The History of Toyota Altezza

The Altezza name is sometimes generally used for clear rear automobile tail lamps resembling those on the Toyota Altezza

The Lexus IS (originally known as the Toyota Altezza in Japan) is a compact luxury sports car from Lexus. Its main rivals are BMW 3 Series and Nissan Skyline/Infiniti G. This first-generation Altezza (codename XE10) was launched in Japan in October 1998. The Lexus IS 200 made its debut in Europe in 1999 and the IS 300 in North America in 2001.

The "IS" stands for "Intelligent Sport."

First generation

The Altezza came in 3 variants:

• The AS200 (Chassis code GXE10, sedan or GXE15, wagon), powered by the 1G-FE inline-6 engine generating 160PS JIS (118kW) or 155PS DIN (114kW) and mated to a 6-speed manual transmission (4-speed automatic optional)
• The RS200 (Chassis code SXE10, sedan or SXE15, wagon) powered by the 3S-GE inline-4 engine generating 210PS JIS (154kW) and mated to a 6-speed transmission (5-speed automatic optional)
• The AS300 (Chassis code JCE10, sedan or JCE15, wagon) powered by the 2JZ-GE inline-6 engine generating 220PS JIS (162kW) or 215hp SAE (160kW) and mated to a 6-speed transmission (5-speed automatic optional)

European and North American-market Lexus IS vehicles, as well as the Japanese hatchback version called the Gita (called Lexus IS Sportcross in U.S. and Europe) were only available with either the 1G-FE engine version or the 2JZ-GE 6-cylinder inline engine version, which was also found in the naturally-aspirated fourth-generation Toyota Supra and Lexus GS/Toyota Aristo amongst others. The 2JZ-GE powered IS series are popular amongst tuners in the U.S. because of this. The Altezza is mostly popular amongst tuners because of it's possible engine swap, for a last generation Toyota Supra 2JZ-GTE motorisation. Modified versions of the 2JZ-GTE have been seen with over 1000hp.

In Japan, the RS200 version is more popular due to its better handling (because of the lightweight yet powerful engine in the front). There are a wide availability of tuning parts, as the engine is similar to the last of the SW20 MR2 and ST202 Celica. As a result, a number of tuning companies modified the IS/Altezza over the years. TTE converted an IS 200 first, and within a few years RMM in the US converted an IS 300. The MillenWorks-built Lexus IS 430 was unveiled at the 2003 SEMA Show in Las Vegas, Nevada. The IS 430 prototype is an IS 300 fitted with a 4.3L V8 from the Lexus GS 430. Lexus dubs the IS 430 a one-off with no plans for production. In Europe, Toyota Team Europe (TTE) shoehorned a supercharged 4.3L V8 into a IS 300 bodyshell, the result is a 405PS ECE (298kW) saloon capable of accelerating from 0-100km/h in 4.5 seconds. TTE also produced an aftermarket supercharger kit for the IS 200, raising the power output to 204PS ECE (150kW). Naturally, a number of Japanese tuning firms, including Toyota's own TRD, offered parts and sometimes complete car conversions.

The RS200 is also used by many racing teams, including TRD (Toyota Racing Development), to race in various touring car championship series across Asia. A Lexus IS 200, based on a heavily modified RS200, has also raced in the British Touring Car Championship with limited success.

U.S. and European sales of the Lexus IS 300 were disappointing. In the US market, after hitting a high of 22,486 units in 2001, IS sales dropped below the 10,000-unit mark in 2004. The IS200 fared better in Europe and Asia, but still fall well short of the sales volume achieved by the likes of the BMW 3 Series.

Second generation

With the introduction of the Lexus name in Japan, the Toyota Altezza moniker is no longer used. The IS was redesigned for the 2006 model year and was introduced in the fall of 2005. A pre-production example was shown in the 2005 Geneva Autoshow. The slow-selling SportCross station wagon version was dropped from the lineup worldwide.

For the United States, three IS models are sold by Lexus:

• IS 250 - 2.5 L V6, 204 hp (152 kW), Rear wheel drive
• IS 250 AWD - 2.5 L 4GR-FSE V6 with all wheel drive, 204 hp (152 kW)
• IS 350 - 3.5 L 2GR-FSE V6, 306 hp (228 kW), Rear wheel drive

The IS 250 RWD comes standard with a 6-speed manual transmission, and a 6-speed automatic transmission is available as an option. The IS 250 AWD and the IS 350 are only available with the 6-speed automatic.

The IS 350's performance has been admirable, and its accelleration is class-leading. Some say this marks Lexus' first true forray into the sport compact market that compares well with its German competitors. One criticism of the IS is that Lexus does not yet offer a no-holds-barred performance-oriented version, such as the BMW M3 or the Mercedes-Benz C-Class AMG variants, but it stacks up well against all but the most recent versions of these.

Source :http://www.cars-directory.net/history/toyota/altezza/