Lexus future is divided into three parts: “Giga Casting, Driving, and Software.”
This was stated by Takashi Watanabe, President of Lexus International, during an interview with the Korean Automotive Journalists Association held in a conference room at the Tokyo Big Sight during the Japan Mobility Show. Watanabe Takashi joined Toyota in 1993 and moved to Lexus in 2012, where he developed the GA-L platform used for flagship models LS and LC.
He talked about the Giga Casting platform, which is Lexus’s dedicated electric vehicle platform similar to Hyundai’s E-GMP and Mercedes-Benz’s EVA2 platform. The Giga Casting platform will be applied starting with the LF-ZC model. He emphasized, “It allows for the efficient production of vehicles.” Just as most automakers create a variety of models from a single dedicated electric vehicle platform, Lexus is also joining this movement.
Watanabe stated, “From a broader perspective, if we divide the car structure into three parts: front, center, and rear, it will be more efficient to produce the vehicle.”
However, when asked about the safety of dividing the Giga Casting structure into three parts compared to Tesla’s six-part division, he highlighted, “We have divided the large area into three components,” and emphasized, “Dividing elements into three parts allows for integration up to a certain point in the front area, considering accidents.” Additionally, Watanabe noted, “Generally, the bumper connects to the front part, and there is a need to distinguish this to a certain extent when designing; it is something to consider in the future on how to divide these parts.”
Additionally, Watanabe spoke about Lexus’s future direction in electrification, addressing both driving and software. He elaborated, “Combining the excellent torque performance and driving power of electric vehicles with the emotional technology that only Lexus possesses will be our significant advantage.” He also mentioned, “By integrating technologies that observe the driver’s condition and assess the surroundings with electrification, the value of electrified models will increase significantly.”
Lee Sang-jin daedusj@autodiary.kr