Toyota's Teutonic performance group, Toyota Motorsports GmbH, has a long, rich history of making Toyotas go faster, and they've now turned their speeditization gaze on Toyota's flagship of quiet, comfortable cruising for aging, successful dentists, the Lexus LS.
As the name hints, there's now 650 angry, angry steeds under the hood, housed in a twin-turbo 5L V8 engine. All that horse-oomph is shunted to the rear wheels via an 8-speed auto box, and there are significant changes to the brakes (you can see them through the rims) and suspension.
A leaked spec sheet suggests the 650 will be good for a 0-60 time of 4.2 seconds and a top speed approaching 200 mph, just in case you and three of your well-heeled friends need to get from LA to Vegas in an hour and a half or so.
Just to make sure everyone knows that you're not just in some LS, there's an agressive body kit, with big hood-top air intakes and widened fenders and speed holes and gills and LED lights and everything you'd expect. It's pretty clear from both the looks and specs that Toyota is positioning the Lexus/TMG combo to take on AMGs, M series BMWs, Audi's S models, and similar rich-guy fast family cars.
The car is set to be debuted at the Essen Motor Show next month, where price and full details will likely be revealed. The car does not seem to be based on the latest-gen LS, so actual production is unlikely, at least in this exact form.
(Source: Autoevolution)