always the same story, oh noe, Lexus is going down, everyone is going to outsell it!!!
And best selling luxury brand in 2010? Lexus :-).

as to the models, so what? In next 2 years, Lexus will have new LS, GS, IS, ES and CT... it is just normal cycle.

 

I noticed that about the HS as well. I don't hate or love the HS but I do like it for what it is.

Lexus sold more LX 570's than HS 250h's so far this year.

The ES still outsells the IS. For the next generation ES we should get a hybrid version which will help ES sales.

The top three Lexus sellers are the RX, ES and IS.

Very soon we'll get the next generations ES, GS, IS and LS...

 

I've been seeing articles all over the place about how Buick is rising and beating other Luxury brands, but there prices are really low, so how can you fairly compare them to other brands? Out of their 4 models, 3 of them have MSRP below $30,000.

 

dumb article.
why do they keep comparing buick to lexus. they are not even in the same league.

if buick compares to lexus, what does cadillac compare to then?

hey ma! Hyundai outsold buick last month, by a factor of 3x !!!!
Hyundai is a luxury brand now because they have the genesis and equus.
You can now even get a luxurious Elantra for $19000.

 

Mitsu never discloses sales numbers of particular models in their PRs but here they are

Galant 3245
Outlander Sport 1290
Lancer 964
Outlander 629
Endeavor 190
Lancer EVO 165
Eclipse 148
Ecliose Spyder 142
Lancer Sportback 120

 

Wow Lexus has 15 days of inventory.....

Prius back on top in Japan

[QUOTE]Friday, March 4, 2011 . Prius Returns As New Car Sales Leader In Feb

TOKYO (NQN)--Toyota Motor Corp.'s Prius hybrid was the top-selling car in February, regaining the No. 1 spot after a one-month hiatus, the Japan Automobile Dealers Association said Friday.

The automaker sold 19,110 Priuses, down 29.2% on the year, a smaller slide than the 38.5% fall in January.

Honda Motor Co.'s Fit subcompact came in second, with sales climbing 20.8% to 16,876, marking the third straight month of increase.

Toyota's Vitz placed third and Daihatsu Motor Co.'s Move minivehicle was fourth. Coming in fifth was the Wagon R minivehicle from Suzuki Motor Corp./QUOTE]
http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20110304D04SS439.htm

 

Even with escalating gas prices, the Insight continues to fail. Honda only sold 1,722 in February compared to the 13,539 Prius's Toyota moved. Pathetic. Unless the next generation Insight can get at least 55 MPG, then Honda shouldn't even bother.

 

Camry Kicking ***

 

I thought last month we were talking about how the Camry's days at #1 were numbered? At least many thought so. And most of those thought it would be the Accord taking over. Now it's 3rd.

I have to say wow! for the Fusion. Great job Ford. This is what happens when you build a great car a develop a reputation of quality. To beat the Accord's sales is a serious achievement.

 

i'm guessing a new one is due so inventory and incentives were lower?

^^this, plus RX is top seling lexus vehicle by FAR. sorrento is top selling kia vehicle by FAR, etc.

yes, camry and fusion, etc., still sell, but i predict the 'sedan' sales will be a smaller and smaller portion of overall sales as time goes on.

why? baby boomers want the high seating position and overall room of cuvs and suvs. young families don't like the cramped quarters of sedans and low ingress/egress and hassle with child seats compared to cuv/suvs.

not shocked. i've said for years 'lexus is buick done right'. but now, buick has fixed itself up and cars like the lexus ES, which were so much better than a buick in the past (quiet, comfy, reliable, good value) but now, not so much. an ES is still a great vehicle, but boomers and seniors in particular (an ES target market) will definitely look at cars like buick now and many will just see a better value and more style.

yup.

lexus is likely to have a tough 2011, and their tight inventory control, acknowledged by lexus as even tighter than it should have been so far this year, is really irritating to consumers, who are so often confronted with a 'take it or leave it' very limited selection on the lot.

'normal'? there is no normal. maybe lexus would like time and success to continue and for reality not to change, but it changes constantly, and the market and competition for lexus in 2011 is vastly different than years past.

lexus new DESIGNS will be very interesting to watch. do they keep with and evolve 'l-finesse' which i think has been highly confused, contradictory, and overall not that great. or do they go more radical or different, risking alienating customers, or just confusing the market?

jaguar for example, may have some of the 'prettiest' luxury designs right now, but they're selling like death here.

if they offer comparable vehicles for less money, guess what, they sell well. they have nice sedans and a nice suv...

wrong, there is overlap. yes, buick does not have an LS type vehicle though.

buick/cadillac COMBINED are kind of a one-two punch at lexus, although the combo still lacks a competitive high end sedan.

lexus, mercedes and bmw all have a HUGE vehicle price-range (say $30k-$150k putting aside cars like LFA and SLS). this makes them vulnerable at one end or the other in particular, or in the middle as in the case of the lexus gs for example, which is dead (compared to booming 5 and E sales).

as much as i despise the gm bailout, i respect many of the vehicles they're making these days. it's night and day from 20 years ago.

i think the CTS for example is simply a better vehicle and value than the IS, ES, and GS! it comes in coupe and sedan, and in the incredible 'V' version, which is the real deal, unlike the garage job immature IS-F.

i think that's a good point, and why the market now is so confusing and hard to compare.

camry sales are indeed, very impressive.

 

as i wrote the above, it got me thinking about brand loyalty. while we'll always have strong brand fans, especially among younger buyers, i think boomers and seniors in particular are surprisingly willing to look at all brands and 'value'. the area i live in has tons of boomers, seniors and retirees, and i see them driving everything, and switching from long-held loyalties (e.g., gm buyers for decades, to a hyundai, is a common one).

keeping brand loyalty is HARD. i think of a brand like mercedes-benz. despite problems in the 90s and the chrysler disaster they seem to have gotten it together again. their designs a carefully crafted combination of presence, quality (esp. trim details), and aggressiveness/competence.

i frankly think lexus BLEW it with the last go around of designs because their cost reduction from prior designs was so obvious. mercedes went cheap on the interior with the last gen C class but regardless their interiors don't seem as plain as the ES/IS for example. lexus then compounded the problem with a tacked on cheap 'sport' trim for the LS and the ugly IS-F body kit. also, when will lexus offer seats that are comfortable for long drives with longer lower cushion!

but lexus will lilkely do better. they just have to re-evaluate that what has been good enough in the past isn't good enough going forward and they have competitors all over the place.

 

It's a great time to buy the current gen Camry if anyone is interested. The new generation is coming out soon so the dealers aren't hesitant to get current one out of the way.

 

Interesting break down of hybrid car sales in this link.

http://www.hybridcars.com/hybrid-cle...uary-2011.html

 

lol 0 people bought the ML450 hybrid?

the RXh is pretty high on the list considering its price

 

i would have never thought Fusion would be #2.

and I still do not put Buick and Lexus in the same league, not to mention tier, and it's not just because buick doesn't have an LS fighter.

toyota avalon overlaps with lexus. every mainstream brand has some overlap with the premium brands.

but I still equate Buick with the former Mercury in status. a tad better than ford; not quite a lincoln.