trexlexus

Even though I agree that the GS looks better, the problem with saying that X looks better than Y is the ever present subjectivity. Unfortunately with designs, 100% of the consumer base can't be pleased. There is a reason why Lexus styled the GS and ES the way they did. The most noticeable difference is in the spindle.

The ES has a curvier, less angled spindle. The GS has one that looks like it could slice pedestrians in half. That aggressive look is what Toyota is hoping will attract those sporty buyers. After all, someone who considers a GS over the ES, both being midsize, most likely will desire sportiness.

On the contrary, most cars that aren't sporty pretenders have rounder features. Look at non-sport Camrys and Corollas. The ES is following the same formula.

With that being said, I doubt EITHER car will disappear in the future. Totaling the ES and GS sales, Lexus seems to outsell both the 5 and E. The ES/GS brothers can essentially be considered as "trims of the same car" to the average consumer. Looking for more sport in your Lexus midsize? Grab the "ES F-sport" (GS). Lexus is unique in hitting this market and obviously very successful. They have covered BOTH the traditional RWD midsize and FWD luxo-cruiser.

The whole scare about the cancellation of the GS always sounded like a marketing ploy/scare from Toyota. Stir up some commotion to make sure the upcoming GS will be highly anticipated.

TRDFantasy

Exactly. Toyota would be fools to cancel the GS, and Toyota execs, as well as Akio Toyoda himself, are not fools.

Och

iTrader: (3)

I think the slow sales of the new GS attribute to the disaster that last 3GS was.

You see, many buyers of premium cars are repeat buyers/lessees, and its not easy to switch brands. If you're already leasing a BMW, and at the end of your term if you lease another one, you will likely drive it out with just the first month payment - the dealership will often wave a bunch of fees for repeat customers, such as security deposit, bank fees, damage and over-mileage fees, etc. However if you decide to switch to Lexus, it can literally cost you thousands of dollars, as BMW will charge you all sorts of lease return fees, and Lexus will charge you a bunch of initial fees. So if your monthly payment is $600 and you're driving a BMW, and you can just keep paying that $600 and get a new BMW, vs paying $3,000 and then $600 monthly to switch to Lexus - its a no brainer.

Since the last gen GS sold very poorly, there aren't many repeat buyers getting the 4GS.

natnut

That is a very good point.

The 4GS has basically to create its own sales momentum since the 3GS' poor sales towards the end of its life cycle left a very small pool of potential repeat buyers.

Add to that the negative perceptions that the 3GS created in the mind of the mass market towards the GS model line and it's a bloody miracle that the 4GS is selling as well as it does.

We'll have to give the 4GS time to undo the damage that the 3GS did to the Lexus brand. Being the best driving car in its segment is a major step in the right dorection.

GS69

June's Fastest & Slowest Selling

June sales soared to the highest rate since 2007 as Detroit automakers piled on the deliveries, but foreign-based companies still had the balance of fastest-selling cars. Detroit automakers built just 5 of the 17 fastest sellers in June — a list long on SUVs and pickups, which accounted for more than 2/3 of its cars.

The redesigned Acura MDX, which hit dealerships June 20, rocketed to the top of the list. It took just 5 days to turn. So did the 2014 Ford Explorer and Escape, despite few changes for 2014 to the popular SUVs. Further down the list, perennial fast-sellers from Audi (the Q5 and Q7) ranked alongside new regulars like the Mercedes-Benz GL-Class and Hyundai Santa Fe.

BMW's gambit on an entry-level 3 Series appears to have paid off: The new 320i averaged just 14 days to sell. The sport sedan, which has similar equipment to last year's 328i but 60 fewer horsepower in exchange for a starting price that's $2,320 lower, including destination, accounts for 11% of all new 2013 3 Series inventory on Cars.com. It went on sale last spring — and each car stayed on dealer lots about as long as I appears likely to stay in theaters.

That's well below the month's overall average of 59 days to sell, which tracks near May 2013's 56 days. It's a bit slower than June 2012's 53 days.

Some slow-moving redesigns fall below that average. Hyundai's full-size Azera sedan, redesigned for 2013, averaged 82 days in June to sell. Ditto the redesigned Acura RDX and all-new Cadillac ATS, which sat on dealer lots an average of 87 days and 90 days, respectively. Sales results, however, were mixed: The ATS was Cadillac's 2nd-best-selling model for the month, and RDX sales rose 30.2%. Only the Azera fell, with sales at a trickle — just 813 cars for the month, or 1/8 as many as the rival Toyota Avalon.

Here are June 2013's fastest- and slowest-selling cars:

June Movers

2014 Acura MDX: 5 days
2014 Ford Explorer: 5 days
2014 Ford Escape: 6 days
2014 Subaru Forester: 9 days
2014 Subaru Outback: 9 days
2014 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Crew Cab: 10 days
2014 GMC Sierra 1500 Crew Cab: 10 days
2013 BMW 320i sedan: 14 days
2013 Mercedes-Benz GL450: 14 days
2014 BMW X1: 15 days
2014 BMW X3: 16 days
2013 Audi Q5: 16 days
2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid: 17 days
2013 Audi Q7: 18 days
2013 Subaru BRZ: 18 days
2013 Toyota RAV4: 18 days
2013 Hyundai Santa Fe (non-Sport): 19 days

June Losers

2013 Chevrolet Malibu Eco: 243 days
2013 Smart ForTwo convertible: 201 days
2013 Mitsubishi Lancer Sportback: 179 days
2013 Jaguar XKR coupe: 171 days
2013 Volkswagen Golf R four-door: 154 days
2013 Jaguar XK coupe: 150 days
2013 Acura ILX Hybrid: 150 days
2013 Chevrolet Corvette convertible: 147 days
2013 Mercedes-Benz E400 Hybrid: 144 days
2013 Chevrolet Corvette coupe: 144 days

Cars.com Picks

2013 Volkswagen GTI four-door: 67 days
2013 Chevrolet Suburban 1500: 68 days
2013 Dodge Charger: 70 days
2013 Chevrolet Volt: 71 days
2013 Ford F-150 Crew Cab: 75 days
2013 Hyundai Accent hatchback: 82 days

About the Lists
The Fastest- and Slowest-Selling Cars list reports the average number of days it takes to sell models from the day they arrive on the lot until the final paperwork is signed by a buyer. This is not a days-of-inventory list like you may find on other websites. We look at 2013 and a number of 2014s now, calling the fastest sellers Movers and the slowest ones Losers.

For Movers, we only list vehicles that pass a certain threshold of sales in order to weed out limited editions, ultra-high-performance cars and others that might skew the numbers or otherwise inaccurately portray popularity. To highlight all slow sellers, losers have no such threshold.

Our Picks highlight cars that take a significant time before they're sold and might be overlooked by shoppers. Dealers could be more motivated to sell these cars.

GS69

Lexus Nudges US Sales Target Higher

Lexus is nudging its U.S. sales target up with new-model intros expected to spur 2nd-half turnover.

Lexus expects to sell between 260,000 and 270,00 vehicles in the United States this year, Lexus International Executive Vice President Mark Templin said this month at an IS sedan event.

The new plan is a step up from Lexus' April outlook of 260,000 units for 2013. Its upper range would mark an 11 percent increase over 244,166 vehicles sold in the United States last year.

Lexus has its work cut out for it in reaching 270,000.

Its U.S. sales climbed 10 percent to 118,415 units in the 1st 6 months of the year, putting Lexus on an annualized pace for 237,000 units. Market share was flat at 1.5 percent, and the luxury marque still trailed rivals Mercedes-Benz and BMW.

But this year's arrival of the redesigned IS sedan is expected to fuel sales in the 2nd half of the year, Templin said.

Lexus aims to sell 32,000 units of the IS in the United States this year -- with 22,500 coming from the new 2014 model year. Last year, the long-in-the-tooth IS sold 27,708 units.

Toyota Motor Corp.'s luxury brand also will benefit from the full-year sales effect of the redesigned ES and LS sedans.

Despite the anticipated uptick, Lexus won't be pulled into a volume race against its premium German rivals, Templin said.

"Our goal in the U.S. market is just good, steady growth," he said. "We don't want to try to do too much too fast. That's when bad habits creep into the business. We absolutely get no pressure from Akio Toyoda to sell more volume."

One car that won't be fueling U.S. sales is the hybrid IS.

Lexus expects the gasoline-electric version of the IS to account for 55 percent of the nameplate's sales in Japan. But that drivetrain option won't be headed stateside.

Templin said the entry-level hybrid sedan segment is covered adequately already in the United States by hybrid versions of the ES and GS sedans. The slow-selling hybrid-only HS sedan was discontinued in the United States but is still sold in Japan.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

never considered the 70k gs450h an entry-level anything.

mordecai

No matter what excuses Templin makes, it is a stupid idea not to offer the IS300h in the US.

MPLexus301

iTrader: (3)

Looking forward to seeing 3IS sales for July