I know that Caddy makes a fortune on every Escalade it sells. And that high end BOFs are cash cows. I don't know how well high end crossovers do by comparison, profit wise.

I lovvvvvvvvve that this new LX kept the LX formula. That said it's not going to be as practical or roomy like an Escalade is. I'm not holding my breath because it would cost Lexus a lot to bring in a whole new high end crossover, but I hope they do.

 

I just don’t care for the German crossover stuff at the higher price point. They are just so unappealing to me. Only Mercedes SUv that is interesting is the G wagon… but Mercedes screwed that up IMO.

 

You have to separate what you like and what sells well. Crossovers are a huge market and sales are growing. There is a huge swath of buyers that Lexus is leaving on the table.

The two don’t have to be mutually exclusive.

 

But lots of people do like those vehicles. Just because you don’t like it doesn’t mean anything.

I don’t like BOF SUVs but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t exist and that there isn’t a huge market for them.

 

I just don’t think Lexus would do well at the top end of the crossover market. At least for,rwd based stuff. I think you and I just see the Lexus brand as something different. I don’t really care if they emulate or chase with a German brands do. That’s what I think you care about more.

 

I totally disagree. They can make a very compelling car in that segment.

 

Adding to me caring about them competing with the germans...I care about them making cars that I want to buy. I think its clear that Lexus has stopped competing with the Germans, but what that means is they're a lower tier brand more similar to Acura and Cadillac, Volvo etc. Seeing that they never were that, and they were legitimately a Japanese alternative to high end luxury cars thats really a shame, IMO.

They have a great rear drive architecture, a great TTV6 engine...there is no reason why they can't field a couple of high end crossovers to serve that market, and they can still have the LX to serve that market.

 

‘Yeah..seen you say this over and over again. I do know there was a body on frame Lexus LX long before there ever were all these crossover German SUVs... I truly don’t care about them, but I do care about the Lexus LX and I can’t wait to see it

 

That doesn't mean anything. Buyer wants and needs change, new segments come and go. There's a huge market for a more carlike high end SUV. Doesn't mean the LX can't also exist. BMW and MB sold 20k GLS and X7s last year, 50,000 GLEs and X5s...its a huge market.

Perhaps this new LX will have attributes that help it appeal to people who don't need or want BOF like the Navigator and Escalade, we'll see. It needs to have way better space inside and a more carlike ride.

 

huh? IS500, LC500, RC F, all definitely enthusiast vehicles.

lexus has been very on again, off again as far as competing with mb/bmw/audi, but mostly off, doing their own thing. the GX, LX, RX, ES have no equals from those brands and those enthusiast vehicles above don't either really.

lexus has generally worked very hard to differentiate itself from those brands and NOT do the same as they're doing. i do believe lexus has WAY under-invested in lexus in the past 2 decades though.

 

It's no secret that Lexus is now more than ever under Toyota's tight scrutiny and won't make a new vehicle unless Toyota provides the foundation for it. The LX and NX only exist because they have two recent new Toyota products to go off of (Land Cruiser and RAV4). The upcoming TX and BX will also be based on existing Toyota's (Highlander and '84 respectively) while the IS and RC receive little in the way of anything truly brand new.

The idea of a RWD Lexus high-end CUV just won't happen because Toyota won't provide the foundation for it. The potential platform exists in the LS, but like with any other platfrom will require extensive R&D to make it a capable CUV. And for a potentially low-volume vehicle, Toyota won't justify that risk. The days of carefree spending on vehicles like the LFA or LC are over.

 

Great post Bit.

I agree Lexus has worked hard to differentiate themselves. I think the brand is no more appealing than it was in the 1990s or early 2000s. I do know you like the GS 400, I respect that t


I don’t agree they Lexus is under invested as they are doing extremely well with their sales worldwide. The US seems to be stuck but that is the same with most of the other brands as well. The future of Lexus will be with their dominance in hybrid tech….and we should see them become a force when the battery EVs start to get to a viable market point. Toyota will change their tune on battery EVs. I’m excited to find out the deets on their new Lexus EV that is coming soon to a dealer near you

 

The IS500, LC500 and RCF are certainly enthusiast vehicles but they are niche models, and i would be shocked if any of them saw second generations. They have extremely thin high end offerings.

 

Great post Bit, you are right in that they do seem to do their own thing with the offerings you mentioned. It’s really not a bad thing to have choices, right now they just aren’t the choice for me anymore. Maybe in the future they will or maybe I will want another BOF vehicle again when I don’t need to maximize space anymore or desire a “performance” SUV.

 

IDK if my LS430 will ever die, but if it does I’ll replace it with another LX, one of these used.