how the GM of Tustin Lexus got to meet Tom Cruise...

 

You probably already heard about this "self driving car" test... finding out if the car can tell the difference between a real road, and a picture of a road, in the middle of an actual road... just a flat surface it can not drive through. It's called the Wile E. Coyote Test

Tesla Autopilot technology relys on cameras,

Lexus RX-based prototype uses a lidar.

lidars scans the road ahead and detects the wall.

Autopilot’s cameras, on the other hand, rely on what they see, and in this case that’s a road.

But it is noteworthy just how effective the LiDAR system was shown to be in the video, as Tesla has very publicly decided to forgo these sensors in favor of relying entirely on computer vision. The reasoning for this varies depending on who you ask and when, but it usually boils down to LiDAR sensors costing too much, requiring more data processing to use, and ultimately serving as a crutch that slows down the development of computer vision. Tesla CEO Elon Musk has gone so far as to call LiDAR a “fool’s errand.”

https://www.thedrive.com/news/tesla-autopilot-fails-wile-e-coyote-test-drives-itself-into-picture-of-a-road

https://gizmodo.com/teslas-self-driving-fails-the-wile-e-coyote-test-2000577071

I'm not familiar with this Toyota... and it turned out to be a 2001 Lexus LX 470, only has 13 mpg, 180k miles

seen in a parking lot today

 

I really doubt some apartment complex corporation has a security patrol car, that's a Lexus,... with a Japanese front license plate. But it makes for an interesting photo

 

it's not uncommon to see a car with a German front license plate around the city, but Japanese? That's rare. I checked the back, and it's got a California plate on the back. Weird combination

The Petersen had an exhibit of vehicles from Hollywood movies

from Black Panther

from Minority Report

Guardians of the Galaxy 2

I, Robot

a Clockwork Orange

Tron

https://newatlas.com/petersen-hollywood-dream-machines/59546/

Compliments to Lexus, and the Watanabe family.

chief engineer of Toyota, Hideki Watanabe
president of Toyota, Katsuaki Watanabe
master of engine assembly Lexus Tahara Plant, Atsunobu Watanabe


Toyota is, arguably, already the best carmaker on the planet. For almost 15 years J.D. Power and other research firms have consistently rated Toyota and its luxury line, Lexus, among the top automotive brands in terms of reliability, initial quality, and long-term durability.
Toyota is also the most profitable car manufacturer.

Toyota has added the capacity to produce 3 million automobiles over the past six years. Perhaps the only other automaker to boost production that fast, according to industry experts, was the Ford Motor Company, under Henry Ford in the early 1900s.
Second, Toyota’s attacked European carmakers’ biggest source of profits, and thumped the BMW.
Toyota has American truck makers on notice with the full-size pickup truck, the Tundra, and the midsize Tacoma. Dodge doesn't even make a midsize truck. Ford gave up on the Ranger.

https://hbr.org/2007/07/lessons-from-toyotas-long-drive
https://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/30/business/worldbusiness/toyota-to-sell-the-lexus-in-japanese-home-market.html
https://lexusenthusiast.com/2010/04/19/lexus-ls-460-hideki-watanabe-in-kyoto-japan/
https://img1.wsimg.com/blobby/go/41cc996b-1c1c-4ebc-ae0d-8d56f9a810a3/downloads/1cgpkiu1t_996200.pdf

Porsche announced that it's launching a Mission E tractor, styled to resemble its 1950s tractor models, and Lexus has designed a left handed steering wheel

or they just threw this out there for April fools day.
https://www.autoblog.com/2018/04/02/automaker-april-fools-jokes/#slide-7293046

Lexus, you brilliant bastards, you've finally done something I like... even though it's just an April Fools Day gag

via https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/anything-goes/april-fools-day-2017-best-jokes-car-industry

just out for a walk and noticed this Lexus with 4 flat tires, and lots of cobwebs. Recent news about people dead for months and no one noticing has me wondering, is this abandoned? Did the owner die? Or did their ex slash the tires?

How the best prep a car for the customer at a dealership, Chris Brunner, GM, Lexus Plano Texas

On pre-inspection the car interior is checked for water leaks when they wash it.

The navigational system compass is set

the dealership's location is entered to have a reference for the new owner for any service, maintenance, or what not

radio stations are entered into the presets.

The seats are set for maximum space when the door is opened.

Then they get a print out of the battery and electrical system. The most critical component of a new car is the electrical system. Nothing works if the electrical system isn't working right.

Yikes! 2nd disaster to destroy cars this year... how incredible will the next method need to be to top sinkholes and mountains of salt?

the cars that got crushed and pushed were the next door Lexus dealers inventory

A wall collapsed at the Morton Salt building in Chicago Tuesday afternoon around 2 p.m. 1301 N. Elston in the North Side of Chicago

Found on http://fox5sandiego.com/2014/12/30/factory-wall-collapses-burying-cars-with-salt/

http://dnainfo.com/chicago/20141230/river-west/morton-salt-plant-wall-collapses-pouring-salt-on-acura-dealership-cars

the annual Cruise for Kids, benefits the Boys and Girls Clubs of San Dieguito, and it's the most comprehensive gathering of supercars outside of SEMA

it's all open to the public, and you can walk in to drool... be polite and don't drip on the cars... and you'll see most every expensive car made in the past 5 years. About 1/4 of the cars were Ferrari

the only place you'll ever see Bugatti on the public roads... seriously. I've photographed a dozen or so, and only at car shows or dealerships. No one drives a million dollar vehicle anywhere

Just contrasting the size of the Rolls with the Audi

Gullwings and scissor wings (inspired by the Countach which needed them as a swing out would have never fit between cars in a parking lot) and the only Spyker I've seen in person

I'm pretty sure this is the only Lexus I've ever posted, probably the only one I will ever post. The normal ones are uninteresting

yup, two Avendators

two different Ariel Atoms

and a McLaren

Above, the Nissan GTR which has kicked the butt of the rest of the supercars, for a fraction the cost

at least 3 new Maserati

and a Tesla

damn good looking new Jaguar design

am I the only one that immediately thought of the Austin Powers Jag? This is a terrific looking paint job design

cool old cars are NOT excluded... this GTO and a 60's Mustang were there