Toyota Plans Small Turbocharged 4 for Lexus

Toyota Motor Corp.'s Lexus unit will offer a 2.0-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder engine in a new crossover vehicle due in about 2015, Automotive News reports.

The newspaper cites a Toyota filing with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

AN says the new engine will power the small crossover, code named NX 200t, and may replace the company's current 2.5-liter 204-hp V-6 as the base engine in the Lexus IS sedan series.

Edmunds.com and AN report that the new Lexus crossover will be joined by a hybrid iteration, code named NX 300h. The NX is expected to be unveiled as a concept at the Tokyo auto show in November and in production from at the Geneva show in March 2014.

AN cites an unnamed source who indicates the turbo also could be offered in the Toyota RAV4 small crossover. That vehicle currently is powered by a naturally aspirated 2.5-liter 4-cylinder powerplant that makes 176 hp.