Consider that Mercedes has (had) CLK (E Coupe), CLS, CL, SL, SLK, SLR McLaren (SLS), and then AMG or Black Series versions of all those. Those are all some badass machines that Lexus has nothing to answer with.

 

BMW & Mercedes were cool even before AMG & M came to mass market. Most of you were not around in the 70's & early 80's to remember the 3.0 csl, 320i's, 560sec's, 528i's, SL's, 190E's etc.. These were the cars to have back then & the trend continues today.. AMG & M are just cherries on top of the cake.

 

That changes nothing about the fact that the average age of Benz owners is still HIGHER than Lexus owners.

Lexus *had* the 1st-gen SC coupe, the 2nd-gen GS, and the 1st-gen IS, all pretty "bad-***", so what's your point?

Most young people can't even differentiate between the alphabet soup of Benz models.

Fact is, AMG has done wonders for Benz' image for young people in current modern times.

 

And M-B has been around a lot longer than Lexus....it is, arguably (under the Daimler name), the oldest auto company in existance. Many older folks were buying M-B products before Lexus even existed.



That's also the case with several other luxury makes, including Cadillac and Lincoln.

Not really. AMG models are, IMO, grossly overpriced, and many, if not most, younger people simply don't have the money to afford them, though some can at least partially get around that by leasing (or, if you are like Lindsay Lohan and have already wrecked two of them) .

 

Do you see the huge difference in your answer compare to MPLexus301 answer? Every car he name is a coupe and has/or will have an AMG version. The only young people car Lexus has is the IS. Despite what age group purchase the car.

 

My point is, young people cannot afford any AMG cars, but they DREAM about them, and it gets young people talking about and thinking about Mercedes. Most young people don't even think about Lexus.

How many coupes and high-performance cars does BMW have? Not much at all, yet it has a GREAT reputation among young people, because everybody loves and dreams about the M cars.

 

OK...that sheds a different light.

The IS and IS-F have done a lot to change that. A number of younger females (and occasionally a younger male) also are drawn to the RX.


Unless they are real speed freaks with the huge torque of the AMG models, most enthusiasts prefer the M cars because they have a crisper steering/handling feel.

 

You conveniently forget to explain they grew their lineups. BMW had a pretty blah lineup and almost got bought by Mercedes as they were broke. You also forgot maybe THE most important BMW that changed their image the 2002. The other cars you mentioned don't mean much (maybe the CSL).

It wasn't overnight for them. BMW/Benz "coolness" was not as cool as you make it in the past.

 

So what you "see" and looking at your posts, would you NOT see old people in a GS/IS. I was at Petit Le Mans a couple weekends ago and MOST of the sporty vehicles were driven by older people, didn't matter the brand.

Why? B/C they are EXPENSIVE.
While AMGs might take a depreciation hit like no other, I they what they have done for Benz from an image/halo standpoint is fantastic. Benz went from Staid and blah to "ooooooh" with AMG.

 

You are what.. 30 going on 31? You were not around to know what was cool & popular. There are something magazines just don't cover.

 

Yes b/c you know, forget about talking to people and reading on cars in the past. Who does that!

 

My point is that it gives young people something to aspire to and creates an interest and halo effect for the entire brand. Before the IS F, Lexus only narrowly ever had that with the SC.

There's a difference between what is quantifiable (age) and what is qualitative (appreciation, interest, halo-effect, etc).

Lexus is getting there, thankfully.

 

The thousands of Lexus buyers aren't hung up on age, the myth is often about the armchair internet warriors giving themselves something to discuss.

 

Ah! We agree

 

LOL.. I believe that is as far as it goes.. Arm chair rather than the drivers seat.