In the modern history of automobile, a minivan is never a ‘cool’ ride. And by ‘minivan’, we literally mean cars that actually looked like a van. The facts have presented itself, but yet, Japanese luxury marque Lexus appears to be undaunted and decided to create a luxury minivan (or MPV, or Multipurpose Vehicle) which it calls Lexus LM. Unveiled at the Shanghai Auto Show 2019, the Lexus LM is not designed from the ground up to be the marque’s first luxury minivan, though.
It is in fact a Toyota Alphard slapped with Lexus latest’s design language – most notably is the spindle grille, and every luxury imaginable stuff into it, including two larger-than-life reclining captain chairs with touch control panel on the armrest that separate the two, a partition with power and a built-in 26-inch screen, a 14-liter refrigerator that is probably bigger than some hotels’, dedicated storage for umbrellas, and a 19-speaker sound system. The umbrella storage is a weird flex, but OK.
There are some other body tweaks (and near copious amount of chrome finish) too, but really, nothing that screams Lexus more than the massive grille that looks extraordinary huge on the LM. This being a Lexus, there is, of course, noise reducing wizardry baked into it, including double-layer noise-reducing glass, to live up to the marque’s pursuit for quietness. And there is the swing valve shock absorbers for the ultimate in ride comfort Lexus so proudly touts.
Customers will have the option between a seven-seater configuration or a four-seater chauffeur setup. From the looks of it, you can probably turn the LM into your uber luxurious office on wheels if you really want to. On the power and drivetrain, the LM 350 gets a 3.5L unit while the LM 300h is drive forth by a hybrid setup that includes a 2.5L Atkinson straight-four unit. Both models will be offered in a choice front- or all-wheel drive.
Pretty straight forward as far as drive and powertrains are concerned, but even so, you won’t have to worry about those because, the Lexus LM is destined for China and select Asian markets where this type of vehicle is a popular choice for celebrities and high-paying CEOs.
It is not known when the LM will be rolling on the streets of China or elsewhere in Asia. Neither was the indicative price made known. In the meantime, if you desire to learn more about the LM, you can hit up this website, or catch a short promo video embedded below.
Images: Lexus.
Source: Autoblog.
