Lexus RC F catching your heart

Lexus has long grappled with its own image – that of a clinical brand that doesn't instil passion in prospective owners.

If any model were to stir the loins, send chills up the spine and tingle the parts that the Lexus ES 350 can't reach, it would be the company's RC F – a V8-powered coupe that is the company's response to the BMW M4.

To make that very point, Lexus has built a unique RC F that can capture the WiFi signal of a beating heart from a connected cardiac monitor and reproduce from that beat an electric pulse that illuminates the car's paintwork.

The paint is a special electroluminescent type developed by US paint supplier Lumilor. An electrical charge flowing through the paint creates a glow that pulses in time with the heartbeat of the person connected to the monitor. A special electrical system has been fitted to the one-off RC F, and is connected to the car's standard electrical system. As it receives a new signal from the heart rate monitor it sends a new electrical discharge through the paint.

"This latest concept follows other innovative projects we have developed this year including smart outdoor advertising billboards that respond to the car you're driving and our fantastic new Lexus hoverboard," said Lexus Australia chief executive, Sean Hanley.

"These activities underline the new, bold way we are behaving across all areas of the Lexus business.

"The heartbeat car also links to another key part of our brand – high performance vehicles – via our F brand, and the emotional response a person gets from a machine like the RC F coupe.

"No matter the innovative technology we display and bring to market, our commitment to delivering the ultimate luxury customer experience remains the foundation of the Lexus brand," Hanley concluded.

What next from Lexus, we wonder? Isn't it time they wirelessly hooked up a gall bladder to the LX 570? Perhaps the middle ear to an RX 270? Or, just for laughs, someone's genitals patched through to a CT200h?