SaintNexus

I hope they do.

Most of the 7 series, and S classes you see people driving are most likely leases, and not buys.

ydooby

"a. an entry level SUV to compete against the Audi Q5,
b. a three-row, car based SUV styled differently than the RX,
c. an IS coupe and convertible that avoids being a two door version of the NG sedan,
d. a replacement coupe and convertible for the SC."

They nailed it on every point IMO (although I don't understand what the NG sedan is). Hopefully Lexus will take this letter seriously and act on these points quickly.

dunnojack

there's really nothing wrong with the sales.

the big bulk of luxury sales come from the E, C, 3, 5, ES, IS, RX, and other lower end models.

Lexus has found a niche that they are masters of. The RX is cheap and roomy, and you can't find another suv in this price range.

the only thing Lexus trails big time in is sales of $50000 sedans.

and there's only so much you can decontent from a GX460 before it becomes a 4-runner.
perhaps if they offered a GX350, you could hit the target price point with a 3rd row seat.

toyota has probably found that it is not very effective to market the more expensive models. Those few cool GS commercials, with donuts and jturns........ didn't result in squat for sales.

*Batman*

I think NG means Next Generation sedan. They are basically saying that the next IS Coupe and Convertible shouldn't just be a 2 door version of the next IS Sedan. i.e. it should have its own look like with the Audi A5 versus the A4.

ydooby

The keyword of the point b is "car based". The reality is that very few people need the off-road prowess of a truck-based LSUV and would much rather trade it for more interior room, better ride quality and better fuel economy.

LexFather

First off that is a great document to read with tons of insight. We have stated many of the same concerns here!

That said I see the title and the media continue to **** on Lexus. I read that entire document, it is a wonderful read. It isn't just about what the headline stated, its some child trying to grab attention in the headlines.

Do they even know cars? How can anyone make this typo?

Not sure how a 35k-48k ES or a RX that goes from 38k-60k is a bargain. The CT is now the entry level model.

So many points to add comments too, I agree with A LOT if not MOST of that document and I have heard dealers tell me the same things so I am 100% certain its a real document. Its great to see that Lexus dealers really have legitimate concerns that we also share and they are sticking it to Lexus. I hope Lexus listens EMPHATICALLY and responds with action and not answers.

Would be great to see documents like this from other brands.

MPLexus301

iTrader: (3)

Not a thing here that disagree with

LexFather

There really isn't.

Of course the writer of the article was horrible. The actual document is superb. It's a long read I hope everyone here goes through it and doesn't rely on the sensationalist headlines.

MPLexus301

iTrader: (3)

I'd like to see how Lexus would position an entry level SUV, the RX, a unibody 3 row SUV, the GX and the LX. I must say that I think Lexus would benefit from adding those two models to the lineup....they sorely need them, especially as gas prices keep rising.

MelF1fan

I hope they do listen as i would love for TMC/Lexus to come out with a sleek new IS coupe!!!

I'm looking for a contender to pull me away from the Bimmers which i've been more than happy with for the past decade. Just would like to try something different for the time being.

On a side note - The New Buick and i mean literally the GM product is actually quite impressive so Lexus should at least aim there to begin with.

spwolf

well do consider that this is what dealers said:

1. We want cheaper cars!!!
2. We want lot of redesigns!!!
3. We want a lot of marketing money!!!
4. We want more unique cars that sell in low numbers!!!
5. We want better leases with higher residuals!!!
6. We want higher quality cars!!!
7. We want cheaper parts and servicing!!!

= no a single thing that doesnt cost Lexus a lot of money :-).

gengar

I have to agree here. Pretty quickly the document became a terrible read because it became obvious that it's typical salesman blathering. These dealers want everything in their products - even the impossible - because that's what they think they need in order to sell cars. Audi does this? We need to do it too! BMW does this? Add it on! Benz does this? Well we don't, so we have to do it to be able to sell like them! They want shorter product cycles and faster refreshes and more models and even more variants and for Lexus to lead in technology and innovation and making a marketing blitz while keeping costs low and having competitive pricing and offering dealers more sales incentives and all the while also increasing quality standards. A lot of this is utterly contradictory.

I agree with many individual things that the dealers said in the document, but in all, it's more a good example why salesmen should never be allowed to run companies or really even do anything particularly important in corporate.

LexFather

I dunno Mike and Gengar I think it was pretty good feedback. I agree 100% dealers will not get all their demands and some of it is out of touch but a lot of it is good stuff. We both know that this is what the main wants/complaints/positives were, not everything said was listed, the dealer council shaped up the document for the most important items.

The Ecru/light colored seat thing hits home. After what 3 months the new HS in the family has jean marks all over the seats. Its ridiculous. The car is pampered.

Lexus needing to add more top heavy cars. True there is nothing wrong with selling as many RX/ES as they do but they have neglected the top products. They should advertise the LX as the ultimate LUV but there is no advertising. The LS has a sport model and hybrid and there is no advertising. The 3GS had horrible advertising from start to finish. Quite frankly I thought it was hilarious Infiniit advertised the GSh for Lexus as I'm sure some people were not aware of it. They KNEW the SC was getting old in the tooth and instead of having a ready replacement, they let it get old, older and stop production until the next one. Mercedes does not do that to the SL, if it get old, they refresh it (the current model has had 2 facelifts) and there is always a ready new model.

They should advertise the LFA over and over and over. DO NOT waste that effort.

Lexus has gotten sportier but most people do not know this. They continue to think Lexus is ES/RX/LS. Lexus needs to continue to churn out and advertise and market their sportier side. The driving events are a great thing.

*Batman*

^ Agree. This is a wake up call.

The fact that they leaked this is indicative of frustration on the part of dealers. It's not in the dealers interest to leak this. The memo in the press hurts the Lexus brand. They did it because they felt Lexus was not listening and something needs to be done to course correct.

I was struck by this quote:
"The dealer body is frustrated that the Council has raised critical issues that are acknowledged as being important, but little progress has been made in addressing these issues."

The slowness to react to dealer feedback reminds me of their slowness in not realizing until 2010 that a modern luxury car should not have a tape deck but ought to have an MP3 player!

RXGS

iTrader: (2)

I think it the economy more than the car. People cant justify spending 70k on a ca via the ls when the economy is just unstable and they may need money for a rainy day, so they get an es for 40k and pocket the 30k and still get a lexus