no, it won’t be going into production.

Concept Cars: Audi A9

The Audi A9 concept is a stylish proposal for a luxury sports saloon which was developed by the talented Spanish designer Daniel Garcia. Garcia's previous work includes the Ducati 6098 R concept from 2009.

The A9 concept would be positioned higher than Audi's current flagship model, the A8, and is aimed at other top-end luxury saloons like the Porsche Panamera, and if it ever went into production, the Lamborghini Estoque.
The styling of the A9 concept was partially inspired by the stunning architectural style of Santiago Calatrava's buildings in "La Ciudad de las Artes y de las Ciencias" (The City of Arts and Sciences) in Garcia's hometown of Valencia. This influence can be seen in the clean flowing lines of the vehicle and futuristic styling features. Calatrava's buildings look like they come from 100 years in the future, and so does this.
The single-piece windscreen and roof is formed from an as-yet undiscovered nanotechnology material which features an automatic-system for repairing damage, and it can also be adjusted for color and opacity. The bodywork of the Audi A9 concept also features a unique 'electronic painting' system which means the vehicle's color can be changed at the touch of a button.
The proposed drivetrain for the A9 concept is an advanced hybrid setup which uses an internal combustion engine working in conjunction with four in-wheel electric motor