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Considering my 91-year-old grandmother never drove, she’s always appeared rather interested in what car I’m driving. She’ll run her hand over the leather seats and peer intently at details, like wood trim, through her bifocals. And although the DMV would most likely consider her legally blind these days, she still manages to deduce whether she likes a car or...


Considering my 91-year-old grandmother never drove, she’s always appeared rather interested in what car I’m driving. She’ll run her hand over the leather seats and peer intently at details, like wood trim, through her bifocals. And although the DMV would most likely consider her legally blind these days, she still manages to deduce whether she likes a car or not. At least whether she likes it as much as the one I was driving before.

Last week, I explained how the Lexus hybrid I was driving harnesses the energy from its wheels during braking to recharge the battery that later helps to power the electric motor. She tilted her head to the side and her eyebrows went up in disbelief. When I told her the car also helps keep you in your lane if you stop paying attention to the road while on cruise control, her eyes opened even wider.

Now, I was pushing my luck. I could see she was searching my face to see if I was pulling her leg.

I tried explaining everything again, this time a little more loudly. She’s hard of hearing after all. I told her about the dual electric and gas motors, the cruise control that automatically maintains the car’s distance from the car in front of it, the car’s ability to warn you if you’re about to rear-end another vehicle.

But, it seemed as if the lane-keep assist had pushed the whole thing into the range of science fiction as far as she was concerned. “It’s like a car from the future,” she said.

That’s when I realized that, yes, the Lexus HS 250h is indeed a car from the future. And, the future is now.

As little as 15 or 20 years ago, many would’ve considered a car that could simultaneously read the white lines on the pavement and the symmetry of its driver’s face and put the two things together to determine whether the car is drifting out of its lane because its driver isn’t paying attention to the road a feature on George Jetson’s car.

The Lexus HS 250h can keep a pre-set distance of one, two or three car lengths between it and the traffic in front of it while on cruise control by adjusting the car’s speed automatically. No more braking and resetting the cruise control every time the guy in front of you slows down to dial his cell.

A sensor mounted on top of the steering wheel can “read” the driver’s face and, by judging its symmetry, tell whether the driver is looking at the road or looking away. If the car senses it is drifting out of its lane and the driver is not paying attention, it will give two light tugs at the steering wheel to get the driver's attention.

If the same sensor picks up that you’re not paying attention and notices that you’re about to rear-end the car in front of you, it will sound a warning and begin priming the brakes. A camera with a fisheye lens, mounted on the grille, sends a 180-degree view of what’s in front of you to the navigation screen. Perfect for seeing pedestrians on the sidewalk when pulling out of a parking garage in the French Quarter.

The heads-up display that projects your speed onto the windshield even displays where your fingers are when operating the steering-wheel-mounted stereo controls. Of course, almost all these safety innovations can be turned off by the driver at her will.
 
The HS 250h “is extremely high tech and features all of the new technology that Lexus has to offer,” said Mark McCoy, sales manager of Lexus of New Orleans in Metairie. Some of the high-tech systems on this car are only available on more expensive models like the LS 600h and the LS 460, he added.
 
Let’s not forget that the car's main gig is that of an electric-gasoline hybrid. Th

Tags: Lexus, is-featured

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Lexus HS 250h: The future is now was originally published by New Orleans Auto Reviews: Lexus. Read the full story by clicking here.