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Jeff Bracken, Lexus' US group vice president and general manager, knows his company lost its position as America's biggest luxury brand back in 2011, and it's a mantle that his employer probably won't be getting back any time soon. That's because Lexus is electing not to follow the luxury segment's downmarket trend any more than its $32,500 CT 200h hybrid hatchback. "Since we won't be going down below $30,000, it will be very difficult for us to ever regain luxury leadership," Bracken admitted on Autoline After Hours late last week.

Rivals Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi all have new low-end entries on sale or in the wings to entice new buyers and fortify their CAFE scores, but Lexus has Toyota and Scion to capture sales underneath its lineup. Instead, Bracken hints that Lexus is going upmarket and higher-performance, fueling ongoing rumors of a LFA successor, or perhaps a new offering based on the lauded 2012 LF-LC coupe concept shown above, a production version of which could also slot in where the unloved SC convertible left off. "We need to begin bringing to market luxury performance... higher performance vehicles. IS-F certainly was the beginning of that, maybe on the lower end," says Bracken.

Later in the online video interview show, Bracken gets even more candid:

We've revealed the LF-CC now as an RC, right? Do you like the styling? So we feel the same way, and that would be a great example of Akio's thumbprint on where he's trying to take the company as it relates to beautiful styling. IS, RC, and hopefully these concepts you've become familiar with will ultimately make it to production."

The "Akio" in the quote above is, of course, CEO Akio Toyoda, who has made injecting emotion into the way his family's companies vehicles drive and look a top priority.

To that same end, earlier today, Lexus announced plans to reveal an unnamed new F-branded performance model at next month's Detroit Auto Show, but it isn't going exclusively top-shelf with future products – a compact crossover based on the LF-NX showcar is expected to slot in underneath its hugely successful RX CUV, bringing along with it a new turbocharged four-cylinder (an engine also expected shortly in the new IS sedan).

Lexus has not diversified its alternative fuel powertrains as much as its key rivals, most of which now offer both diesel and hybrid variants in at least one or two key models. On this subject, Bracken remains pessimistic, saying, "We have elected at this point not to head down the diesel path," while also saying that Lexus has no near-term plans for a plug-in model, nor any firm plans for a bi-fuel compressed natural gas offering.

For more of Bracken's musings on Lexus' future, scroll down to watch the Autoline After Hours episode video below.

The story we posted about a dealership accepting Bitcoins as payment for a Tesla Model S is reportedly only partially true. Lamborghini Newport Beach instead used BitPay to exchange the electronic currency for US dollars before completing the sale, according to "Squawk on the Street" on CNBC.

"We found out that by using a little program that Bitcoin uses, which is actually BitPay, we would have received US dollars," Pietro Frigerio, general manager of the dealership, says in the interview. "It's like if you come into the dealership and you want to buy a Lamborghini using gold bars, we would not accept it. So you'd go out, exchange it, and you'd come back to us. That was how it worked [with the Tesla and the Bitcoins]."

Frigerio says that the dealership doesn't accept Bitcoin as a currency and only accepts US dollars as payment for its vehicles. That said, we wouldn't be surprised if using BitPay to turn Bitcoins into US dollars for the used Model S purchase was actually easier than going through a more traditional financial establishment. Head over to CNBC to check out the "Squawk on the Street" interview with more details.

We're set to record Autoblog Podcast #360 tonight, and you can check out the topics below, drop us your questions and comments via our Q&A module, and don't forget to subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes if you haven't already done so. To take it all in live, tune in to our UStream (audio only) channel at 10:00 PM Eastern tonight.

Discussion Topics for Autoblog Podcast Episode #360

• 2015 Ford Mustang
• Alfa Romeo's latest US launch plan hinges on new RWD platform
• GM to shutter Holden and pull Chevrolet out of Europe
• $25K price barrier is problem for EVs

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Naturally, you'd expect a massive automaker like Fiat to have an in-depth plan to exit the current European-market doldrums, and you'd expect that plan to include plenty of new vehicles to attract those precious buyers that still remain despite the financial downturn. And you'd be right, though Fiat does seem to have a few unexpected twists up its corporate sleeve.

Perhaps the biggest shocker is a report that Fiat will completely drop the Punto, a car with mass-market appeal aimed at small-car buyers cross-shopping the popular Volkswagen Polo. Its replacement will be a five-door Fiat 500 aimed at upmarket buyers (sounds awfully similar to the 500L) that will be built in Poland. Lower-end customers will reportedly be served by variants of the Fiat Panda.

Borrowing a page from the BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen playbook, reports Automotive News, Fiat is said to have plans to reignite production at its Italian factories by retooling them to build high-end vehicles from Maserati and Alfa Romeo. These will be marketed as premium products, built by skilled Italian workers (who are paid wages that are 75-percent higher than those building Fiats in Poland), and will be sold around the world.

As always, it takes money to make money, and Fiat will be investing an estimated $12.3 billion (9 billion euros) over the next three years in its European recovery plan. The payoff if it works, though, which will include bringing back tens of thousands of Italian workers, could be huge for both Fiat and the European economy.

In addition to the Fast & Furious tribute video, which has been seen more than 25 million times, fans around the country have been organizing car cruises as a memorial to Paul Walker and Roger Rodas. A video report on CNN says that more than 1,000 people showed up to the fatal crash site yesterday for a memorial, which included a car rally and show.

While the report indicates all sorts of cars and motorcycles showed up, a Toyota Supra similar to the one from final scenes of the original The Fast and The Furious cab be seen in the background of the video. One fan even constructed a huge posterboard for fans of Walker and Rodas to sign. Scroll down to watch the video, and check out some of the AP and Getty images from the memorial as well.

Fast & Furious 6 goes on sale tomorrow, and a Universal is giving a portion of the proceeds to Walker's charity, Reach Out WorldWide.

According to a report from CNBC, the US government has sold off the last of its remaining shares in General Motors. Secretary Jack Lew reports that $39 billion of the $49.5 billion investment in GM has been recovered, meaning that the investment, on paper, cost taxpayers a total of $10 billion.

GM CEO Dan Akerson said in a statement, which you can read in full down below, "We will always be grateful for the second chance extended to us and we are doing our best to make the most of it. ... Continued investments, innovation, and job creation are just some of the "returns" of a healthy GM and domestic auto industry." GM stock closed today at $40.90, which is a new record.

Does this mean we've heard the last Government Motors joke? Probably not...

Forget advertising, incentives and, yes, even our excellently crafted vehicle reviews, sometimes the best way for automakers to sell cars is still good ol' fashioned word of mouth. In an attempt to measure this "word of mouth" power, The Boston Consulting Group, a management consulting firm, has created a new study called the Brand Advocacy Index (BAI). The index takes a look at how various industries perform from person to person. Those industries include automotive, smartphones, grocery, mobile telecommunications and banking.

The study polled more than 32,000 individuals across Europe and in the US to come up with the top 55 brands in these various industries. On the automotive side of things, the top brands in the US were Honda, Hyundai and Kia, all tied at 63 percent. On a global scale, Volkswagen and Toyota scored the highest with a 65-percent BAI rating (both in France). The average BAI for auto industry players tallied 50 percent.

As for companies in other industries, Apple's iPhone was the index's top-rated smartphone, Trader Joe's was the highest recommended grocery store, Virgin was sat atop the mobile telecom industry and USAA was the top retail bank. Scroll down for the full press release on the new study.

Some racing series are easier to understand than others, but to put it mildly, Formula One is not NASCAR. With 500 members of each team spending millions upon millions each year to gain an advantage, F1 is about as technically complex as rocket science. But if you thought you had managed to wrap your head around the way things work, think again, because the series is undergoing a major overhaul of its technical regulations for the 2014 season.

Of course, the biggest change is a switch from naturally aspirated 2.4-liter V8 engines to turbocharged 1.6-liter V6 powerplants, but that's not the sum total of the shift. The cars' hybrid component are set to play a bigger role, the aerodynamic regulations are changing, as are the exhaust system limitations and a whole mess of other details.

It's enough to make your head spin at 20,000 rpm. Fortunately the BBC has put together this handy little video interviewing the experts and breaking down the changes into layman's terms that even we can understand. Watch the handy three-and-a-half-minute video primer below to get yourself up to speed on next year's F1 regulations.

Ferrari tends to sell its models out extremely quickly – its wait lists are the stuff of legend. That's especially true when the cars in question are of the fastest or most exclusive variety. If new reports are to be believed, Maranello has already sold the entire 499-unit production run of its new LaFerrari hypercar, and now Australia's Motoring is claiming that Ferrari has also filled its order book for the entire first year's production run of its new 458 Speciale.

For those unfamiliar, the 458 Speciale follows in a proud line of hardcore mid-engined V8 Ferraris in the footsteps of the 360 Challenge Stradale and 430 Scuderia. It's lighter, more powerful and more aerodynamically advanced than the 458 Italia upon which it's based, and just trails half a second behind the more powerful F12 Berlinetta (and the aforementioned LaFerrari) as the third-quickest road car ever to lap the Italian automaker's Fiorano test track. That means it's quicker even than the 599 GTO and Enzo.

Although we've yet to receive official word, we're expecting a sticker price approaching $300,000 – about a quarter more than the 458 Italia. But that doesn't appear to have stopped Ferrari from raking in the orders. Check it out in our substantially updated image gallery above.

What do you do about a friend whose drinking and driving problem has reached epic – five-DUI-infractions epic – proportions? Well, if you're a self-professed YouTube "prankster" you might do something to scare him straight.

The subject of the video was allegedly completely passed out drunk, in his pickup truck, when his concerned, prank-pulling buddies scooped him up and deposited him in a staged hospital room for a little bit of tough love. We're not entirely convinced that the backstory is completely legit, but the ultimate scene and reaction from the mark is worth getting to.

Find the video below, and be sure to tell us if you think the Don't Drink and Drive Prank is authentic or staged in Comments.

We've got absolutely zero actual information from the automaker on what its "Next Lexus F" will be, other than what was just released today in this brief press release and lone teaser image, but our best guess is that it's the next-generation IS-F sedan. The timing would make sense, considering that the latest IS just hit the market earlier this year as a 2014 model.

Since we know so little, we'll just share some of the exuberant marketing speak contained in the press release for your reading pleasure:

Designed from the asphalt up, to strike at the heart, the newest Lexus F model will debut at the January 2014 North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

Engineered from scratch, one performance layer at a time, the newest F model promises a bold, gritty, experience synonymous with the famed Lexus F heritage.

Pretty poetic, don't you think? Click on the image above to enlarge, and scroll down below to read the rest of the awfully brief press release in its entirety.

As the year of 1972 was drawing to a close, my father had finally saved up enough money to buy himself his first new car, and his heart was set on a Chevrolet Chevelle SS. And no wonder – the midsize Chevy Super Sport had earned a reputation for performance with rugged good looks to match. Its twin stripes and domed hood hid a 402-cubic-inch V8 engine (though Chevy still called it a 396, owing to that mill's muscle car heritage), and, though down on power from the horsepower heyday of 1970, it sent tons of American grunt to the rear wheels in the very best tire-melting fashion.

Then 1973 rolled around, and General Motors completely remade its midsize offerings, eschewing the chiseled good looks of past models for what many, including my father, thought was a bloated, squared-off design that didn't look very muscular. Good old Dad did the right thing – he bought a '73 Firebird, and thus became a Pontiac man for life. And that's how my family grew up with a long slew of Pontiac machinery that included a Grand Prix or three, several Trans Am models and a barn full of GTO convertibles in various states of repair and disrepair.

While the Pontiac nameplate has since ascended to the great automotive graveyard in the sky, there's a direct link between the old Chevelle of yesteryear through the last Pontiac GTO and its spiritual successor, the G8, and the brand-spankin'-new 2014 Chevy SS that is today's subject du jour. And, somewhat surprisingly, that link has long since left the United States, diverting its way through Australia instead. Allow us to explain.

If there were ever a reason for automakers like Audi and Volkswagen to get their "clean diesel" technology – or something even cleaner, i.e., zero-emission vehicles – on the road, this is it. Researchers at the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands say up to six percent of lung-cancer deaths in the US and UK could be caused by diesel exhaust. The researchers published a study in the Environmental Health Perspectives that found that people with occupational exposure to extensive diesel exhaust accounted for 4.8 percent of US and UK lung-cancer deaths, while 1.3 percent of the deaths were of people who lived near highways.

The study involved testing UK and US truckers and miners who were exposed to emissions from diesel engines produced between the 1970s and 1990s. Researchers said it was "unclear" if the results are applicable to more modern diesel engines but added that the findings were consistent with earlier studies, since this isn't the first time there has been an official link between diesel exhaust and cancer. The new Utrecht study also said that lifetime exposure to diesel exhaust causes as many as 689 extra lung cancer deaths for every 10,000 workers exposed, an additional 6.9 percent risk. Federal workplace standards state that any scenario where the death-risk rises 0.1 percent is considered notable.

The good news is that the study (read a synopsis below) says the number of "uncontrolled" older diesel engines in the US, Europe and Japan has dropped "substantially" in recent years. The problem is that as some engines get cleaner, other problems arise. Independent researchers at TUeV Nord in Germany recently found the advanced gasoline engines can emit 10 times more particulates and harmful carcinogens than today's new diesel engines. The new GDI engines are even worse than earlier gas engines, spewing up to 1,000 times the harmful emissions because of the higher-pressure cylinders. Given the strict emissions regulations in Europe and around the world, we expect GDI engines will soon get the same kind of regulatory scrutiny that diesel mills have had up until now.

Any car with a six-figure price tag is bound to be pretty exclusive, especially one as exotic as the McLaren 12C. But even among its elite class of buyers, there will always be those who want to differentiate their supercar from others. And for that, there's McLaren Special Operations.

The customization department at McLaren offers an array of personalization options for the 12C, and every once in a while, it's prone to display some of those options on a uniquely outfitted supercar. And this is the latest.

Called the MSO 12C Concept Car, this unique MP4-12C packs a new hood, front wings, rear vents, airbrake spoiler and a roof-mounted air scoop, all crafted from carbon fiber. The long list of extras also includes wheel bolts and filler caps for oil and water ade of titanium, and an interior packed with even more carbon fiber trim. It looks pretty sweet in Storm Trooper white and black, and you can check it out, inside and out, in the image gallery above.