Fancier Toyotas? Or genuine contenders in the luxury game? We head to ooty to find out.
What’s in a name? A lot, if you’re the sort who pays attention. For as long as I can remember, Lexus has been a very recognisable name in India. Or at least in the city I grew up in, Mumbai. Bombay, as it was called then (and as I still refer to it), was still a decade or two away from becoming the mad blur it’s become now (except for the traffic, of course, which stands still in such high definition as to cut your retinas). And even then, I remember seeing imported cars with the ‘L’ logo and thinking, ‘Man, those things look special.’ And they were, seeing as they resided in the most well heeled garages of the city. And for the past few years, that has begged just one question — why doesn’t Lexus come to India?
Well, now it has. A bit late, if you ask me, but I’m no one to talk about punctuality. ‘Fashionably late’ is the term, I believe. And to experience these examples of Japanese opulence, we were whisked away to Ooty, the hill station in the Nilgiri mountains. Presented with the sight of the three new Lexuses (Lexii?), it is easy to point fingers at them and say, ‘Oh, they’re just tarted-up Toyotas,’ and you may be right to some extent. But there’s more to it than that.
Given our cab ride from Coimbatore airport to Ooty, I was secretly hoping that the roads would magically widen overnight, so that I could drive the Lexii (yeah, that just sounds right) with some peace of mind. But on the morning of the drive, such a miracle had failed to arrive, and as luck would have it, I was pointed towards the biggest of them all — the LX 450d. I kept referring to it as the LC, given that it’s based on the hulking Toyota which happens to be one of my all-time favourites. But bystanding Lexus officials were quicker than top-fuel dragsters to point out that there are huge differences between the two. I think I agree with them. Mostly.
ãã®èšäºã¯ Motoring World ã® June 2017 çã«æ²èŒãããŠããŸãã
7 æ¥éã® Magzter GOLD ç¡æãã©ã€ã¢ã«ãéå§ããŠãäœåãã®å³éžããããã¬ãã¢ã ã¹ããŒãªãŒã9,000 以äžã®éèªãæ°èã«ã¢ã¯ã»ã¹ããŠãã ããã
ãã§ã«è³Œèªè ã§ã ?  ãµã€ã³ã€ã³
ãã®èšäºã¯ Motoring World ã® June 2017 çã«æ²èŒãããŠããŸãã
7 æ¥éã® Magzter GOLD ç¡æãã©ã€ã¢ã«ãéå§ããŠãäœåãã®å³éžããããã¬ãã¢ã ã¹ããŒãªãŒã9,000 以äžã®éèªãæ°èã«ã¢ã¯ã»ã¹ããŠãã ããã
ãã§ã«è³Œèªè ã§ã? ãµã€ã³ã€ã³
ELECTRIC VANILLA
It has everything that makes a regular EV, but does it stand out amongst everything out there?
HERE, THERE, AND EVERYWHERE!
Just about everything you want in a rider-friendly dirtbike, now in a street-legal avatar!
THREE'S A CROWD?
The third 125cc bike in the Pulsar lineup the N125 will disagree
CARNIVAL CRUISE
The Carnival is back in town, and it's looking to make a statement. Let's see if the higher price tag brings added value and luxur
CLASSICAL ROMANCE
Much more of the same cannot be a bad thing... right? Right?
ENTERPRISE SOLUTIONS
The new E-Class betters what it's always been good at being an office on wheels
MPV OR MVP?
An electric rival to the Innova? Or does it redefine the segment?
PAW PATROL
Experience the charm of open-air cruising with the sleek new Mercedes-Benz CLE
SLIDE WHIPS
Want to burn rubber and make doughnuts? Here's the recipe!
AN ORANGE SURPRISE
This Basanti will dance, jump, and sing through a titanium exhaust, just for you