USA

Lexus USA just sent over a coupon that can be used towards the purchase of F-Sport parts — here’s a breakdown of the savings:

• $100 off of F Sport purchases between $500-$999
• $200 off of F Sport purchases between $1,000 – $1999
• $300 off of F Sport purchases more than $2,000

This coupon, which is good from September 10 – November 1, 2010, can be applied to all F Sport Performance accessories either purchased separately, dealer installed, or already installed on a new vehicle. Offer does not include the new 2011 IS sedan with F Sport package.

You can download the PDF coupon, or load up a JPG if you prefer.

[Source: Lexus]

The Lexus CT 200h North American tour arrives in Chicago tomorrow for a four-day stay — here are the event details:

• Thursday, September 2
  Location: Big Star
  1531 N. Damen Avenue
  Chicago, IL 60622
  Hours: 2:00pm-10:00pm
• Friday, September 3
  Location: Big Star
  1531 N. Damen Avenue
  Chicago, IL 60622
  Hours: 7:00pm-10:00pm
• Saturday, September 4
  Location: Lot on Broadway
  3116 N. Broadway
  Chicago, IL 60657
  Hours: 2:00pm-10:00pm
• Sunday, September 5
  Location: Lot on Broadway
  3116 N. Broadway
  Chicago, IL 60657
  Hours: 1:00pm-9:00pm

Anyone lucky enough to attend this event will be the first people to drive the red & black CT 200hs — be sure to register on the Lexus Facebook page. If you do end up going, please leave a comment here with your impressions!

[Source: Lexus Facebook]

USA

Here’s the full model-by-model breakdown of Lexus USA’s August 2010 sales:

US automotive sales were flat this month, and Lexus was no different. The cause, of course, was last year’s Cash for Clunkers program — almost all Lexus models eligible for purchase under the program (IS, ES, RX) saw significant decreases.

With this taken into account, it’s a good sign that all the other models in the lineup showed positive gains — even the now-defunct SC had a sales increase.

Canada

Canadian Lexus sales were down 18.2% in August, for a total of 1,253 units sold. That said, Lexus 460 sales were up 75%, GX 460 sales up 30%, and the HS had its best month yet.

[Source: Lexus]

Lawrence Ulrich of the New York Times travelled down to Millville, NJ to take the Lexus LFA around the track, and he brought some very choice quotes back with him, including this info on LFA buyers:

So far American buyers are exclusively men, and on average are in their mid-50s. Many have owned a Lexus, and they tend to be entrepreneurial types, along with one sports star whose name Lexus would not divulge.

Nor would Lexus connect me to the Midwest man who, Lexus swears, is leaning toward an LFA painted Passionate Pink, one of 30 available colors. (Mr. Mary Kay, perhaps?)

Mr. Rohovsky did allow that one “fresh green” LFA — a petri-dish shade wild enough for any Lamborghini fan — is headed to — where else? — Miami.

“He told me, ‘I want people to see me coming and going,’” Mr. Rohovsky said.

The whole article’s great — and when it comes to what Mr. Ulrich thought of the LFA?

Judged purely as an adrenaline-inducing performance tool, the Lexus tops a number of supercars I’ve driven — not just the similiarly priced Lamborghini Murciélago, but also the $1.3 million Bugatti Veyron.

That’s some heavy praise, to be sure.

[Source: New York Times] (Thanks Josh & chotabacha!)

Last week, I took a swing at guessing the Lexus CT 200h price in the USA based on some UK rumors, and today, I received a note from Lexus USA offering something a little more definitive:

“In the United States, Lexus intends for the all-new CT 200h to become the gateway model for the brand, targeting a price position below the IS.”

It’s still a distance away from an actual price range, but considering that the IS starts at $32,145 (IS 250 RWD Manual), we could be looking at a very competitive price for the new hatchback.

(Can’t wait to see the CT in Toronto on Friday!)

When photographer (& Flickr user) Gideon Gillard happened upon the yellow Lexus LFA out on the highway during the Pebble Beach Concours, he chased it down and made sure to get some absolutely fantastic photos of the supercar (click for larger images):

My favorite though, has to be this shot:

Highly recommend going through the rest of Gideon’s photos — he’s spotted some very exotic exotics over the last few months.