[avira_tk]

Lexus is planning to lease the LF-A according to their PR, its one of the halo models to highlight the technical capabilities of the company(by extension Toyota). The Lexus brand will not find it difficult to get mindspace in India, the rich are by and large aware of the cars and their superb reliability.
The real issue is that Lexus is hardly a range in the real sense, its mostly 1 model-1 engine (ignoring hybrids here). GTO has highlighted the engine range the Germans offer, Toyota's super reliable engines that belt out 100bhp for 2.5 lts capacity are a joke compared to the German diesels that belt out twice as much with 20% less displacement. I doubt the smaller models are designed for high power diesels, something like the Corolla diesel equivalent will be DOA.

[Fullrevs]

As someone earlier mentioned, if they can price their cars along with the Volvo's or even cheaper they can have a fair share of the market.

Lexus cars are good but I don't find them to be equivalents to their German counterparts namely Audi, BMW, Mercedes.

I think its a long shot before Infiniti make it to India as Renault are still looking to establish strongly in India.

They only made 500 Lexus LFA's didn't they? Quite unlikely they will be sold in India?!

[DicKy]

Lexus as brand doesn't have much difficulty establishing itself in India. The problem as said earlier is lack of diesels in it's stable and the fact that it doesn't have plants outside of Japan(except the Canada plant for RX hybrid).
Diesel- It can be argued that the running costs of petrol will be offset by the reliability and service, but then how much Indians do that kind of calculations? If so 50% of diesel car owners don't have any excuses for buying a diesel and the Jap sedans(Accord/Teana/Camry) make more sense than the Skodas and VWs.But it's not so.
CBU/CKD/plants et al..- Setting a plant here is highly unlikely as unlike Toyota, Lexus doesn't have the policy of setting up plants all round the world.Exception being the sole plant in Ontario,Canada for the RX., but i don't see it affecting the price. If TKM is ready to forego some profit, they can import and still price it competitively. Volvo imports and yet prices less than the German 3. Even though they assemble cars here , the Germans still price at CBU level. Also Lexus tradition of providing more features even if priced at par with Germans will help.
Product line-up- The most logical step would be to launch the IS220d(i4 diesel) and steal away the 3,C,A4 sales. But it seems unlikely as no new brand goes for the bottom-top approach,more so a premium brand. The top-bottom approach will be followed here. If Lexus is that serious then they surely can plonk in the LC V8 twin turbo diesel in the LX, but since the LC is already offered at a fat premium, they have to rejig their positioning.
Driving pleasure- More BMW sales doesn't mean the market is full of driving enthusiasts. Even if they offer BMW with Buick/Cadillac handling, most of the market will lap it up. They simply don't care. They just want a comfortable ride with easy to drive nature, something that Merc offers. So i don't see the 'boring to drive' holding any point here, except for the enthusiasts.

[shortbread]

The only diesel in the Lexus range is the IS which is more than 7 years old compared to the newer generation German rivals, all of whom have better diesel engines.

Also the Lexus does not have a price advantage, actually once it comes in as a CBU compared to the locally assembled germans it will end up being more expensive!!

[mxx]

There is not much going for lexus. I have driven lexus(s) and they are boring and as far as driving dynamics are concerned -characterless , like most toyotas (Note: please dont bring isf and lfa discussion here, to be realistic we need to exclude niche models). Lexus is not as big brand as the german trio or even jag, ie: in neither in perception nor in brand value. Knowing toyota's priorities here, they will not assemble it here in near future. Which means, lexus cannot even compete on price. Remember price is one of the major factor which Lexus uses to compete against the germans.eg: base LS is 30% cheaper than a base s class. Such pricing will be impossible in India, because they will never setup a plant for lexus here. Even is each factor in isolation may not be a deal breaker for some, combine them together and it definitely becomes a deal breaker. You can get a german trio which has a better brand value, better dynamics at lower price than a lexus.

[Nitrous Power]

Originally Posted by mxx

There is not much going for lexus. I have driven lexus(s) and they are boring and as far as driving dynamics are concerned -characterless , like most toyotas (Note: please dont bring isf and lfa discussion here, to be realistic we need to exclude niche models).

Agreed that Lexus is boring to drive compared to German trio but what it offers is unmatched reliability that none of these German brands can think of in top of super silent and smooth ride. So it all depends on what a buyer is looking for. And believe me, reliability is a big factor and yes, we have owned Beemer and Merc so I know what they are capable of when it comes to reliability.

Originally Posted by mxx

Lexus is not as big brand as the german trio or even jag, ie: in neither in perception nor in brand value.

May be not in India, but in USA, it is right there with Germans. Moreover, based on Toyota's reputation in Indian market, it won't be too hard for them to establish themselves as major luxury brand. Trust me, people in India are aware of Lexus brand.

Originally Posted by mxx

Knowing toyota's priorities here, they will not assemble it here in near future. Which means, lexus cannot even compete on price. Remember price is one of the major factor which Lexus uses to compete against the germans.eg: base LS is 30% cheaper than a base s class. Such pricing will be impossible in India, because they will never setup a plant for lexus here.

Agreed here, Toyota will have to get pricing right but then again, that applies to all new players and not just Lexus.

[sarthakgupta]

Lexus moving to a Hybrid only lineup in Europe

......We have no such plans. The agreement with BMW does not include any supply of BMW engines to Lexus.

In general, our vision is to expand the line-up of Lexus hybrid vehicles, which we believe is a strong differentiating element for Lexus globally and in Europe, combining superior driving performance and lower environmental impact.

With distributors in Norway and Sweden discontinuing the sale of the diesel Lexus IS, and the move to an all-hybrid lineup across Europe, there was very little chance that the Toyota-BMW partnership would lead to a diesel Lexus — and now we know for sure.

Source:No Plans for BMW-Powered Diesel Lexus in Europe | Lexus Enthusiast

[sarthakgupta]

Toyota and Nissan put their Luxe brands launch plans on hold.

.....Japanese carmakers Toyota and Nissan have put the brakes on their plans to launch luxury brands Lexus and Infiniti in the country, partly because India's free trade negotiations with European Union may make German rivals BMW, Audi and Mercedes much more competitive......


..... Industry insiders say Toyota and Nissan are reviewing the situation due to increase in import duty, the slowdown in demand, free fall in rupee valuation and, most importantly, uncertainty over India's trade talks with the EU....

Source:Toyota, Nissan put on hold launch of high-end cars Lexus & Infiniti in India - The Economic Times

[swiftnfurious]

Originally Posted by sarthakgupta

Toyota and Nissan put their Luxe brands launch plans on hold.


Source:Toyota, Nissan put on hold launch of high-end cars Lexus & Infiniti in India - The Economic Times

Don't these guys have manufacturing factories in Europe? Saying that others get advantage doesn't make sense. It's time for others also to do something to get the advantage. I say, they rather set up a factory in EU, these players are going to get additional benefits from their already CBU, CKD kits to India!

[Champion]

Dear Mates,

Just went through all the posts and I guess we have a consensus here. Off-topic here, but I just thought I would share the snaps and views of my Lexus with you guys. I drive a Lexus ES350, FYI. And my observations are:

1) Its boringly reliable,
2) Its got features which are easily understood,
3) It manages to get me the attention/discretion that I want (depends on the place of arrival),
4) Its feature rich (has an Mark & Levinson Sound System),
5) It doesn't cost me a bomb at the workshop albeit I do get the same privileges as a Merc/Bimmer/Audi customer, and so on and so forth.

But but but, what I don't get is why this continuous thought occurs in my mind when I see either one of the German trio, "Why am I not driving one of these???". Pure aspiration here. We got an MB E300 AMG Package recently and I was kicking myself why my Dad even bothered with it (No offense Merc owners). Honest truth is I have never driven a German car before and this wasn't very different from my Lexus. In fact, I found the Lexus more comfortable than the Merc while driving. More airy you could say. With just similar features in the list. But Dad says, "Son its a Mercedes!". And so it is. Now I don't know how this is going to be applicable in the Indian context but I thought I would share my observations nevertheless.

But again, one can't ignore any car for that matter, such beautiful creatures on earth!

Ciao
Champion

[sandeep3in]

The photos remind me of the Sheikh colony in Ghusais and the time spend there .

[oxyzen]

Originally Posted by Nitrous Power

Trust me, people in India are aware of Lexus brand.

Yes as a brand that is dull to drive & dull to own. But unfortunately that is the truth.

It is ironic how Germans make cars that are fun to drive but hopelessly unreliable and Lexus do just the opposite. Why cant lexus make an affordable car that is engaging to drive. How difficult can that be.

And what will Merc or BMW need to make a reliable car. Why cant they just make a basic car with a big thumping engine, a simple manual transmission and sell it at 15L without any of the freaking electronics. That will work wonders as it will keep the price down, It will keep the weight down & it will be more reliable. Most people buy German cars because they are fun to drive. They for sure will not be disappointed.

[Champion]

Originally Posted by sandeep3in

The photos remind me of the Sheikh colony in Ghusais and the time spend there .

That place it sure is sandeep3in. I happened to be passing by on the way to the office and this Metro parking looked all deserted and inviting !

Cherio
Champion

[k_nitin_r]

I drove a Lexus ES350 for about 6 months, which is based on the Toyota Camry platform, and I could tell the difference between the ES350 and a Camry as soon as I started it up. The noise and lack of engine refinement associated with a Camry has been dealt with in the ES350. The top-end Lexus LS-series is quite expensive but has the full-length sedan platform, unlike the reduced-length sedans that Toyota has turned the Avalon and Aurion into. The LS-series also attempts to provide more comfort to the rear seat passengers than to the driver.

[vineethvazhayil]

Originally Posted by k_nitin_r

I drove a Lexus ES350 for about 6 months, which is based on the Toyota Camry platform, and I could tell the difference between the ES350 and a Camry as soon as I started it up. The noise and lack of engine refinement associated with a Camry has been dealt with in the ES350. The top-end Lexus LS-series is quite expensive but has the full-length sedan platform, unlike the reduced-length sedans that Toyota has turned the Avalon and Aurion into. The LS-series also attempts to provide more comfort to the rear seat passengers than to the driver.

Lexus LS is RWD. There is no Sedan in the toyota family that has a RWD platform, AFAIK. Lexus is the only auto maker that has a FWD and RWD entry level luxury car. The ES and IS are that pair. The GS is the midsize RWD sedan and LS is their flagship large RWD sedan.
I do think that Lexus has their SUV's based on Toyota models though.