When it comes to advances in gas reduction for the automotive industry, the expensive brands are often overlooked. People often focus on vehicles such as the Nissan LEAF, the Toyota Hybrid Prius, the Hybrid Ford Escape, and more, while brands such as Mercedes, Porshe, and Lexus fall under the radar. Sometimes the market thinks that their high prices hinder them from truly reaching their market potential in things such as the green movement, but I disagree. They have invented new technology that will continue helping the economy progress in the green movement, and soon enough they will not be overlooked.
Most recently, Lexus came up with something called the "Artificial Intelligence Shift Control System" which can be found in their RX Hybrid 11. It is an advanced mechanism placed in the front of the car which detects when the car drives uphill or downhill and it signals when the energy shouldn't be used (like when going downhill) so it shuts off the engine.
Another indicator that Lexus is moving in the right direction is that they already meet Obama's fuel efficiency standards, which require all vehicles to get 35 mpg by 2016. Also, Lexus is made by Toyota, and they already have two electric cares due to hit the market in 2012. Therefore, improvements and innovations for Lexus are not distant.
Due to the fact that Lexus has innovations that other companies have yet to implement, that they already meet fuel efficiency standards which should be enforced by 2016, and that their makers are definitely headed in the right direction show me that they will not be overlooked in this green movement for long. Once people realize how innovative they are, they will be flooding their dealership.
Angelilli/Lexus, Brandi. "Lexus vs. the Future." Telephone interview. 10 Nov. 2010.
I agree that when we think about hybrid and electric cars, we think every day cars and not luxury cars. More attention could be paid to luxury models that utilize the latest technology to boost their image above ordinary cars. I think it's quite amazing that artificial intelligence in cars has reached a point where it knows when to shut off to save gas. Toyota looks to have a good handle on the electric car market with its lineup. I'm glad that electric cars appear to be entering the mainstream market slowly, but surely.
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