New Model News

2021 Lexus RC F Fuji Speedway Edition pushes the limits of the performance coupe

Eileen Falkenberg-Hull
Sep 12, 2020, 2:28 pm

Lexus has introduced the 2021 Lexus RC F Fuji Speedway Edition in addition to enhancements to the 2021 RC lineup.

Photo courtesy of Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc.

The Lexus RC is generally known for being a competent sports car. It straddles the line between comfort and capability. The RC F is its high-performance variant, powered by a naturally-aspirated 5.0-liter V8 that produces 472 horsepower and 395 pound-feet of torque. For 2021, Lexus has introduced a limited edition version of that model to its lineup for 2021.

The 2021 Lexus RC F Fuji Speedway Edition gets its name comes from the renowned raceway at Mt. Fuji, known as the "Temple of Speed". Lexus has that the car is engineered "beyond the base RC F" and features upgrades that reduce weight and up the car's performance. It features Brembo Carbon Ceramic brakes, titanium exhaust, and carbon fiber, including on the hood, to enhance the car's aerodynamics. The car takes just 3.96 seconds for the car to accelerate to 60 mph from a standstill.

2021 Lexus RC F Fuji Speedway Edition The 2021 Lexus RC F Fuji Speedway Edition aside the 2021 Lexus RC.Photo courtesy of Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc.

Lexus will make the car only in Arctic Blast Satin or Cloudburst Gray paint colors. Arctic Blast Satin is a Lexus-first color offerings. It is a white paint that features a semi-matte finish. According to the company, "The paint expresses a beautiful satin luster like that of a true matte finish, yet is durable enough go through an automatic car wash."

There are no interior options. Every version of the car comes with Circuit Red leather-trimmed seats with Alcantara accents. Red Carbon Fiber ornamentation adorns the cabin.

The car will also get the enhancements the rest of the Lexus RC lineup gets for 2021 including standard blind spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert technology. Android Auto has been added to Apple CarPlay and Amazon Alexa capability.

It is limited to a production run of 60 units. With purchase, each owner get a limited production MSTR automatic movement watch. The timepiece features RC F-inspired elements such as a gunmetal bezel, red stitching on its band, and Fuji Speedway and F logos.

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Such a Tease

Lexus teases refreshed 2022 ES ahead of its April 18 reveal

The 2022 Lexus ES will debut next week.

Photo courtesy of Lexus

The meat and potatoes of the Lexus sedan lineup, the ES, is due for a refresh, and it will get one. The 2022 Lexus ES will be shown publicly for the first time this Sunday as part of the festivities of the Shanghai auto show.

While the photo doesn't tell a lot, there's some things you can bet on in the 2022 ES. For starters, look for all the improvements that the auto has gotten over the last two years to carry over into the new model. That includes the addition of all-wheel drive to the lineup and standard blind spot monitor and rear cross traffic alert.

The ES Black Line may not make its way to the 2022 version of the midsize sedan. Generally, blacked out editions are available only at the tail end of a model run ahead of a refresh or generational redesign. However, the blacked out elements could become available as part of a package.

The headlight photo that Lexus has offered as a teaser shows a housing that is not dissimilar to the one that the Lexus IS wears. However, the daytime running light is on the bottom here, instead off the top. Like the IS, there are strong hood lines.

At the back, the preview video shows a vehicle that is very similar to the current model. It's taillights, a strong chrome line that runs the width of the year, and rear lip spoiler all look mostly same as before.

As for what to expect underneath the body of the car, there's not a lot of indication from the teasers, which leads one to believe that's where the biggest changes are coming. There's a good chance that we'll finally say goodbye to the Lexus touch pad in favor of a touch screen display that's within a comfortable distance.

It's also likely that Lexus will fine tune the dynamics of the ES in a similar fashion to how the Lexus IS got more performance-focused driving dynamics in its latest redo.

Stay tuned for more specifics are the curtain is pulled back on April 19 in China (April 18 in the U.S.).

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Self-Driving

Self-driving Domino's pizza delivery vehicles go live in Houston

Domino's and Nuro announced their partnership in 2019 — and now the robots are hitting the roads.

Photo courtesy of Nuro

After announcing their partnership to work on pizza deliveries via self-driving robots in 2019, Dominos and Nuro have officially rolled out their technology to one part of town.

Beginning this week, if you place a prepaid order from Domino's in Woodland Heights (3209 Houston Ave.), you might have the option to have one of Nuro's R2 robot come to your door. This vehicle is the first do deliver completely autonomously without occupants with a regulatory approval by the U.S. Department of Transportation, according to a news release.

"We're excited to continue innovating the delivery experience for Domino's customers by testing autonomous delivery with Nuro in Houston," says Dennis Maloney, Domino's senior vice president and chief innovation officer, in the release. "There is still so much for our brand to learn about the autonomous delivery space. This program will allow us to better understand how customers respond to the deliveries, how they interact with the robot and how it affects store operations."

Orders placed at select dates and times will have the option to be delivered autonomously. Photo courtesy of Nuro

Nuro Domino's delivery vehicle

The Nuro deliveries will be available on select days and times, and users will be able to opt for the autonomous deliveries when they make their prepaid orders online. They will then receive a code via text message to use on the robot to open the hatch to retrieve their order.

"Nuro's mission is to better everyday life through robotics. Now, for the first time, we're launching real world, autonomous deliveries with R2 and Domino's," says Dave Ferguson, Nuro co-founder and president, in the release. "We're excited to introduce our autonomous delivery bots to a select set of Domino's customers in Houston. We can't wait to see what they think."

California-based Nuro has launched a few delivery pilots in Houston over the past few years, including the first Nuro pilot program with Kroger in March 2019, grocery delivery from Walmart that was revealed in December 2019, and pharmacy delivery that launched last summer.

From being located in a state open to rolling out new AV regulations to Houston's diversity — both in its inhabitants to its roadways, the Bayou City stood out to Nuro, says Sola Lawal, product operations manager at Nuro.

"As a company, we tried to find a city that would allow us to test a number of different things to figure out what really works and who it works for," Lawal says on an episode of the Houston Innovators Podcast. "It's hard to find cities that are better than Houston at enabling that level of testing."

You can find out which self-driving vehicles are being tested in your neck of the woods by clicking here.


This article first appeared on AutomotiveMap's sister site InnovationMap.

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