I received a letter (dated July 1) from my Lexus dealer along with a mini brochure showing pictures of the various LS460 models, exterior/interior colors and lists of standard features for each.

The letter gives the list prices for the various models. They are:
- Standard wheelbase with "comfort package" and sonar - $67,000
- Above model with Navigation/Mark Levinson audio - $72,000
- Top of line standard wheelbase (above items plus Comfort plus package) and power door and trunk closure - $76,500
- Base version of long wheelbase model (includes lots of stuff) - $86,000
Ultimate version of the long wheelbase model (even more stuff) - $94,000

My LS430 lease expires this December and I have my name on a waiting list. They want me to send in a minimum $500.00 deposit by July 15th along with which model I want and my "preferred" color choices for exterior/interior. I need to do this to maintain my order status. Even doing this, I was told I probably wouldn't see a car until March or April.

 

So this is not the real base model? You can get a base model without the "comfort package" ?
Not too surprising since the current LS430 UL is around $70K . . .
Base price of the LWB version higher than expected to me, so even the base version of the LWB includes a lot of options for the SWB version as standard I guess ?
I suppose the Rear Seat Entertainment System with the 4 seat package is the Ultimate version for the LWB model, & that cost $8,000 more than the base version of the LWB, getting the price up to $94,000 ?

 

Were those prices in the brochure, or estimated given by the dealership in the letter?

Those prices are questionable. Official pricing is usually not released until a week or two before the release of the car...

 

The letter is rather cryptic regarding whether or not you can get the standard wheelbase model without the comfort package and sonar. I assume that all of the vehicles they listed were ones that will be shipped as typical for inventory and you can custom order any options you want. I'm not sure about that, however.

The Ultimate does include all the options of the lower models plus power door and trunk closure, rear seat upgrade package and the "Premium" packge. This gives you power ottoman, auto rear door and rear window shunshades, rear displan and rear DVD entertainment system, semi-aniline seats, front and rear seat air conditioner, interior package, real cooler, etc., etc., etc. They called it the "grand daddy of all options". It will be a very limited production model

 

Lexus seems to love to offer a very limited number of package combos for their dealer lots, and the types of package configs depends on the geographic location. BUT I think you can still custom order.

If I got one I'd likely custom order it. Give me the absolute base model... MAYBE comfort package if it's reasonably priced and gives nicer leather + heater/cooled seats and not too much more extra junk. And Mark Levinson. I wouldn't want anything else, and certainly not dynamic cruise considering they seem to think it's worth 2+ thousand bucks.

 

yeah i wonder if the prices are just in the letters? i am surprised the prices are out so fast.

regardless, the swb version (packages and the UL) seems to be pretty much in line with what i think.

the lwb, it's up for a bit of thoughts. for 86k you get the lwb with "a lot of stuff" already, i wonder how much stuff we takling about. does that mean pretty much all loaded already? if so, it's still a bit higher than i expected. and the UL, like andrew strated, for 8k more maybe you get the RSES package. that's completely within my expectation though, i said probably around 8k for the RSES package before.

but with 94k for the ls460l UL, that probably means the ls600hl fully loaded would be in the 105k or maybe more (depends on what lexus says)? @_@

 

This lines up with the pricing I was quoted by my dealer a couple months back. And if this is true, I am upset, to say the least.

$86,000 for a BASE model LS460L?! That's $10,000 more expensive that a BMW 750iL, $14,000 more expensive than an Audi A8L, and identical pricing to a MB S550!!

If it really is that expensive for a BASE model, I will drop my order for the LS460L like a hot potato. Just not worth it for a few more inches of back-seat room and a smoother ride...

 

many things that are optional on the non LWB are standard on the LWB, LWB isnt going to be a high production trim, the non LWB will be the vast majority of LS460 sales

 

Now, we'll see if the LS can keep up with the sales of the S. I don't remember the exact figures, but Lexus sales have been strong. I think the LS has strong sales in particular. But, a lot of my 'guessing' was due to the big price difference between the S and LS. My family has had a couple of LS, but I think a lot of LS sales are due to the price difference between the LS and S (20-30k) for a well equipped S500/550.

The 7 sells more Li than L. I wonder if that will hold true of the LS (more 460L vs 460). And if the LS-L tops off at $94k, I wonder how many more people will opt for the S? I have always been a fan of the S class. There are a few factors: German drive, looks (I think the LS has always been bland, the 460's front), and you get the star on your hood. If you are paying that much to begin with, some of these factors may come in (i.e. presige probably being it).

I'm not trying to start a flame war. I'm a fan of BMW, MB, and Lexus'. Everyone has their own opinion. Each car has it's own pros and cons. But it's something to wonder. Can the LS still post strong sales with it's new price.

 

engine in the S isnt that great, .9 liters bigger and makes just as much hp, and similar torque, much lower fuel economy, gas guzzler tax. Front styling of the S is great but when it gets to the back its horrid. 86k is base starting for the S, optioned out its going to be 95k+

 

I do agree the LS460L loaded at $94K sounds too high if what's posted is accurate, unless there are some very special options that we haven't heard of yet. It will still be less than a loaded S550 though, which will be close to $110K, but the price advantage is getting smaller.

I think Lexus probably still plans for the SWB LS460 to be the volume seller, probably still priced low enough for current LS400/430 owners, & the LS has the highest retention/loyalty rate among all luxury models.

The LS460L I think is for those who wants to move up (in terms of price range), but now they have a choice to stick with Lexus with the LS instead of going to MB & other competitors.
I' ve read an article before saying that Lexus' own research have shown they do lose some customers who want to move up in price for their next car to other brands because Lexus don't have anything in the higher price range to offer with just the LS430.

 

While that may be true...I wonder how many consumers in this price range/luxury comparisions spend a lot of time comparing performance. All of these sedans (LS,7,S) produce 0-60 in 6 or less seconds. The 7 just handles better.

It is true, a fully loaded S will be $105-110k, but the LS is about $10k off. $10k is still $10k, but in this price range, I dunno how convincing that is to choose one car over another due to monetary reasons. Personal choice Lexus (reliability, total luxury) vs MB (prestige, technology) is probably the main reason why one consumer would choose one or another (and styling).

I am a fan of the LS's interior. Always have. I like the back end. I just hate how the front is always bland. It's A LOT better than the LS430 (before facelift).

 

The base 750Li is $76K. Lexus succeeded in the past for quality, service, and value.
LS460L at $86K sounds a bit high (event with "lots of stuff"). Well, I hope the official price anouncement from Lexus/Toyota will show something lower.

 

drop the "base" word, it's as meaningless as you can imagine. lexus base and bmw base is far different. get a bmw 750il or the s550 and have them priced the same as the ls460l "base" with all comparable options, then we can talk. i wonder how much cheaper the ls460l would be

while i totally agree that the ls460l fully loaded is pretty expensive, not sure if i would just compare it to the s class like that. the RSES is pretty "special" i think, i dont' think you can get anything like that on the s class? (please correct me). if not, then i think we should use the 86k as the comparison price, which should hopefully include most of the options of the 110k s550 already.

in that case, we are talking about over 20k difference. that's substantial

but then of course, i still HOPE the ls460l fully loaded is just at 90k max

 

scan of brochure (needs to be stickied):
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/att...chmentid=87958

fully loaded SWB is 76500 which is a killer price, the base S550 starts off 10k more, the base BMW 750 starts off at that price. LS460 engine IMO is superior to both the MB 5.5 and BMW 5.0

$94k fully loaded LWB is special order only very low production its going to be very rare. I bet the LWB models will hold its value extremely well considering they will be rare