Insiders at Toyota Canada tell me that at the home office you’ll find players in a little betting pool that pits Lexus against hybrids.
The wager: Lexus-brand models will out-sell all the various gasoline electric vehicles Toyota Canada offers. I’d wager on Lexus and I don’t think it will be close, though the 2015 sales numbers suggest otherwise. Last year Toyota Canada sold about 22,000 hybrids; Lexus Canada also moved about 22,000. Neck-and-neck, then.
The LF-SA is a compact 2+2 concept car aimed at people who live in the city. LC 500h is equipped with Lexus’ next generation hybrid powertrain, the Lexus Multi Stage Hybrid System. It’s a vision of a luxury coupe. The LC was first revealed at the 2016 North America International Auto Show.
Hybrid sales will be crimped this year by cheap gas and diesel. Yes, something crazy could happen in the oil-producing Middle East, tightening the oil spigot. But even if the Middle East gets even crazier, the American will keep fracking, the Russians will keep spewing oil, and even we in Canada will sell all we can.
Oil looks like it’s going to remain pretty cheap by historical standards (put a side bet on the over/under at $40/barrel, if you like). Therefore, without more stringent government mandates for the sale of electrified vehicles (something the Government of British Columbia is seriously considering, among others), hybrids and plug-ins of all kinds will have limited appeal with the buying public.
Lexus, on the other hand, looks poised for a breakout 2016. Yes, the Lexus passenger car lineup is a dog’s breakfast (sales down 7.3 per cent in 2015), but Lexus has plans to fix it – and Canadians are steadily moving away from passenger cars to crossovers and SUVs (sport-utility vehicles), anyway.
This is where Lexus is strongest. Last year Lexus light truck sales surged 55.5 per cent. The NX compact SUV has been a smash, the GX and LX large SUVs are useful placeholders (in modest volumes), and the all-new RX is exceptional (read the review here http://www.catocarguy.com/2016/03/24/2016-lexus-rx-more-cuts-and-lines-than-a-chef-in-hells-kitchen/ in Thinking of Buying).
The Lexus NX crossover has been a hit, while the new RX takes Lexus design to a wild level — as asked for from Toyota’s CEO.
Coming next year – and to be built in Cambridge, Ont. – is a three-row version of the RX. This week in New York, Lexus types confirmed the three-row RX is officially coming and it will not be called the TX, but wear some version of the RX moniker which is well established, reports Automotive News.
There’s an appetite for three-row luxury rigs and Lexus will be moving into a segment already occupied by Acura’s MDX, Infiniti’s QX60 and Volvo’s XC90 to name three. While a niche model in Canada, the bigger RX will add volume.
But that’s 2017. For 2016, Lexus will see sales jump now that big supplies of the new RX are available (in gasoline and hybrid form, BTW).
A new CT is also expected this year. The CT is based on the Toyota Prius, so given the new Prius is rolling into showrooms (and this week we saw the Prius Prime plug-in hybrid that’s also coming), it makes sense to plan for a new CT based on Toyota’s TNGA modular platform.
Lexus has had no real presence in small luxury cars (CT sales slumped 21.4 per cent last year to 814). The next CT will be aimed at rides like the Mercedes-Benz CLA, BMW 1-Series, Audi A3 and Acura ILX – and expect it to have a serious performance twist and bold styling. The new CT presents an opportunity for Lexus to grow among buyers who want a luxury brand at a modest price.
The next-generation Lexus CT will share the platform that also is the basis for the latest Toyota Prius. Lexus has shown the Prius Prime plug-in, which demonstrates the versatility of the platform.
Meantime, the IS 250 will swap its dated 2.5-litre V-6 for a 2.0-litre turbocharged four-banger; the IS 350 keeps the V-6. Again, an updated IS will give Lexus a little jolt.
Of course what’s missing from the Lexus lineup is a small crossover along the lines of Audi’s Q3 and the Mercedes-Benz GLA and the coming Infiniti QX30. That’s a gaping hole. Mercedes Canada sold 3,719 GLAs last year, an increase of nearly 300 per cent over 2014.
Today’s luxury buyer in Canada is very often a small crossover buyer. Compact luxury utility sales were up 37.4 per cent last year, notes DesRosiers Automotive Consultants, adding they’re up about 15 per cent so far this year in Canada.
Lexus won’t fill all the holes in its lineup in 2016, but there’s enough in the current lineup and the product pipeline to bet on Toyota’s luxury brand over total hybrid sales. I need to jump into the betting pool at company headquarters.
2016 Lexus CT — slated to be replaced by a new model.
Insiders at Toyota Canada tell me that at the home office you’ll find players in a little betting pool that pits Lexus against hybrids.
The wager: Lexus-brand models will out-sell all the various gasoline electric vehicles Toyota Canada offers. I’d wager on Lexus and I don’t think it will be close, though the 2015 sales numbers suggest otherwise. Last year Toyota Canada sold about 22,000 hybrids; Lexus Canada also moved about 22,000. Neck-and-neck, then.
The LF-SA is a compact 2+2 concept car aimed at people who live in the city. LC 500h is equipped with Lexus’ next generation hybrid powertrain, the Lexus Multi Stage Hybrid System. It’s a vision of a luxury coupe. The LC was first revealed at the 2016 North America International Auto Show.
Hybrid sales will be crimped this year by cheap gas and diesel. Yes, something crazy could happen in the oil-producing Middle East, tightening the oil spigot. But even if the Middle East gets even crazier, the American will keep fracking, the Russians will keep spewing oil, and even we in Canada will sell all we can.
Oil looks like it’s going to remain pretty cheap by historical standards (put a side bet on the over/under at $40/barrel, if you like). Therefore, without more stringent government mandates for the sale of electrified vehicles (something the Government of British Columbia is seriously considering, among others), hybrids and plug-ins of all kinds will have limited appeal with the buying public.
Lexus, on the other hand, looks poised for a breakout 2016. Yes, the Lexus passenger car lineup is a dog’s breakfast (sales down 7.3 per cent in 2015), but Lexus has plans to fix it – and Canadians are steadily moving away from passenger cars to crossovers and SUVs (sport-utility vehicles), anyway.
This is where Lexus is strongest. Last year Lexus light truck sales surged 55.5 per cent. The NX compact SUV has been a smash, the GX and LX large SUVs are useful placeholders (in modest volumes), and the all-new RX is exceptional (read the review here http://www.catocarguy.com/2016/03/24/2016-lexus-rx-more-cuts-and-lines-than-a-chef-in-hells-kitchen/ in Thinking of Buying).
The Lexus NX crossover has been a hit, while the new RX takes Lexus design to a wild level — as asked for from Toyota’s CEO.
Coming next year – and to be built in Cambridge, Ont. – is a three-row version of the RX. This week in New York, Lexus types confirmed the three-row RX is officially coming and it will not be called the TX, but wear some version of the RX moniker which is well established, reports Automotive News.
There’s an appetite for three-row luxury rigs and Lexus will be moving into a segment already occupied by Acura’s MDX, Infiniti’s QX60 and Volvo’s XC90 to name three. While a niche model in Canada, the bigger RX will add volume.
But that’s 2017. For 2016, Lexus will see sales jump now that big supplies of the new RX are available (in gasoline and hybrid form, BTW).
A new CT is also expected this year. The CT is based on the Toyota Prius, so given the new Prius is rolling into showrooms (and this week we saw the Prius Prime plug-in hybrid that’s also coming), it makes sense to plan for a new CT based on Toyota’s TNGA modular platform.
Lexus has had no real presence in small luxury cars (CT sales slumped 21.4 per cent last year to 814). The next CT will be aimed at rides like the Mercedes-Benz CLA, BMW 1-Series, Audi A3 and Acura ILX – and expect it to have a serious performance twist and bold styling. The new CT presents an opportunity for Lexus to grow among buyers who want a luxury brand at a modest price.
The next-generation Lexus CT will share the platform that also is the basis for the latest Toyota Prius. Lexus has shown the Prius Prime plug-in, which demonstrates the versatility of the platform.
Meantime, the IS 250 will swap its dated 2.5-litre V-6 for a 2.0-litre turbocharged four-banger; the IS 350 keeps the V-6. Again, an updated IS will give Lexus a little jolt.
Of course what’s missing from the Lexus lineup is a small crossover along the lines of Audi’s Q3 and the Mercedes-Benz GLA and the coming Infiniti QX30. That’s a gaping hole. Mercedes Canada sold 3,719 GLAs last year, an increase of nearly 300 per cent over 2014.
Today’s luxury buyer in Canada is very often a small crossover buyer. Compact luxury utility sales were up 37.4 per cent last year, notes DesRosiers Automotive Consultants, adding they’re up about 15 per cent so far this year in Canada.
Lexus won’t fill all the holes in its lineup in 2016, but there’s enough in the current lineup and the product pipeline to bet on Toyota’s luxury brand over total hybrid sales. I need to jump into the betting pool at company headquarters.
2016 Lexus CT — slated to be replaced by a new model.
About the Author / Jeremy Cato
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