Lexus IS200t :: Car maker files trademark for turbo sedan – report
Lexus looks set to add a turbocharged model to its compact IS range, following reports that it has filed to trademark the IS200t nameplate in the US.
US publication Motor Authority reports the Lexus IS200t trademark was filed by the Japanese car maker with the United States Patent and Trademark Office on May 23.
The ‘200t’ engine designation suffix will debut on the brand’s all-new small SUV, the Lexus NX200t, which is confirmed to reach our market early next year after the NX300h lands in October.
It then looks set to join the IS range, with the IS200t expected to replace the IS250.
In the NX, the 2.0-litre four-cylinder direct-injection turbo petrol engine produces 175kW of power and 350Nm of torque, easily outpunching the 153kW/252Nm output of the IS250’s ageing 2.5-litre V6.
The turbo engine will also be considerably more fuel efficient than non-turbo V6, which in the IS250 consumes 9.2 litres per 100km on the combined cycle. Lexus is yet to announce official fuel consumption data for the engine. BMW’s equivalent 180kW/350Nm 2.0-litre turbo engine consumes 6.3L/100km in the 328i sedan.
Interestingly, the IS200t US trademark filing appears before a similar filing for ‘IS300h’, the nameplate used for the hybrid version of the IS sold around the world, but not currently in the US, adding more weight to reports of the new turbo variant’s impending introduction.
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