Lexus becoming common.

[flookyk]

 After a long weekend holiday in Shropshire this weekend I got to thinking if I need to buy a different car next time as it seems Lexus is becoming very common. 😉😅

First of all I was staying in a log cabin on a farm with around 15 cabins, the one next to me had a black 69 plate NX, a younger little brother to me RX.

Then on the drive back I lost count of the number of Lexus (Lexi??) I passed on the motorways, of all types.

Maybe I need to buy something rare now, like my dads first two cars a BMW Isetta  or Reliant Regal. 🤔😄

[Spacewagon52]

Keith, have you considered why you do not see some of these "rare" cars very often on the road?

The reason is that they spend most of their time in the garage being repaired!

[Linas.P]

Lexus SUVs are selling fairly well to be honest. But try to find something like RC or ES on the road.

It was kind of funny, because when I got RC I happen to come across another 2 RCs in my area on the same day and one more next day driving to work... despite not seeing one ever before outside of dealership. 

Yet to see ES...

LC is obviously quite rare as well, but surprisingly have have seen maybe 5-6 driving on the road including one during my LC test drive (what are odds of that)?!

[westo3]

I find that whenever I get a new car I am surprised to see how many other cars around of the same model. Maybe I wasn’t looking for them before! 

[Linas.P]

That is what I thought myself, but I was looking to buy RC for nearly 3 years and it is not the car which is easy to miss or mistake with something else. Perhaps just coincidence and I haven seen another one since (although I barely did like 3000 miles in a year).

[cruisermark]

I seem to alot of NX and UX around

[Spacewagon52]

34 minutes ago, Linas.P said:

 

LC is obviously quite rare as well, but surprisingly have have seen maybe 5-6 driving on the road including one during my LC test drive (what are odds of that)?!

Odds are very low! Can you give me your lottery numbers for this week please Linas?

[Las Palmas]

You see what you are looking for. Here many Lexus, but most old IS. Maybe they last forever.

A few years ago, most taxi here were Prius. Now many Hyundai Ioniq are coming. Could be because agent here is not service minded. But if the Hyundai were not reliable, the word would have spread quickly among the taxi drivers.

[Linas.P]

35 minutes ago, Spacewagon52 said:

Odds are very low! Can you give me your lottery numbers for this week please Linas?

Sadly it is too late, I test drove it around Jan 2020 🙂

5 minutes ago, Las Palmas said:

You see what you are looking for. Here many Lexus, but most old IS. Maybe they last forever.

A few years ago, most taxi here were Prius. Now many Hyundai Ioniq are coming. Could be because agent here is not service minded. But if the Hyundai were not reliable, the word would have spread quickly among the taxi drivers.

It doesn't really matter, many taxi companies have large fleet on lease, once car reaches say 60k, they simply replace the car with another lease. In short car will get replaced long before reliability becomes relevant. Perhaps this more important for individual taxi drivers who own their own cars, but those does not dictate what market does, nor what common cars are in the fleets.

[royoftherovers]

6 minutes ago, Las Palmas said:

You see what you are looking for. Here many Lexus, but most old IS. Maybe they last forever.

A few years ago, most taxi here were Prius. Now many Hyundai Ioniq are coming. Could be because agent here is not service minded. But if the Hyundai were not reliable, the word would have spread quickly among the taxi drivers.

My bother`s Hyundai I40 Tourer had a Gearbox fault in its 5th year of ownership.

Hyundai replaced it with a new Gearbox under Warranty without quibble and they loaned him free of charge a new Hyundai Tucson.

Now that is real Customer Service.

[Barry14UK]

Well I hope there are more Lexus cars on the road and more approved Lexus sales and service centres.  My nearest is an hour and a half away and depending where you are in the Country it could be longer.  Just about all other marques main dealers are only 20 minutes away from me. So in some ways exclusivity can be a disadvantage.  Also, with a greater number of a model on the road there will be more broken for spares which can be helpful cost wise if you need a part. 

[LenT]

2 hours ago, westo3 said:

I find that whenever I get a new car I am surprised to see how many other cars around of the same model. Maybe I wasn’t looking for them before! 

I’m sure there’s something in that.  Years ago I acquired a Citroen DS when there were very few around.  Within days one coming the other way flashed its headlights. I pulled in, thinking the driver may have spotted something amiss.  But then it happened again and it gradually dawned on me that this was a greeting from a fellow Citroenfile.

Eventually, it stopped as new owners didn’t bother.  Similarly, shortly after I got the IS - and I really hadn’t been aware of them before - I overshot a side road and pulled in to a pub car park to turn round.  There was only one car in it - an identical white IS250.  Only the second one I’d ever noticed.

[royoftherovers]

We Beetle owners always waived to each other.

[Las Palmas]

45 minutes ago, royoftherovers said:

We Beetle owners always waived to each other.

In 1967. Yes.

[Las Palmas]

2 hours ago, Linas.P said:

It doesn't really matter, many taxi companies have large fleet on lease, once car reaches say 60k, they simply replace the car with another lease. In short car will get replaced long before reliability becomes relevant. Perhaps this more important for individual taxi drivers who own their own cars, but those does not dictate what market does, nor what common cars are in the fleets.

As far as I know most taxi owners have only 1 taxi here. I know one. He used to have a Toyota. Funny when I had a MR2 Roadster he recommended me a garage that the taxi drivers used for their Toyotas. Not the one that has Lexus as well.

He would sell his used taxi when he needed a new. So a good price for the used was not without interest.

[Linas.P]

Yes, I understand that - as I said individual owners may be more concerned. 

However, when it comes to common cars that is usually decided by fleet buyers. For example in London Adison Lee used to run Ford Galaxy diesel, later Prius and nowadays I don't know what they run. Key is - 95% of the market would be maybe dozen large companies and remaining 5% would be individual taxi drivers now driving for Uber or as part of small local taxi companies.

[ciao_chao]

I’m amazed how many there are in London, hybrids and IS are very popular. That said also caught a RC and of all things an Altezza today!

[HM48]

I've seen lots of NXs and UXs, a little less of the RX.  Hardly seen anything else, one RC, one ES and one LC so far in the last month.

[malcolmw]

I think that one reason that we are seeing more Lexus cars is that their lifetime is longer than average and thus, every year, there are more around.

BTW, I'm glad that you have seen a LC. I thought I was the only one on the lookout for them!

[MartinH]

On 5/5/2021 at 7:52 PM, ciao_chao said:

in London, hybrids and IS are very popular

Yes but better-off people are replacing them with BEVs — BMW i3 for years already, Tesla now commonplace, and VW ID.3 and ID.4 appearing fast. This wealthier buyer demographic is leaving hybrid drive behind.

[royoftherovers]

12 minutes ago, MartinH said:

Yes but better-off people are replacing them with BEVs — BMW i3 for years already, Tesla now commonplace, and VW ID.3 and ID.4 appearing fast. This wealthier buyer demographic is leaving hybrid drive behind.

Didn`t wealthy people buy a Sinclair C5 Martin ? 

[Barry14UK]

2 minutes ago, royoftherovers said:

Didn`t wealthy people buy a Sinclair C5 Martin ? 

For their kids to play with?

[Linas.P]

23 minutes ago, MartinH said:

Yes but better-off people are replacing them with BEVs — BMW i3 for years already, Tesla now commonplace, and VW ID.3 and ID.4 appearing fast. This wealthier buyer demographic is leaving hybrid drive behind.

I don't think it is entirely to do with a wealth (probably indirectly). BEVs are more common because there is huge tax advantage to have them, especially if you getting one via company.

Now where wealth comes in - one at very least needs to have a drive (to be able to charge BEV) and people who tends to live in houses with drives are generally more wealthy than modern slaves who lives in large blocks and share single parking space with 10 neighbours. But it is not the price of the car which shows the wealth, rather the access to necessary facilities for BEV.

[MartinH]

2 minutes ago, Linas.P said:

But it is not the car of the price which shows the wealth, rather the access to necessary facilities for BEV.

Yes indeed, you are in the right of it, Linas. Off-road parking in London betokens wealth.

[Linas.P]

"car of the price"... what was that Linas?! 😁 fixed.