Lexus develops its vehicles and technology under the umbrella of Toyota Motor Corporation’s (TMC) ‘Integrated Safety Management Concept’, one part of a three-pronged approach which involves continual improvement in vehicle safety as well as initiatives to improve driver and pedestrian awareness and to create a safe traffic environment.
TMC’s eventual aim is to realise a society where traffic accidents are a thing of the past, which is why decades of research into safety technologies have resulted in Lexus cars receiving consistently high results in Euro NCAP crash safety tests, with the CT and IS achieving the maximum five-star award.
In this post, we take a look at some of the technologies that bring convenience to owning a Toyota while adding a layer of safety when you’re on the go:
Automatic rain-sensing wipers
Electrochromatic auto-dimming rear-view mirror
Automatic dusk-sensing headlights
Follow Me Home headlights
High-Intensity Discharge (HID) headlights
Adaptive Front-Lighting System (AFS)
Automatic rain-sensing wipers
To ensure you always have a clear view of the road ahead, all Lexus models include automatic rain-sensing wipers, developed by Toyota Motor Corporation. Cars with this system have a rain sensor mounted at the top of the windscreen that detects rain on the screen and automatically selects the appropriate wiper speed (intermittent, low speed, or high speed) for the intensity of the rain.
Electrochromatic auto-dimming rear-view mirror
This is a specially designed rear-view mirror that detects intense glare from the headlights of following vehicles and automatically dims the surface of the rear-view mirror to avoid the driver’s vision being dazzled by the bright lights.
Lexus’ auto-dimming electrochromatic rear-view mirror is available on all Lexus models (selected CT 200h model grades).
Automatic dusk-sensing headlights
Toyota Motor Corporation, Lexus’ parent company, has developed a system that senses when light levels are falling and automatically switches on the headlights, ensuring that the driver always has a good view of the road ahead. The system also activates when travelling through dimly lit tunnels, minimising the risks of dramatic changes in lighting conditions when travelling through the day.
Automatic dusk-sensing headlights are available on Lexus IS and GS saloons.
Follow Me Home headlights
Lexus even protects vehicle occupants once they’ve exited the vehicle by means of Follow Me Home headlights which stay on for approximately 30 seconds after the engine is switched off.
This provides a pool of light that helps you find your way safely to the front door of your house without tripping over the cat or walking into an unseen plant pot.
Follow Me Home headlights feature on Lexus GS premium saloons.
High-Intensity Discharge (HID) headlights
Toyota Motor Corporation first produced a High-Intensity Discharge (HID) headlight in 1996, and its current bi-xenon HID headlights continue to be a leading headlight technology that gives drivers better visibility at night thanks to a brighter headlight beam than standard halogen headlights.
HID headlights are fitted as standard equipment on all Lexus IS, RX 450h and LS models.
Adaptive Front-Lighting System (AFS)
The Adaptive Front-Lighting System (AFS) fitted to selected Lexus models improves the effectiveness of the HID headlights by changing the direction of the low-beam headlights in relation to steering angle and vehicle speed. In effect, as you enter a corner, the headlights will adjust to point the beam into the corner, improving illumination of the road rather than simply shining ahead at the verge or pavement. The wider lighted area provided by AFS is another example of the lengths to which Lexus will go to improve driver confidence and occupant safety.
Adaptive Front-Lighting System is featured as standard equipment on selected Lexus GS models, and all RX 450h and LS models.
To learn more about other Lexus safety technologies, see these related posts:
Braking technologies
Stability and control technologies
Monitoring systems
Occupant safety
Bought a 2015 RX 450h manufactured and used only in Canada that does not mention AFS in the owner’s manual and does not have an option to turn AFS off in the car. Should I assume it does not have an AFS system? The above site says all Lexus RX 450h have AFS but not sure if that only applies to models shipped to the UK.
Hello,
Congratulations on your RX 450h, thank you for choosing Lexus.
Unfortunately, we can only advise on UK specification vehicles.
Thanks.