DShiekhi

Lexus Sold More SUVs in July Than in Any Other July - Ever



Last month, a cloud hung over Lexus that kept its sales down. However, there was a silver lining to that cloud.

Read the rest on the ClubLexus.com homepage. >>

Fizzboy7

That worked out well, and it's mostly thanks to the affordable NX. You can price one up with decent options for under $40k. That opens the door to a lot of people who wouldn't normally be able to afford a Lexus. I am seeing a ton of these here in L.A.

The new RX is catching on, but not in masses like before. It's early though, so we'll see how well people accept the silly hearse buttress styling.

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

I wouldn't fully blame styling, but also the market is flooded with more SUVs and CUVs than ever before. Most of which you can get the same features on an RX as you can a Sorento, Edge, Enclave etc. With that said it seems to be pick your favorite badge and color these days with all the similarities vehicles share now.

Fizzboy7

That's certainly true. But I now wonder this.... as more and more people yearn to have a CUV/SUV, and more and more are offered by different makes/manufacturers (including Lexus), wouldn't that cancel out your theory as to why Lexus could be losing that edge? In other words, if you had a graph showing an increase in both public demand, and an increase in offerings (including Lexus), wouldn't each bar still be rising at an equal rate? Or would one bar (the other brands) be rising higher than the other (Lexus)? I think that last graph would be the telling tale as to how well Lexus is keeping up with the other brands, which are gaining ground.

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

I think other brands would rise faster than Lexus since Lexus is so conservative in regards to changes. Slow and steady wins the race so to speak. Crossing t's and dotting i's has been in the Lexus Covenant since the beginning. Eventually the graph would plateau, and signs of that happening have shown parity rising in the industry the last few years. Automakers realize they can't crank out crap like they used to, and the quality while not perfect is a significant improvement over say something from the mid 2000's. Features like heated seats and moonroofs which were once 'luxury features' can be found in a common models like Civics and Elantra's now. Luxury makes like Lexus, Benz and BMW need to work hard to show their product deserves the premium price. Once done by having longer vehicle warranties, pre-paid services, free/trial satellite or telecommunication services, warm and friendly dealer facilities/staff etc. Today, Hyundai's 100,000 mile warranty, GM's OnStar, and Buick dealership CSI offerings, services, and accolades bring those luxury makes back to reality. I think moving forward automakers like Lexus need to go back to the product. Cars are so well connected now, yet Lexus infotainment is seriously lagging behind the competition. I would strongly suggest to Lexus to re-adopt the Touchscreen in addition to the current Remote Touch. I believe the new 7-Series infotainment can be implemented via iDrive or Touchscreen. I would also focus on quiet tuning and more quality materials / soft touch pieces. Lexus already makes a reliable car, and refining the weak links can only improve the brand and solidity in the marketplace.

mmarshall

Conservative?

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

Lol not design or styling Marshall. Bringing new technology and/or features is what I meant.

mmarshall

Yes, that would make more sense....Lexus is not always the first with new features. But there are some exceptions. The LS460, if my memory is correct, was the first car to mass-produce the automatic self-parallel-parking system. And what is interesting is that the second car to do it (again, if my memory is correct) was the Ford Focus....an econo-compact that costs one-fourth, brand new, what an LS does.

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

Sure every now and then Lexus will shake the world with something new. The LS was the first to offer an 8-Speed automatic, LS600hL was the first V8 AWD Luxury Hybrid. And yes the self parking feature also debuted. It should be noted that the feature was dropped (I believe at the time of the 2013 refresh) because it was too expensive and not intuitive enough to operate. That said, it's a $500 option on the Focus, which tends to take some of that luster Lexus initially had with the technology and another reason to shelve it.

Lexus tends to be more conservative and dots the i's and crosses the t's before a release. It's a good thing, but it also means patience is a virtue when rooting for Lexus

coolsaber

The RX is a great Lexus, but for the price you can get access to bigger vehicles like an MDX, XC90. Nonetheless the RX is a great product, and previous owners are mostly loving it. If they introduce a 3 row variant, consider Lexus to be selling them by the crapton for the next decade, and the CUV game mostly in their pocket.

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

They are called the RX350L and RX450hL and should be coming sometime next year.

coolsaber

I heard of that too. However if i was part of their focus group, the L after the 350 would make me associate limo not 3 row lol.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

but they're not really conservative at all... the spindle grill, the 2GS (400) back in its time was radical, the LF-A was definitely NOT conservative, the RX created its own market segment for years, way ahead in hybrid tech... and as you say, they've launched many firsts, although sometimes those firsts just aren't that great (like the parking assist). so they march to their own drummer that's for sure, but when you say they're conservative, to me that means they're often just 'slow' to do things OTHER makers do (diesel in europe, turbos worldwide, they have relatively small product selection and option packages / choices).

they are what they are. they're unique, excellent quality, not for everyone, but well placed in most cases and hard to compare with other brands, which is smart when you're still the 'up start' that took on europe!

Sulu

The examples you gave may not be the best ones.

1. Diesels are not a big deal in Japan (at least not in cars). The Japanese automakers (more than likely with financial support from the government) have concentrated on improving the gasoline engine.
2. Turbos are used as an easy work-around to get more power from a smaller engine, and because of the smaller engine, you seemingly get better fuel economy also. But if you already have an efficient gasoline engine (which the Japanese automakers typically do) or have a very good hybrid system, you do not need turbocharging (or at least can wait until new technology cannot squeeze any more efficiency from the gasoline engine).

dseag2

Well said. I would also add that Infiniti and now even Acura offer the ability to use a **** or a touchscreen.

On another note, younger buyers are much less brand-loyal than they used to be, which will play out in a very interesting way with brands like Mercedes and BMW (and maybe even Lexus) where clients came back year after year and traded up to whatever was available. I think that is why MB and BMW are offering so many variations in every model of vehicle. It is a way for them to capture every possible segment of the market, even if it is niche. Who needs an X6? Somebody out there.