Lexus may have taken the luxury vehicle segment by surprise at its debut three decades ago, but Toyota’s luxury arm which once led its German rivals in sales in the United States market appears to be falling behind them again, Automotive News reports.
The Japanese brand peaked with a market share of 18.2% a decade ago, which has since dropped to 13%, the report quoted car-buying research site Edmunds as saying. Lexus is set to make ‘significant gains’ in the next two to five years, with long-awaited updates to its line of crossovers expected, including at least one all-new mid-sized model, said the brand’s US dealer council chairman Paul LaRochelle.
“The best way to put it would be a luxury seven- or eight-passenger people-mover,” LaRochelle said. The brand unveiled the updated RX and the GX 460 (known as the Toyota Land Cruiser Prado elsewhere) for the 2020 model year last May and June, respectively, though the latter has not seen a full model change for a full decade.
Having said that, Lexus remains the brand to beat in by certain measures. It has three models listed in the top 10 most reliable vehicles in the annual Consumer Reports survey while parents firm Toyota adds another three to the list, and Lexus was named by J.D. Power as the top brand for resale value, the report noted. It also sold its 10 millionth vehicle in 2019, while Infiniti and Acura saw cumulative global sales of 2.6 million units and 5.4 million units, respectively.
Larger models such as the seven-seater GX have not seen a full model change since 2010, while fresher offerings like the UX are aimed more at China and Europe.
Dealers and brand observers have wondered if the slowdown Lexus is experiencing in the United States could be attributed to the brand’s increasingly global focus, with growth focused on Europe and China. Its smallest crossover yet, the UX was introduced at the 2018 Geneva Motor Show, while its first fully-electric vehicle the UX 300e was shown at the Guangzhou International Automobile Exhibition in China last November.
The US market has not been forgotten by its Japan headquarters, Lexus officials however say. “Behind the curtain right now, what’s going on is that everything in Japan is to get Lexus back in the game with a tremendous lineup over the next few years,” said dealer council chairman LaRochelle.
The assurance came from top Toyota officials who met with dealers in October, when the dealers said that the product highest on their wishlists is a 5.5 metre-long utility vehicle to compete against the likes of the GMC Yukon Denali, the report noted. “That is one of our primary asks and one that they’re looking at,” LaRochelle said.
Looking to sell your car? Sell it with Carro.
Lexus doing so well overseas because the car is super cheap. Lexus RX350 only $30k plus
Malaysia, it is RM500k. No wonder here cannot sell. Greedy GLC UMW want to untung lebih to feed their overbloated lazy GLC staff
Meanwhile Mercedes Benzes and Beemers are flying out off the showroom. MB & BMW is the same price as Lexus but nobody is going for Lexus cars and that is why Lexus is a failure just like Infiniti here too.