Published: Jul 09, 2012

Lexus to Launch LS F Sport Sedan

LS F Sport to pack sportier trim, suspension while we wait for TMG model.

Toyota undertook a massive endeavor in challenging the likes of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class and Audi A8 with the introduction of the top-of-the-line Lexus LS way back in 1989. And the Japanese auto giant has been taking a sizable chunk of the market with every successive version since...including the latest LS 460 Sport model pictured here. What it is lacking, however, is a sport model to challenge the S63 AMG and S8 super-sedans. That doesn't mean, however, that Lexus is resigned to sitting out that fight forever, though.

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That much is tipped to be addressed by a high-performance version of the big luxury sedan being developed by Toyota Motorsport GmbH, the same outfit that handled the company's Formula One team and built the current TS030 Hybrid LMP1 for Le Mans. But before the TMG model rolls out onto the marketplace, Lexus is reportedly preparing to launch an LS F Sport model by the end of the month. Stopping one step short of the transformation that turned the smaller IS sedan into the M3-challenging IS F, the LS F Sport is expected to take an approach closer to the RX 350 F Sport crossover and GS 350 F Sport sedan.

That means only a modest engine upgrade, but sportier trim for both interior and exterior, punctuated by bigger wheels, larger brakes and a stiffer suspension. That may not prove enough to take on the aforementioned S63 AMG and S8 from its German rivals, but it could get the public ready for the 650-horsepower TMG model to follow.