USA
Lexus USA has reported 15,572 total sales for January 2017, a 25.6% decrease over last year — here’s the model-by-model breakdown:
| MONTH | Year to Date (*DSR) | |||||
| 2017 | 2016 | % CHG* | 2017 | 2016 | % CHG* | |
| CT | 393 | 622 | ‐36.8 | 393 | 622 | ‐36.8 |
| IS | 1,423 | 2,178 | ‐34.7 | 1,423 | 2,178 | ‐34.7 |
| RC | 447 | 755 | ‐40.8 | 447 | 755 | ‐40.8 |
| ES | 2,171 | 3,400 | ‐36.1 | 2,171 | 3,400 | ‐36.1 |
| GS | 422 | 1,298 | ‐67.5 | 422 | 1,298 | ‐67.5 |
| LS | 280 | 397 | ‐29.5 | 280 | 397 | ‐29.5 |
| LFA | 0 | 1 | ‐100 | 0 | 1 | ‐100 |
| Total Cars | 5,136 | 8,651 | ‐40.6 | 5,136 | 8,651 | ‐40.6 |
| NX | 2,964 | 3,133 | ‐5.4 | 2,964 | 3,133 | ‐5.4 |
| RX | 5,520 | 6,956 | ‐20.6 | 5,520 | 6,956 | ‐20.6 |
| GX | 1,418 | 1,608 | ‐11.8 | 1,418 | 1,608 | ‐11.8 |
| LX | 534 | 585 | ‐8.7 | 534 | 585 | ‐8.7 |
| Total Trucks | 10,436 | 12,282 | ‐15 | 10,436 | 12,282 | ‐15 |
| Total Sales | 15,572 | 20,933 | ‐25.6 | 15,572 | 20,933 | ‐25.6 |
Please note, all percentages are calculated by the Daily Sales Rate (DSR), which takes into account the number of days in the month that dealerships could sell cars. January 2017 had 24 selling days, January 2016 had 24 selling days.
Here’s Lexus USA general manager Jeff Bracken on the sales downturn this month:
“January proved to be a challenging month driven by limited LUV availability and the strength of our December results.
“Our outstanding December of nearly 41,000 resulted in a low days’ supply for our core models, especially in metro markets. We are continuing to replenish dealer inventories and expect healthy levels in February. Our dealers did achieve a best-ever January in L/Certified sales with more than 7,900 sales.”
With SUV sales more than doubling car sales, I wonder how much higher the NX/RX/GX/LX could have climbed if supply hadn’t been constrained. All the negatives across the SUV lineup are minor with the exception of the RX, but a 20% decrease should be expected considering the crossover had just arrived in dealerships last January.
With the car lineup, I expect that part of the decreases can be attributed to less inventory across the country — there’s little point stocking vehicles that aren’t selling. The updated IS has only just arrived at dealerships and a 34% drop is concerning, but I’m hearing this is due to low inventory as well.
Here’s how the US market breaks down this month:
- Mercedes USA: 25,527 units sold
- BMW USA: 18,109 units sold
- Lexus USA: 15,572 units sold
- Audi USA: 13,201 units sold
Already, we look forward to next month’s sales report — is this downturn simply a momentary blip on the radar?
Canada
On the other side of the border, things are much brighter — January market the seventh consecutive record sales month for Lexus Canada, with 1,313 units sold. This is a 3.1% increase over January 2016.
Lexus SUVs make up the lion’s share of the sales, with the RX ringing in 554 sales and the NX hitting 356 sales. In fact, SUV sales made up 78% of all Lexus sales in Canada for January.
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