That massive hunk of steel in your driveway is slowly corroding into obsolescence -- both figuratively and literally. About the time that rust finally eats through the floorboards of your shiny new 2012 model, you'll be able to purchase -- no, afford -- a plastic car.

According to Lexus, customers have been asking for an edgier and sportier version of the popular RX crossover. With the 2013 Lexus RX F Sport, their wish, so says the automaker, has been granted.

The ES may not be the most exciting Lexus, but it's one of the most successful. In 2011, the ES was the brand's second-best seller right behind the popular RX crossover, with some 40,873 ES sedans sold compared to just 29,669 for the more exciting IS. Not surprisingly, the updated 2013 Lexus ES making its world debut at the 2012 New York auto show doesn't veer far from its successful formula of offering customers a value-packed, comfortable luxury sedan.

The third-generation Lexus RX is only three years old, but as premium crossover competition intensifies, it's not surprising to see the automaker update the model line. The refreshed 2013 Lexus RX range made its world debut this week at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show, but we already have specifications and details surrounding models destined for the North American market.

Love it or hate it, that hourglass-shaped grille from the new Lexus GS isn’t going away anytime soon. At least, not if you’re to believe the LF-LC Concept, which debuted yesterday at the Detroit Auto Show and predicts the future of the Lexus design language.

Competing in the heavyweight heart of the luxury market, the Lexus GS has often stood in the shadow of rivals like the BMW 5-series, the Mercedes-Benz E-class, and the Audi A6. More so than the upper end of the market, where the LS does well, or the entry-luxury segment, where the ES is quite popular, the mid-luxury market prizes driving dynamics. Thus, for Lexus GS chief engineer Yoshiko Kanamori, who was attempting “to move the GS into the heart of the luxury market,” the number one way to do that was to give the new car an “emotionally intriguing driving experience.”

The CT200h is not only the least expensive Lexus, it's also the most fuel efficient. It wraps Toyota Prius mechanicals in a lower, sportier four-door hatchback body. Unfortunately, the styling's sporty promise is mostly unfulfilled. The CT200h does offer more niceties than a Prius, but it's neither as roomy nor as economical. It's also more expensive, but the extra money buys a premium-level interior. The cabin is well finished and nicely padded, and the optional nav system brings with it a mouselike controller to access items on the pop-up screen. The CT200h uses the same powertrain as the Prius, a 1.8-liter four with battery assist and a continuously variable transmission. There's a choice of driving modes: EV (which you're kicked out of before you even leave the parking lot), Eco (which totally kills throttle response), Normal, and Sport (which calls up higher steering efforts and quicker throttle mapping). Even in Sport mode, the CT200h is slow: Lexus puts the 0-to-60-mph time at a shade under ten seconds, and the CVT has the tiny four-cylinder droning at the top of its rev band when you ask for quick acceleration. In mellower driving, the electric motor's torque helps to mask the weak engine. The chassis is a happier affair, with far better steering than the lifeless Prius's and an absence of body roll -- the latter at a cost of considerable impact harshness. The CT200h may appeal to a Prius shopper willing to trade some practicality and fuel economy for a little Lexus luxury. Buyers looking for a more sporty driving experience might check out the Audi A3 TDI.

It's easy to hold up the RX as a symbol of what's wrong with the Lexus brand -- dull to look at, dull to drive, far too common -- but as an actual vehicle it remains quite good. The RX exudes a sense of solidity that goes beyond its size. The interior, though dour and dark for my tastes, fits together impeccably and filters out just about all outside noise. Toyota's 3.5-liter V-6 has to work pretty hard to hustle the RX350's 4343 pounds, but it's one of the most refined six-cylinders on the market, so it never sounds unpleasantly strained. I'm always surprised by how firm the steering and suspension are in this crossover. It's not an athletic, involving machine, but neither is it a flaccid one.

Although Lexus already showed the new GS, in the form of the GS350, at Pebble Beach, today's unveiling at the Frankfurt Motor Show gave us our first look at the new hybrid Lexus sedan -- the 2013 GS450h.

It's a challenge for anyone to keep up with the constantly changing roster of cars on dealership lots. For car lovers it's an even tougher task, because beyond knowing that a certain model exists, you need to know where it fits in the automotive firmament. That's why we've gathered every new model due by the first half of 2012 and categorized them, not alphabetically or by some government-defined size class, but by their relevance to buyers, enthusiasts, and the companies that build them. Some cars thrust automakers into new segments, while others drive just like last year's model. Some cars protect the sanctity of the manual transmission, while others advance performance with the latest technology. Some cars address rising fuel-economy standards, while others disguise obscene speed in stealthy sheetmetal. Here are the 85 new arrivals shaping the automotive world for 2012.

Two quite different concept cars caught my interest at the New York auto show in April. I thought both of them were surpassingly unattractive, but for completely opposing reasons. One of the concept cars was the Mercedes-Benz A-class, the other the Lexus LF-Gh seen here. The over-the-top Mercedes is bejeweled and glittery enough to embarrass a rap star whose Cadillac Escalade sports LED-lit "spinners," while the Lexus is subdued and restrained but inelegant. The contrast between them lies in execution. For all its ueber-bling and wildly excessive chrome detailing on the front end, the Mercedes enjoys absolutely flawless surface development. The Lexus does not.

Early next year, Lexus will start selling an all-new GS. While the production car’s styling has not yet been revealed, it was previewed by the LF-Gh Concept at this year’s New York auto show. That design was certainly polarizing, and while it has many critics, some of us feel that the new design language will translate well from the show stand to the street. We’ll find out next month when the car is revealed at Pebble Beach. The prototype 2012 Lexus GS350 we drove was fully camouflaged inside and out, but we spent considerable time behind the wheel and the changes are obvious.

This black Lexus GS450h looks slick, provides a comfortable ride, and has a very quiet cabin. The "h" at the end of the model name means this Lexus is a hybrid, and I'm quite impressed with its operation. The gasoline engine kicks in almost silently and with very little vibration, and the brakes feel as natural as those on a non-hybrid car.

Even as it successfully launched its Scion brand to attract the youth market, Toyota did little to attract a younger audience for its Lexus brand. The new CT200h hybrid hatch is an attempt to change that. Lexus hopes that its combination of performance and its green image will capture the attention of affluent buyers in their 30s and 40s.

At board meetings, on test tracks, and in design studios, decisions are being made today that will influence what you drive tomorrow. Automakers are hard at work creating the next generation of automobiles -- cars that are faster, sexier, more efficient -- while trying to keep their development secret. Like you, we are nosy as hell. Unlike you, we have a vast network of snoops, gossips, and disgruntled former employees who have helped us uncover the information we present here. Our annual Sneak Preview feature contains the industry's future products -- as far out as 2019 -- that are worth saving your milk money for.

The current-generation GS has been on the market for six years, an eternity in the world of premium cars. So when I drove it last night and asked myself the inevitable question, why would anyone buy this over its many much newer competitors, I said, well, Lexus must offer some killer lease deals on the GS. So I went to the Lexus Web site expecting to find these killer lease deals with, like, headlines blaring, "Drive a Lexus GS350 for only $599 a month, no money down!!!" I didn't find anything of the sort, but I did come across a Lexus-provided comparison of the GS with three principal competitors: the Mercedes-Benz E350, the Infiniti M37, and the BMW 535i. Lexus claims that, in order to get models equipped as well as the GS350 is for its $48,925 base price, you'd have to spend $55,075 for the Infiniti, $58,345 for the Mercedes, and a whopping $63,575 for the BMW. I didn't double-check their specification charts and math, but I have no reason to think they are stretching the truth. All four sedans are available with either rear- or all-wheel drive, all of them are comfortable and luxurious and have powerful six-cylinder engines, and all four of them should prevent you from being snubbed by your country-club valets, even if they aren't parked in the front circle drive.

It's amazing how quickly the Lexus LX570 has aged. When this monster SUV debuted for the 2008 model year, it felt ridiculously fast, very comfortable, and seemed enormous. In 2011, the LX570 feels much older than it should because of the myriad buttons, knobs, and levers to control the various suspension, 4wd, climate control, and audio systems. For the most part the array of controls is explained well with illustrations of each individual switch's function, but the sheer number of things that can be adjusted is a bit intimidating. Land Rover does a much better job of batching the various 4wd settings together with a clear icon to explain the terrain that matches the system's setting. Even Jeep has made this pretty clear with the Grand Cherokee.

The IS350 is something of a dark horse in this very competitive segment. In this case, I mean that literally, as our test car looks quite stealthy and intimidating in black. The aggressive styling isn't quite as pretty as that of an Infiniti G37 or an Audi A4 but still convinces you this is a sport sedan, and it has aged well. The interior is less successful, as lots of dark trim and modern shapes create an atmosphere more gloomy than sporty. Still, the materials are of high quality and the simple, circular gauges are just right.

Lexus has released advance images and information on the new grand touring sedan.

I spent my impressionable childhood being toted around in the way back of my family's 1992 Toyota Land Cruiser and in many large sport-utilities owned by my friends' families, so I feel that I have a pretty good idea of how buyers actually use them. Our Land Cruiser took us from our home in suburban New York City to the Outer Banks, to the Berkshires in the dead of winter, and of course to the Stop n Shop about ten thousand times. I've arrived at school plays, ceramics classes, Japanese-language classes, violin lessons, and Broadway shows in the third-row seats of Cadillac Escalades and Mitsubishi Monteros and Lexus LX470s and Chevy Suburbans. By the time I got my driver's license, my family had downsized to a series of Lexus RX's, but when I was with my friends in their big family SUVs, I usually managed to take the driver's seat. So, yeah, I know SUVs. And, yeah, I know they aren't the most efficient vehicles on the road, but even with impending $4-per-gallon gasoline, there are still people who have boats to tow, big families and luggage to haul on summer vacations, and household goods to be ferried home from Costco and the Home Depot, and there are plenty of families who want to do it in the lap of luxury and style.

Lexus has been attempting to build excitement in its brand lately by reaching out to a younger, more performance-oriented market. The latest efforts have also revolved around its line of hybrid luxury vehicles. We all know if there is one thing that’s gets the kids; it’s luxury cars and hybrids.

I'm amused that a cargo net is a $59 extra. Really, Lexus, you can't throw in a $59 cargo net as part of the $45,700 base price?

Nearly every manufacturer has some model of hybrid in their lineup these days. Lexus has several. They offer hybrid versions of their sedans as well their RX Sport Utility Vehicle. For 2010 Lexus released a dedicated hybrid, the HS 250h. For 2011, Lexus has upped the ante with a sportier hybrid option, the CT200H.

The Lexus ES 350 is one of the company's bestselling vehicles. It received a partial update in 2010 and the styling carries over to 2011. Some of the updates that came along with the 2010 refresh were new bumper and grill, along with new lights all around.

The GS series is the midsize in the Lexus model lineup. It was given a complete overhaul in 2006 and a much smaller update occurred in 2010. This was mostly an Audio/Video affair, which featured more connectivity for the radio system and a voice command for the navigation system. The GS line will carry over into 2011 with no notable changes. The GS series competes head to head with the likes of the Acura RL and the mid level vehicles from all the major German marquees.