Lexus May 2019 Sales Report

ES! ... Yeah

Are we due for some new IS info soon? 30% drop is bad (though not nearly as bad as the GS).

It's time for TMC to shut up about cars not doing well because people are buying SUVs. All of the SUVs were down except the UX.
They need to face the fact that dated products=decrease in sale.

Airplane

It's time for TMC to shut up about cars not doing well because people are buying SUVs. All of the SUVs were down except the UX.
They need to face the fact that dated products=decrease in sale.

This.

Toyota had a great month as many of their sedans were up and Rav4 went bonkers. Aside from ES, Lexus had a pretty brutal month. LS down 50%... ouch. Not sure how to improve that situation.

Lexus could stand to move up the timetable for the second gen NX... new Rav4 is killing it and makes me excited to see what Lexus has planned. Speaking of, would we see a concept for that this year, since it should theoretically be out next year? Q5, X3, GLC and RDX are all brand new and that's got to be hurting NX pretty bad.

ES was up 50% in Canada. SUVs are doing great globally. Europe last month was +20%.

Gecko

This.

Toyota had a great month as many of their sedans were up and Rav4 went bonkers. Aside from ES, Lexus had a pretty brutal month with every model down significantly. LS down 50%... ouch. Not sure how to improve that situation and I'm not sure Lexus feels any massive change is worth it in this market.

Lexus could stand to move up the timetable for the second gen NX... new Rav4 is killing it and makes me excited to see what Lexus has planned. Speaking of, would we see a concept for that this year, since it should theoretically be out next year? Q5, X3, GLC, QX50 and RDX are all brand new/refreshed and that's got to be hurting NX pretty bad. I even know some folks who have cross shopped Rav4 against NX and chosen the Rav4 (I would personally also).

IS is now 5 years old and could benefit from a concept this year and a new model intro in 2020. It needs help badly and hasn't kept pace with the competition.

I think the next generation of NX will make its debut at the Beijing Motor Show next year.

I was watching a video where the reviewer (Redline Reviews) floored a 2019 IS350 from a stop onto the highway and it was sloooow. The look on his face said everything, then he said it was a 6 second 0 - 60 car and that was all I needed to know at that point.

Gecko

This.

Toyota had a great month as many of their sedans were up and Rav4 went bonkers. Aside from ES, Lexus had a pretty brutal month with every model down significantly. LS down 50%... ouch. Not sure how to improve that situation and I'm not sure Lexus feels any massive change is worth it in this market.

Lexus could stand to move up the timetable for the second gen NX... new Rav4 is killing it and makes me excited to see what Lexus has planned. Speaking of, would we see a concept for that this year, since it should theoretically be out next year? Q5, X3, GLC, QX50 and RDX are all brand new/refreshed and that's got to be hurting NX pretty bad. I even know some folks who have cross shopped Rav4 against NX and chosen the Rav4 (I would personally also).

IS is now 5 years old and could benefit from a concept this year and a new model intro in 2020. It needs help badly and hasn't kept pace with the competition.

Whenever some new model comes out from Toyota, we have a year or two when people claim it is much better than Lexus... I like new Rav4, and it is a lot more luxurious than before, but it is not a luxury vehicle by any means.

I am sure same will happen with Highlander and new RX. For us who are in the know, new platform sounds exciting. For me, also new engine in Rav4 vs NX is exciting. But still, Rav4 is not an Lexus.

Here's some Bloomberg commentary (as expanded by Automotive News Europe) on the May 2019 and year-to-date luxury auto market in the U.S.:

June 04, 2019
BMW tops Mercedes in May U.S. sales, bolsters luxury lead
GABRIELLE COPPOLA
Bloomberg

BMW maintained its lead over German rival Mercedes-Benz in a stagnant U.S. luxury auto market in May, as the all-new X7 paced its crossover lineup and the revamped 3 series tempered the decline in demand for its sedans.

Sales for BMW AG’s namesake brand rose 1.7 percent to 27,109 units, beating Mercedes’ 0.4 percent gain to 27,080. BMW has delivered more than 2,100 X7s in each of the first three months it’s been in U.S. showrooms, and updates to the 3 series fueled a 27 percent surge in May deliveries.

BMW is now leading Daimler AG’s Mercedes by 3,613 units for 2019. May was the first month the latter brand boosted sales this year as demand picked up for the GLA, GLE and GLC crossovers.

Toyota's Lexus brand finished third in the race with sales falling 3.4 percent to 24,537 units while Audi came in fourth with sales slipping 2.2 percent to 18,892 vehicles.

The overall U.S. luxury market in May was essentially unchanged with sales of 180,717 units -- a gain of 73 vehicles over the same month last year.

Through May, luxury sales fell 0.9 percent to 839,366 vehicles, according to the Automotive News Data Center.

Automotive News contributed to this report.



BLOOMBERG

spwolf

Whenever some new model comes out from Toyota, we have a year or two when people claim it is much better than Lexus... I like new Rav4, and it is a lot more luxurious than before, but it is not a luxury vehicle by any means.

I am sure same will happen with Highlander and new RX. For us who are in the know, new platform sounds exciting. For me, also new engine in Rav4 vs NX is exciting. But still, Rav4 is not an Lexus.

A lot of that depends on how you qualify "luxury" or if it is just badge? Rav4 feels immeasurably more solid and well built on the road, and the options list on the Limited model is basically same as NX options. NX gets you a larger screen and real leather seating - is that luxury?

If you compare NX to Rav4 LE, yes, the difference is vast. But higher trims of Rav4, especially the Limited and hybrid, are easily superior to NX, IMO.

The platforms and hardware from the pre-TNGA era are very old and outdated, so it's no surprise that what is new on TNGA is much better overall. NX is just at the end of its lifecycle, and Rav4 is brand new, "best of the best" that Toyota has to offer. I'm sure next gen NX will be great.

Gecko

A lot of that depends on how you qualify "luxury" or if it is just badge? Rav4 feels immeasurably more solid and well built on the road, and the options list on the Limited model is basically same as NX options. NX gets you a larger screen and real leather seating - is that luxury?

If you compare NX to Rav4 LE, yes, the difference is vast. But Limited trim of Rav4 is easily superior to NX, which has never been particularly nice and is barely Lexus-like.

The platforms and hardware from the pre-TNGA era are very old and outdated, so it's no surprise that what is new on TNGA is much better overall. NX is just at the end of its lifecycle, and Rav4 is brand new, "best of the best" that Toyota has to offer. I'm sure next gen TNGA NX will be great.

definition of luxury is sitting in the car and touching/working with it... Rav4 is more luxurious than before, it is not luxury vehicle.
Did you have a chance to try it?

I came away impressed from new Rav4 Hybrid (2WD) top end equipment, but it is still nowhere close to Lexus... for instance electric seat controls had jerky impression that Avensis controls also gave... powertrain had nice response, but it was also quite noisy in the vehicle... a lot of better/softer materials everywhere but nowhere close to the quality as in NX.

spwolf

definition of luxury is sitting in the car and touching/working with it... Rav4 is more luxurious than before, it is not luxury vehicle.
Did you have a chance to try it?

I came away impressed from new Rav4 Hybrid (2WD) top end equipment, but it is still nowhere close to Lexus... for instance electric seat controls had jerky impression that Avensis controls also gave... powertrain had nice response, but it was also quite noisy in the vehicle... a lot of better/softer materials everywhere but nowhere close to the quality as in NX.

I drove new Rav4 and NX (as well as hybrids of both) back to back 2 weekends ago, and to me, Rav4 feels more like a luxury vehicle because it is significantly more solid and feels better built, plus has near-luxury levels of fit and finish, plus great tech options on higher trims.

I cross shopped the RAV4 before buying an NX. Not even close. The RAV4 felt cheap and far from luxurious. It’s slightly better than the previous gen but is no luxury vehicle.

Better built, more solid and more like a luxury vehicle compared to the NX? I can’t wrap my head around that. Did you drive a stripped down NX?

ross7777

I cross shopped the RAV4 before buying an NX. Not even close. The RAV4 felt cheap and far from luxurious. It’s slightly better than the previous gen but is no luxury vehicle.

Better built, more solid and more like a luxury vehicle compared to the NX? I can’t wrap my head around that. Did you drive a stripped down NX?

Nope - I drove NX 300h and NX300. NX's body still flexes terribly over bumps and anytime the weight transfers, whereas Rav4 feels completely solid. Rav4 does have more engine noise, but in day-to-day driving, I don't think it would be that bad unless you are stoplight racing. The NX still has cheap looking/feeling door panels, the lower parts of the dash are cheap plastic, etc. NX has faux leather dash wrapped though, which is nicer - though I prefer the overall design of the Rav4. NX's gauges are nicer too.

Gecko

Nope - I drove NX 300h and NX300. NX's body still flexes terribly over bumps and anytime the weight transfers, whereas Rav4 feels completely solid. Rav4 does have more engine noise, but in day-to-day driving, I don't think it would be that bad unless you are stoplight racing. The NX still has cheap looking/feeling door panels, the lower parts of the dash are cheap plastic, etc. NX has faux leather dash wrapped though, which is nicer - though I prefer the overall design of the Rav4. NX's gauges are nicer too.

So be it. I have the FSport and don’t notice any terrible body flexing. It does have a different suspension than the non-Fsport so maybe that’s the difference. The entire interior of the RAV4 felt cheap to me. It’s certainly not a luxurious cabin but I do like the pano roof.

I felt that the RAV4 was underpowered. Probably why the engine is louder.