Toyota’s Lexus Looks to Take On Mercedes and BMW With New Flagship Coupe

Toyota’s Lexus brand had splashy debut of its new flagship couple, the LC500, at the Detroit Auto Show. The new vehicle is designed to compete against the Mercedes-Benz S-class coupe and the BMW 6-Series Coupe. Mark Templin, executive vice president of Lexus International, described the car as ‘the first generation of the next generation’ of Lexus, with a focus on design and the ‘emotional’ experience of the brand. Lexus sales grew over 10 percent in the U.S. in 2015, slightly behind sales for BMW. Lexus also showed off a new concept car at the show, the LF-FC, a fuel-cell hybrid. Templin said fuel cell cars are the future, and the automaker plans to have them available for sale by 2020. TheStreet's Rhonda Schaffler has more from the Detroit Auto Show.