2015 is, in my opinion, the turning point for Lexus. Before, this company was viewed as a plucky Japanese upstart challenging the German establishment. But now, they sell more cars in America than Mercedes or BMW.
Lexus might not have any powerful twin-turbo V6 or V8 engines like their aforementioned rivals, but the L people have managed to build the technology of the future.
In today's digital world, where nothing is cool for more than 20 seconds, the automaker captured all the attention with a real-life hoverboard. Flying, in general, has always been a dream of humanity, but only movies have been able to come close.
Over a century ago, people strapped wings to their backs and thought they could fly by flapping them. We learned aircraft could do the job, yet they somehow squashed that dream. Complex, expensive and very heavy, these machines are out of the reach of most. But Lexus lifted a man off the ground using something that can be held with one hand.
It's that spirit that lies at the heart of this next rendering, which shows the new Lexus RX without wheels and hovering off the ground. A cloud of steam is a good indication of the technology at hand.
A hovercraft works a bit like a helicopter, pushing a powerful air current to lift itself. However, Lexus chose an entirely different technology for the hoverboard. Magnets are used, just like in those amazing high-speed trains Japan has. However, instead o electricity, they used superconductors. Cooled using liquid nitrogen, these unique materials lock a magnetic current and allow the board to stay about an inch above the ground.
The rendering was made by Khyzyl Saleem, a Need for Speed designer. He blocked off the wheel arches and added a special diffuser. The result kind of reminds us of the hovering car Howard Stark showed at the beginning of Captain America.
Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida. Full profile
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