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For years, Lexus’s corporate face has enraged and upset critics everywhere. Spindle-grille, the automaker called it. Predator-face, others sneered. It’s even been accused of hurting some Lexus sales. And on Lexus’s current crop of cars, the criticism is rather valid. It is a damn huge grille. But on today’s newly unveiled Lexus LM 350 minivan? It works. Lexus nailed it.

See, this grille was always a very vertical-heavy design. Lexus tries to make it fit on the SUVs and sedans, but the truth is those cars simply do not have the up-down real estate the grille really needs to spread out and be proportionate. On those cars, it just winds up looking kind of squashed and flat. Unwieldy.

See? Bleh.

The LM already has a huge, tall and rectangular face. It’s perfect for large grille placement, which is exactly what Lexus did. There’s a lot of real estate on that face to cover, so why not do it with one, cohesive shape rather than break it up with a bunch of busy, horizontal slashes like Toyota’s other vans?

Have you seen the Vellfire’s face? Girl. That thing has lines for days.

And let me remind you that the Toyota Alphard is definitely not the last word in subtle refinement. It already has a sort-of Predator grille, but the indentations happen way too far down and make it look dopey.

Also, black plastic and chrome? Yeesh.

Enter the Predator-face, which offers one giant, hourglass-shaped solution with a tasteful silver outline and black textured center. It was like this design was born to be worn on a tall minivan. Look at how high that hood-line is:

It reaches past the belly buttons of all of those (whom I assume are) Lexus executives. It’s so much cleaner this way, with the addition of taller “cheeks” on either side of the mouth. Finally, the grille feels proportionate and properly stretched out, like the first time you get to stretch your legs after a long flight.

On the bottom half, the hourglass even flares out a little bit, giving off a sense of stability. It’s no longer top-heavy, it looks planted. It’s a great face for a great van.

On the LC500, I accepted the grille. On the LM, I embrace it. Lexus finally did it—it made the Predator grille look good.

It just took a minivan to do it.

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At Auto Shanghai 2023, Lexus celebrated the world premiere of the all-new Lexus LM. Beginning with the key luxury MPV market of China, the second-generation LM will be launched in over 60 countries worldwide, including for the first time in Europe and Lexus's home market of Japan.

Lexus has treasured a spirit of innovation since the marque's establishment in 1989, seeking to provide new value propositions to customers through progressive design and technology. With the desire to enrich customer lifestyles in and around the car, the brand offers a wide variety of products to meet the needs of customers around the world.

The first-generation Lexus LM was launched in 2020 as a response to customer aspirations for chauffeur-driven MPV's in China and other parts of Asia. Offering both 4-seat and 7-seat configurations, the vehicle was well received by a wide range of customers. In the intervening years, the needs and desires of the global luxury market have further intensified and diversified. In response, the new LM has been completely redesigned, reevaluating its value and raison d'être as a "Luxury Mover," from where the model's name is derived.

The core objective of the engineering and design team was to create a vehicle that provided an interior space and dynamic experience where all passengers could naturally feel at ease. This begins with core ride comfort and functionality. The driver enjoys effortless engagement through direct and precise maneuverability, attributes that benefit the rear-seat passengers, who also enjoy a lack of distraction from unwanted noise and vibrations, allowing them to feel productive and refreshed.

The exterior design projects an elegant presence and aerodynamic form in keeping with the Lexus design language, the vehicle's lines reflecting function and dynamic performance. In the interior, the front cabin design combines practicality with refinement to allow drivers to focus, while the spacious rear suite offers meticulously crafted seats and trim alongside a variety of features and technology to make the most of passengers' precious travel time.

LEXUS INTERNATIONAL NEW LM CHIEF ENGINEER TAKAMI YOKOO

"The inspiration for the development of the new Lexus LM was the increasingly diverse lifestyles of customers in the luxury segment. This is where the development concept was born: creating a mobile space where customers can be their true selves. Our goal was to provide an environment that would allow busy individuals to relax in mind and body, free from the hustle and bustle of their daily lives-a space to inspire positive thought and action.

No matter how luxurious the interior design and features of a car are, passengers cannot truly spend their time in comfort without sophisticated underlying driving dynamics. The challenge we faced as a development team was how to translate the Lexus Driving Signature to the LM, a vehicle many customers will enjoy from the rear seat with a chauffeur at the wheel. Together with Lexus Takumi experts, we realized that the answer lay within the natural dialogue between driver and car-the very aspect that forms the core promise of contemporary Lexus vehicles. That is, by providing driving dynamics faithful to the driver's intentions, we could create a feeling of security and refinement that is transmitted to rear seat passengers.

The development team's passion and care went into every detail of the vehicle, from the thoroughly honed chassis and body, supple suspension and aerodynamic design, to the seats that suppress body sway, the high-quality tailored interior and the numerous comfort features. We hope that our discerning customers will experience this 'Luxury Mover' that Lexus has lovingly created."

Ride Comfort

To ensure a comfortable ride for all passengers, development focused on ride quality worthy of a flagship MPV. By design, an MPV has large aperture sliding doors, and securing body rigidity within this framework was paramount. Following the approach taken with all new generations of Lexus vehicles, work began with improving core strength. Overall, torsional rigidity is 50% higher than that of the current model, an achievement made through elements such as braces on the radiator support and rear underfloor, a straight rocker structure, and quarter pillar reinforcement. Structural adhesive used for the upper body and floor also helps to reduce vibration.

For seat development, passenger body movements were thoroughly analyzed to ensure a naturally relaxed state for both body and mind no matter where you are sitting. Special attention was also paid to reducing head movement and stabilizing the line of sight. The front seats optimize surface pressure distribution on the seat cushion to hold the body, regardless of the amount of G-force during turning. The goal is to achieve seating comfort that reduces fatigue and an environment that allows the driver to have dialogue with the car. For the second-row seats, two types of shock-absorbing materials with different characteristics were used to gently envelop and support the passengers, from vehicle standstill to when the vehicle is in motion. In models with third-row seats, thick seat backs and cushions allow adults to sit comfortably.

For the first time, Lexus features "AVS Suspension with Frequency-Sensitive Piston Valve", which combines an Adaptive Variable Suspension (AVS) actuator and a frequency-sensitive piston valve in the shock absorber. The system provides excellent ride quality regardless of speed, by meticulously dampening and reducing vibration over a wide range of frequencies.

For the first time in a Lexus vehicle, a "Rear Comfort" drive mode enables an emphasis on rear-seat comfort. The dampening force characteristics of the AVS are set to prioritize rear-seat comfort, while integrated control of the gas pedal and brake reduces posture changes during acceleration and deceleration.

Quietness

For the new LM, special attention was paid to creating a natural and comfortable sense of quietness. Noise frequency bandwidths and noise sources were analyzed, resulting in a 3-step approach to noise reduction: reducing generated noise (source noise), preventing noise from entering the vehicle (sound insulation), and reducing noise inside the vehicle (sound absorption). Source noise reduction focused mainly on road noise and wind noise. In addition to the specific countermeasures for road noise around the tires and for wind noise around the hood and pillars, acoustic glass was used to help reduce high-frequency wind noise. The engine, one of the primary sources of noise and vibration, and the related mounts, which amplify the vibration, received thorough tuning. Also, cabin noise was greatly reduced by placing carefully calculated amounts and thicknesses of sound-absorbing, sound-insulating, and vibration-damping materials in appropriate places throughout the vehicle.

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