pagemaster

So what? They spent a billion dollars on making it an LS. The LS is no longer the benchmark in large full size premium luxury cars. Anyone of the BMW, Merc, Audi are just as good if not better.

Not so sure. Yes they do have there own dedicated platform for LS and GS/SC models.

But an ES is a Camry with a nicer body and interior, RX is a disguised Highlander, LX570 is a Land Cruiser and the GX is simply a rebadge Toyota Land Cruiser Prado. You will see even more platform sharing in the future. Long development times and life cycles are over.

Pay attention to what is happening. Lexus has had declining sales in every month since November 2007 except one month. http://business.smh.com.au/business/...0810-3sw9.html

Lexus is too over priced for today's markets. It needs to come down a bit in price. You do not have to pay a premium for luxury anymore.

RXSF

pagemaster,

the reason why lexus sales are dropping so rapidly this year is because they had a brilliant 2007 year of sales. thereby, in comparison, a slow year is made to look even worse. but they are still number 1 in sales at this point.

also, we dont have the toyota prado in the US and most of us have never heard about it. so nobody really knows the GX is rebadged. really only the ES gets the most attention. and so what? its a really cheap car and its the best selling model in the lexus lineup. and the RX? brilliant sales again for an SUV. #1 selling luxury SUV if i remember correctly.

in many ways, lexus is still the benchmark in ergonomics, execution, reliability, customer service, and quality

spwolf

OMG OMG better slll yourz toyotra stock, sky is falling, sky is falling!

:P

4TehNguyen

iTrader: (1)

everyones freaking sales have been declining, grats economy and gas prices

ST430

you seriously need to stop living in a bubble...

MR_F1

If you had any idea what a Landcruiser, Lancruiser prado or a Harrier (what used to be the JDM RX) cost in some markets, you would instantly shut your pie hole. Seriously, how dumb are you?

pagemaster

Actually how dumb are you?

The cost of some Toyota's in some markets has absolutely NOTHING to do with the cost of Toyota's in the US. There is no other market on earth that is as competitive as the US market. No other market offers the alternatives and choices of that in the USA. Even Canada has less choices. Keeping market share in the US is harder than ever before because of alternative choices, prices etc.

Toyota has forever set the prices of Toyota and people bought them year after year after year. Only now has competition narrowed the gap so close that a model like the ES350 released for MY2007 already looks dated and the LS already needs a Pebble Beach edition.

In Canada Toyota never advertised "cash price" for Toyotas. Now they do.

Of course I do. A diesel 4.5 Toyota Land Cruiser that is fully loaded will be close to $105,000 US dollars in Australia. This model will never sell in the USA at those prices. Lack of competition in other markets allow the Land Cruiser diesel to sell at that price.

GFerg

Okay, before this gets any worse, please refrain from the personal attacks and name calling. Thanks.

ST430

There's a market with 1.3 billion people, that just spent 40+billion USD alone to entertain trained athletes and their fans for 2 weeks. Oh yea, that market will surpass the US market in the coming years, yet pricing is ~2x-3X of equivalent US models.

You still just don't get it.....seriously. Go read your old diatribe on Toyco/Lexus, item by item and learn something...this has all been covered to death already. ( https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=372841 )

pagemaster

No actually YOU DO NOT GET IT. The USA is the most competitive car ecconomy. No other country relies on cars the way the USA does. There is no other country in the world that has as many choices and competition as the US market. The Toyota Land Cruiser is such a hit in markets like the Australia, NZ, Africa BECAUSE OF THE LACK OF COMPETITION. This is why there is a premium

In contrast..the USA has so many different choices and models to choose from that makes it very hard for Toyota to say "take it or leave it"

ST430

You are confusing yourself again. Your original rant was on why Toyco/Lexus isn't competitive. Even after several folks pointed out to the dismal economy, soaring gas prices, competition cutting back as well, etc. in this thread as well as your previous one, you still think that Toyco/Lexus is the only one on the sinking boat.

Now you cited that the USA has the only competitive market. Please go visit any Chinese big city where there's a plethora of choices from small domestic made vehicles to expensive and extravagant exotics. Trust me, I live in America, but do a lot of my business overseas and as patriotic as I am, i know that the days of the US being the #1 consumer in the world is coming to a close soon (see our deficit and decline of the dollar). Please stop living in a vacuum.

LexFather

There are over 40 versions of the 3 series in Europe. I agree with ST430 here, we actually don't get that many versions of vehicles. We get a handful of VWs, Toyotas, Hondas, compared to Europe. We don't get any micro cars from Japan.

America is the MOST PROFITABLE country for automakers but not the most diverse. Heck, we just are getting a GT-R, and only a few years ago the EVO/WRX.

GSteg

iTrader: (15)

That's a BS excuse. I'm sure you're well aware of Mercedes Benz's and many of the Audi's resale value. If these two brands do not fall into the resale value argument, then what makes them luxury and not hyundai?

STIG

Land Cruiser is the legend around the world. Nothing can come even close to the LC where proper off-roading is required. LC doesn't sell very well in America because, here in America, poser SUVs such as RX, X5, H2, H3, and the list goes on, are more dominate here and no one is willing to pay for the premium of the Land Cruiser.

MR_F1

OK. The only one of these models available in the US is the LandCruiser. It costs how much? And Though it is not high volume, every one is sold, see if you can find one anywhere that goes below msrp