Photo: jlord8 / Instagram
Can we just call this craze for the world of crossovers, SUVs, and trucks pure and simple love – especially when all we do is play catch-up to the latest trends? Well, the automotive industry sure likes to swing around from segment to segment, depending on the whims of their profit-making series.
In some regions MPVs, station wagons – even sedans and sports cars – are on the list of endangered species. In others, you must stand out in any crowd (even the wrong ones) if you want a chance at survival. And Lexus seems to be an expert in outrageousness, at least in China – their Auto Shanghai 2023 roster included stuff like the RZ Outdoor concept or the mind-blowing LM minivan.
For some people, this MPV will make luxury passenger car owners jealous because it can turn into a chauffeur-driven minivan with more features than a Mercedes-Maybach. For others, it's the epitome of what has gone wrong in automotive design, from its behemoth waterfall grille to the double-coffined BMW kidneys and beyond. Alas, there is no denying that enough people found it appealing in the first place – and, for the first time, the Lexus LM will also be sold outside China, even making its way to the Old Continent.
Unfortunately (or luckily, it all depends on your POV), North America is missing from the expansion list, at least in the real world. Meanwhile, across the imaginative realm of digital car content creators, anything is possible, including a slight normalization of the Lexus LM based on the Toyota Sienna and dubbed LM 600 to make it friendlier with the US audiences already accustomed to the Lexus LX 600 SUV.
It arrives courtesy of Jim, the virtual artist known as jlord8 on social media, who saw the new Lexus LM at Auto Shanghai 2023 and "had to take a swing at a Sienna-based version for the States." Well, it does not look totally hideous, and the channel's fans also think it would have more interior space than an LX 600 counterpart. But the 2023 Toyota Sienna is already kicking off at more than $36k and can reach over $51k for the flagship Platinum trim, so maybe a Lexus version isn't needed after all.
However, those in search of a modern family vehicle that can help them fulfill other passions also need not abandon Jim's bonkers CGI reel because the pixel master also thought of a second road trip master for them. That would be a Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT Trackhawk that got turned into a lowered station wagon by the author – and it immediately attracted the love of his enthusiast followers. So, which of these wishful-thinking family haulers is for you, the Sienna Lexus LM 600 or the Jeep Trackhawk Estate?
For some people, this MPV will make luxury passenger car owners jealous because it can turn into a chauffeur-driven minivan with more features than a Mercedes-Maybach. For others, it's the epitome of what has gone wrong in automotive design, from its behemoth waterfall grille to the double-coffined BMW kidneys and beyond. Alas, there is no denying that enough people found it appealing in the first place – and, for the first time, the Lexus LM will also be sold outside China, even making its way to the Old Continent.
Unfortunately (or luckily, it all depends on your POV), North America is missing from the expansion list, at least in the real world. Meanwhile, across the imaginative realm of digital car content creators, anything is possible, including a slight normalization of the Lexus LM based on the Toyota Sienna and dubbed LM 600 to make it friendlier with the US audiences already accustomed to the Lexus LX 600 SUV.
It arrives courtesy of Jim, the virtual artist known as jlord8 on social media, who saw the new Lexus LM at Auto Shanghai 2023 and "had to take a swing at a Sienna-based version for the States." Well, it does not look totally hideous, and the channel's fans also think it would have more interior space than an LX 600 counterpart. But the 2023 Toyota Sienna is already kicking off at more than $36k and can reach over $51k for the flagship Platinum trim, so maybe a Lexus version isn't needed after all.
However, those in search of a modern family vehicle that can help them fulfill other passions also need not abandon Jim's bonkers CGI reel because the pixel master also thought of a second road trip master for them. That would be a Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT Trackhawk that got turned into a lowered station wagon by the author – and it immediately attracted the love of his enthusiast followers. So, which of these wishful-thinking family haulers is for you, the Sienna Lexus LM 600 or the Jeep Trackhawk Estate?
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