Lexus: We Can Keep Loyalists Happy Despite Performance Push

WHISTLER, BC, Canada – In its bid to overhaul its stodgy image and win a new generation of buyers, Lexus has been on a mission to boost its performance credibility.

Last year in the U.S., the Toyota luxury brand released a new generation of its IS midsize sport sedan and later this year will launch a new small CUV, the NX, and a mid-large performance coupe, the RC and RC F. The NX boasts a turbocharged 4-cyl. and the RC F a 450-hp-plus V-8 engine.

However, Lexus has sold millions of vehicles over the years, including the popular RX CUV and ES sedan, often to repeat customers who value a quiet, comfortable ride above all else.

But the buyer who wants a more exciting driving experience and those who prefers a softer, more sedate ride don’t have to be mutually exclusive, a senior Lexus executive says.

“I look at it like (Lexus loyalists) certainly appreciate a quiet car that’s comfortable to drive,” Brian Smith, vice president-marketing for Lexus in the U.S. tells WardsAuto in an interview here. “But even our traditional buyers aren’t saying they don’t like the passion that we’re bringing to the product lineup.”

And if comfort-focused Lexus buyers do have a problem with the move toward more invigorating ride and handling, Smith says the brand has a solution, in the form of Drive Mode Select.

Over the past few years, Lexus has been rolling out the feature, which can vary throttle, suspension and transmission calibrations depending on the mode setting, in refreshed and fully revised models.

Almost two years ago, Lexus installed Drive Mode Select in the refreshed version of the LS large sedan. Normal, Eco and Sport modes are available, with another setting, Sport Plus, in the F Sport grade of the LS.

“There’s a vehicle that was very much designed for our traditional buyer base but because of the mode select feature there’s such variety now between the (Normal) and the Sport Plus modes,” Smith says. “It’s attracting people that would have never considered even that class of car in the past.”

Buyers of the F Sport LS grade are trending five years younger than the typical LS customer, whose average age is 60.

“The vehicle is still quiet and comfortable, but depending on your mood or the road conditions you can dial up (the sport quotient) now,” Smith says. “To me that’s the game-changer in the product lineup.”

More to Come

Lexus isn’t done yet with plans for exciting product although Smith is mum on what might be next.

In an interview last year with WardsAuto, Smith revealed a production version of the LF-LC concept sports car has been green-lit by Toyota.

In Europe on July 16, Lexus Europe Vice President Alain Uyttenhoven divulged further details on the car, including that the production LF-LC will be 90%-100% representative of the concept, per a directive from Toyota President Akio Toyoda.

Toyoda “doesn’t want the production car to look any different from the concept,” Uyttenhoven told AutoCar.

Lexus doesn’t foresee the LF-LC, which may wear the name LC for production, as a “huge volume car…but it will bring huge emotion,” Uyttenhoven tells the British auto website.

Lexus previously sold a niche sports car, the LFA, which Smith says “changed a lot of people’s impressions of what Lexus could do.”

He’s mum here on any more sports cars, but says he’d love to see further application of the LFA’s “amazing” engine, a 552-hp, 4.8L V-10.

While Smith claims challenging BMW’s i8, Porsche’s 918 Spyder or Tesla’s Model S with a green sports car isn’t in Lexus’ plans, reports suggest the production LF-LC will receive a hybrid V-8 powertrain.

However, details on the propulsion system still are scant, including whether it will have extended-range capabilities as does the i8.

Smith notes parent company Toyota is high on hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles, rather than battery-electric vehicles, but says the automaker is flexible.

“If pure electric becomes (the trend and) the battery technology improves dramatically we’ll be right there to offer products that meet the need.”

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