The Toyota brand's system is dubbed "Safety Connect," while the Lexus brand gets the moniker "Lexus Enform with Safety Connect."
Safety Connect bundles automatic collision notification, stolen vehicle location, an emergency assistance button and roadside assistance.
Lexus Enform adds such convenience items as up-to-the-minute weather reports and a feature called "destination assist." Destination assist provides guidance to gas stations, museums and other attractions and also offers Zagat's restaurant information. Users of Lexus Enform can also take advantage of a feature called eDestination, which allows the user to go online and send destinations wirelessly to their vehicle.
"We specifically steered away from a one-size-fits-all approach, recognizing that we have two distinct markets for telematics products and services," said Jon Bucci, Toyota Motors Sales USA's vice president of advanced technology.
No word yet on pricing — or on which vehicles will get the new Toyota telematics systems.
Inside Line says: It's about time, especially for cranky Lexus owners who wished they had an OnStar-like system on their high-end vehicles. — Anita Lienert, Correspondent
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