Lexus coupe aims to attack luxury market

LEXUS gave notice of stepping up its effort to win a bigger share of business in Europe's luxury car market by revealing a sleek new coupe model at the Tokyo Motor Show. The Toyota brand's European-designed Sport Coupe is a smoothly-styled 2+2 which blends opulence with the practicality of a Mercedes-Benz SLK-type folding metal hood.

'This is a luxury, high performance convertible coupe which has been built with eye-catching beauty and the joy of driving very much in mind,' said Toyota president Fujio Cho. The V8-powered model has a five-speed automatic transmission and is expected to cost about £40,000 when it is offered in the UK.