Lexus’ vision of the electric future

It’s no coincidence that many automakers refer to the driver-side interior of their best vehicles as “cockpits”. After all, many of these beauties have controls and displays akin to the cockpit of a high performance aircraft—or in the case of sports cars, jet fighters.

To this, Japanese luxury carmaker Lexus recently added another phrase borrowed from the high tech world of aviation: “drive-by-wire”.

In the most advanced fighter aircraft, “fly-by-wire” means the pilot controls the plane through a series of electronic inputs from the cockpit to the flight surfaces. There are no gears, pulleys or steel cables running from the pilot’s control column to the ailerons, flaps and stabilizers. Instead, a computer helps determine optimal performance and helps make sure that the aircraft does not “depart” outside the parameters of the performance “envelope” (which could result in loss of control and fatal consequences).

For Lexus in its newly launched LF-30 Electrified concept car, this means having no mechanical links between the futuristic steering wheel to its four wheels which, by the way, are driven, not by a single engine under the hood, but by four independent electric motors.

This concept vehicle was unveiled to the world for the first time last week at the 46th Tokyo Motor Show 2019, which will run until the first week of November.

According to Lexus, it is developing new advanced posture control and other electrification technologies to further evolve driving pleasure, and to fundamentally transform the essence of luxury vehicles of the future.

The company is drawing on the lessons learned developing the core technologies found in Lexus’ popular range of gasoline-electric hybrids, including battery management, power control modules, and electric motors. In particular, the technology of Lexus Electrified enables integrated control of powertrain, steering, suspension and brakes, realizing the ultimate potential of the motor control technology cultivated in hybrid vehicles.

To advance this goal, Lexus plans to unveil its first battery electric vehicle in November 2019—broadening its response to the needs of various regions around the world, including the development of hybrid electric vehicles, plug-in hybrids and fuel-cell electric powered ones. After that, Lexus plans to expand its electrified vehicle lineup and launch the first Lexus plug-in hybrid and a new dedicated battery electric vehicle platform early in the coming decade.

Most importantly, by 2025, Lexus will have available electrified versions of all Lexus vehicle models. Eventually, it foresees sales of electrified vehicle models outpacing those of conventional internal combustion engine vehicle models.

In taking up the challenge of expressing a new design of a battery electric vehicle powered by in-wheel electric motors, Lexus visually articulated the LF-30 Electrified’s “unique energy flow.” The vehicle form is meant to visually express the energy created by the wheels set at the corners of the vehicle body streaming toward the vehicle cabin and past the driver to directly flow onto the road surface.

Taking advantage of a hoodless vehicle shape made possible by being a BEV, Lexus’ signature “spindle” form has been further evolved to span the entire vehicle architecture. The window glass, which continually stretches from the front to rear, the muscular fenders, and the wing-shaped headlights form the contours of the Lexus iconic spindle.

The opacity of the side windows can be freely adjusted, providing occupants with expansive views of the surrounding scenery and a high level of privacy at night and in other situations.

Its cockpit was designed based on the new Lexus concept of “tazuna”—the use of a single rein to achieve mutual understanding between horse and rider. As such, the LF-30’s steering controller-mounted switches and head-up display have been coordinated to a high degree, creating a space that enables the driver to focus on driving while controlling various functions, such as the navigation and audio system and driving-mode selection, without having to shift one’s vision or operate manual switches.

To achieve a fundamental leap in vehicle performance, handling, control and driver enjoyment, the LF-30 employs numerous state-of-the-art technologies. In-wheel electric motors for each of the vehicle’s four wheels and low positioning of the battery enable better handling of inertia and high-level driving performance.

Once look at the machine and one will realize that Lexus has come a long way—a very long way—from its launch in 1989 when its designs were panned by US critics as being “boring”. Well, with even a cursory look at its current a future lineups, no one describes it that way anymore.