Lexus Launches Complete Lease Program in USA

Joaquin Ruhi

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20k miles is nothing really.
Agreed. 10k miles/year is definitely on the low end.

Interesting that the rumored UX-based subscription program (most closely resembling Volvo's XC40 offering) morphed into an insurance-inclusive 2-year lease with a couple of additional oil changes thrown in. (Free 5000 and 10,000-mile oil changes are already included on all new Lexus vehicles in the U.S., so this just adds the broader 15,000-mile maintenance and 20,000-mile oil change to what the Complete Lease includes).
 

spwolf

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Agreed. 10k miles/year is definitely on the low end.

Interesting that the rumored UX-based subscription program (most closely resembling Volvo's XC40 offering) morphed into an insurance-inclusive 2-year lease with a couple of additional oil changes thrown in. (Free 5000 and 10,000-mile oil changes are already included on all new Lexus vehicles in the U.S., so this just adds the broader 15,000-mile maintenance and 20,000-mile oil change to what the Complete Lease includes).

yes, what else could it be?
 

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krew

More Details on Lexus Complete Lease Program
18-10-16-lexus-ux-subscription-service.jpg


Final price set by dealer.
View the original article post
 

Joaquin Ruhi

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Automotive News spoke with Lexus' vice president of marketing Cooper Ericksen about Complete Lease and subscription plans in general:

Lexus willing to wait on subscriptions
December 1, 2018
Krishnan M. Anantharaman

LOS ANGELES — Lexus is in no rush to run a brandwide vehicle subscription program, but it is open to expanding an all-inclusive short-term lease beyond tests on its new UX small crossover.

Subscription programs across the industry are very much in the experimental phase, with luxury brands such as Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, BMW and Volvo testing varying formats and service tiers. Meanwhile, Cadillac suspended its Book by Cadillac subscription experiment in November as subscriber rolls dwindled, with plans to revive it next year.

As long as the payoffs remain unclear, Lexus isn't going to "panic and jump in just to jump in," said Cooper Ericksen, Lexus' vice president of marketing.

"I think there's a lot of unanswered questions about how you take a depreciating asset and have a revenue model that is good for the consumer and good for the brand over the long term of that asset," he told Automotive News on the sidelines of the Los Angeles Auto Show.

Besides, he said, Lexus dealers and customers aren't really clamoring for it, though some dealership groups are launching their own programs across multiple brands.

"The most consistent feedback we get from dealers on the idea of subscriptions is: 'Please don't take away our ability to have this one-on-one relationship with a guest. We value that, and we want to maintain that,' " he said.

"Some brands are taking the Tier 1 approach of, 'We'll handle everything, and you deliver the vehicle,' and I don't think that's a road we're going to go down," Ericksen said.

That said, Lexus continues to explore alternatives to traditional ownership or leasing, such as the Lexus Complete Lease pilot program that will be offered on the UX in certain markets. It combines a two-year, 20,000-mile lease with insurance, maintenance, tire-and-wheel protection and telematics services in one payment, with dealers setting the final price.

"It comes down to a guest convenience standpoint," Ericksen said. "It's not necessarily a way for a guest to pay less for their car or less for their insurance. It's a way for them to have a more convenient way to have transportation that's simpler and less time-consuming and less stressful."

The UX's younger target demographic makes the Complete Lease a good fit, Ericksen said, because those consumers are more accustomed to subscription-based services and packages in other industries, and they're less likely than Lexus' traditional customers to have longstanding relationships with an insurance agent or provider.

But the convenience of a single payment could easily sell well across demographic groups. "We're doing this with the idea that we would expand it to other models down the road if guests view it as a benefit," Ericksen said.

http://www.autonews.com/article/201...e-lease?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
 

corradoMR2

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"It comes down to a guest convenience standpoint," Ericksen said. "It's not necessarily a way for a guest to pay less for their car or less for their insurance. It's a way for them to have a more convenient way to have transportation that's simpler and less time-consuming and less stressful."

This statement is the issue I have with the subscription model. If the overall cost is not similar to the total of the 1. lease, 2. maintenance (which is really one oil change you'd pay after the first complimentary one in a 2-year ownership), 3. my own insurance premium, then why is the selling point just on convenience? In other words, how inconvenient is it really for someone today to pick up the phone or go online to either renew or perform the one time setup with their insurance on the lease of the new vehicle? How much is someone willing to pay extra for having Lexus take car of this one time paperwork and do the two oil changes for you all included in one monthly payment? For me, not more than perhaps a couple $ more per month to save me a couple hours of my time. Seeing the subscription pricing models from the other car manufacturers are significantly steeper than what I'd pay on my own, I understand why Lexus is not diving into this yet.
 

spwolf

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"It comes down to a guest convenience standpoint," Ericksen said. "It's not necessarily a way for a guest to pay less for their car or less for their insurance. It's a way for them to have a more convenient way to have transportation that's simpler and less time-consuming and less stressful."

This statement is the issue I have with the subscription model. If the overall cost is not similar to the total of the 1. lease, 2. maintenance (which is really one oil change you'd pay after the first complimentary one in a 2-year ownership), 3. my own insurance premium, then why is the selling point just on convenience? In other words, how inconvenient is it really for someone today to pick up the phone or go online to either renew or perform the one time setup with their insurance on the lease of the new vehicle? How much is someone willing to pay extra for having Lexus take car of this one time paperwork and do the two oil changes for you all included in one monthly payment? For me, not more than perhaps a couple $ more per month to save me a couple hours of my time. Seeing the subscription pricing models from the other car manufacturers are significantly steeper than what I'd pay on my own, I understand why Lexus is not diving into this yet.

indeed... whole premise from start was that this was a premium model, it has to be for them to do it (why would they lose money on it?) but media took it and run it as if it is going to be cheaper and then that led to big disappointment when customer comes in thinking it will be cheaper and it ends up at least 20%-30% more expensive.
 

mikeavelli

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And of course 20k UX projection is super conservative. Could the UX put Lexus to #1?

For the Lexus subscription model, makes a ton of sense to get more customer satisfaction style usage out of the cars already being loaner'd out anyways. Most people getting this plan, I assume is going to be young since thats who they are targeting (the sharing economy).

Thoughts?

I think the gain in UX sales will be offset by no GS sales and slow IS/LS etc sales....

Funny but internally they don't seem to care as Lexus is #1 with actual registered vehicles, as in sold to actual people and not some of the tricks the Germans are doing with fleet cars etc...
 

spwolf

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I think the gain in UX sales will be offset by no GS sales and slow IS/LS etc sales....

Funny but internally they don't seem to care as Lexus is #1 with actual registered vehicles, as in sold to actual people and not some of the tricks the Germans are doing with fleet cars etc...

It should add 15k extra sales per year, GS already sells peanuts....

And yeah, TMC never cared about being #1 in sales... they do care about profits though.
 

spwolf

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p.s. LS at 900 per month is definitely adding new sales compared to last year. They are obviously fighting for it.
 

spwolf

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#deadinthewater.

reminds me of all the car share programs and how all media created big hoopla about it and in the end, few billions were lost and nobody talks about in anymore... gotta love the media hype.
 

Joaquin Ruhi

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Another major information drop on the Lexus Complete Lease program comes to us today. No word on pricing yet, though. The program has seemingly expanded from the 4 metro areas announced earlier (Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and Miami) to 7 states. And Travelers has been selected as the designated insurance carrier for the program. A footnote stating that "vehicle insurance coverage and rates may vary by state" may explain why Lexus is so reticent to announce one nationwide monthly payment for the plan. Here are excerpts from the Lexus USA News Release:

New Full-Service Lease Program Offers Lexus Guests Added Simplicity, Convenience
  • Lexus Complete Lease provides a streamlined monthly payment
  • Single monthly payment for insurance, maintenance, connected services
  • Nearly 80 dealerships in seven states included in launch of U.S. program
  • Available on Lexus UX and UX hybrid, across all builds
February 05, 2019
PLANO, Texas (February 5, 2019) – In the age of increased online shopping, automatic bill payments and the growing prevalence of minimalist lifestyles, drivers are also looking for ways to simplify their overall automotive experience. What could be easier than a single monthly payment for their lease that includes insurance, scheduled maintenance and other services?

The new full-service Lexus Complete Lease includes a 20,000-mile, two-year term, which combines the cost of the lease with maintenance, insurance and additional services in one simple monthly payment. The innovative Lexus Complete Lease is currently available for qualifying guests who choose any Lexus UX build in seven states -- California, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Rhode Island...

Lexus Complete Lease
The full-service lease program, offered by nearly 80 participating Lexus dealers, incorporates insurance and all scheduled maintenance costs for the length of the two-year lease, up to 10,000 miles per year.

In collaboration with its affiliates, Lexus Financial Services and Toyota Insurance Management Solutions, Lexus has chosen Travelers, a leading provider of auto insurance, for the Lexus Complete Lease. The auto insurance policy from Travelers includes auto liability and physical damage coverage with a $500 deductible to provide customers with peace of mind in knowing their vehicle is protected.

The Lexus Complete Lease includes:
  • All scheduled maintenance (5k, 10k, plus 15k and 20k mile)
  • Vehicle insurance
  • Guaranteed Auto Protection (GAP) waiver
  • Two years of connected vehicle services (including SiriusXM satellite radio and Lexus Enform Remote Destination Assist is included on Navigation-equipped models)
  • Tire and wheel protection
  • $1,000 excess wear and use allowance
Aligning with the launch of the first-ever Lexus UX 200 and Lexus 250h, the full-service lease will be offered as a payment option to qualifying lessees across all vehicle builds and options.

http://pressroom.lexus.com/releases...lexus+guests+added+simplicity+convenience.htm

Lexus USA's official consumer site now includes a dedicated Lexus Complete Lease page that lists the current participating dealers.
 

Ruksac

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Skimming through the posts without reading them, there's an obvious recurring theme. People want to save money with this bundled product. But the numbers I'm reading from members of 500/mo for this level, 600/mo for that level is preposterous. Haven't you all seen the residual values drop on all of the models?? We put together a UX deal with this program and the payment was nearly $800 for the full program. Now granted the UX has had a terrible lease program since it was released but this payment is ridiculous for Lexus and Lexus Financial to think entry level luxury buyers would go for this. Even if we discounted the car below invoice, it's still a 700+ payment. For a UX. A 35k car.

The biggest obstacle Lexus, Lexus owners, and Lexus dealers will face is Lexus Financial Services. When you look at their very conservative residuals, their continuously slipping customer service, and their fairly recent nickel and dime strategy on lease returns and then you throw this over-priced lease into the mix and it's obvious they don't care about their customers the way the Lexus culture has always been in the past.