Lexus LX 700h trademark hints at a hybrid flagship

Lexus has filed a trademark application for the name LX 700h, pointing to a possible hybrid version of the luxury brand's flagship SUV.

The application was filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) on March 6 and applies to "motor vehicles and structural components thereof." While the automaker will not use all of the trademarks in the application on production vehicles, the LX Hybrid is in line with the Lexus brand's emphasis on hybrid powertrains and may use a parts box from Toyota, the parent company of Lexus.

The current Lexus LX will appear in 2022 model year in the form of the LX 600, moving to the GA-F platform used by the redesigned Toyota Tundra pickup truck that same model year.The LX 600 will have the Tundra's twin-turbo 3.5-liter V-6 and 10-speed automatic transmission.

The Tundra also gets its first hybrid powertrain as part of the 2022 redesign, called the i-Force Max, which adds an electric motor between the engine and transmission. In the Tundra, this powertrain is rated at 437 hp and 583 lb-ft of torque, while the LX 600's non-hybrid V-6 engine is rated at 409 hp and 479 lb-ft.

However, packaging may be an issue: the i-Force Max powertrain is standard in the full-size Toyota Sequoia SUV, but Toyota has moved the battery pack under the second row in the crew-cab Tundra and under the third row in the eight-passenger Sequoia This is to improve rear-seat accessibility and to reduce the number of passengers in the second and third rows. This was done to improve rear-seat accessibility and second-row functionality, but third-row space was compromised.

That issue aside, the Lexus LX 700h Hybrid makes sense. It would give Lexus a hybrid flagship SUV to rival the LS 500h sedan and LC 500h coupe.