Lexus Hopes Gasoline + Electricity = Glitz -- Guilt
Finally, a hybrid for high rollers.
Toyota Motor Corp., whose fuel-efficient Prius compact was the world’s first gasoline-electric hybrid vehicle when it went on sale in Japan in 1997, is about to launch the first luxury hybrid: the Lexus RX 400h sport utility vehicle.
Waiting lists, already common with the Prius, are piling up for the SUV, due in showrooms by mid-April. Toyota dealers nationally have taken orders for 11,900 of the 24,000 being allotted for sale in the United States this year.
Tustin Lexus, one of the country’s largest Lexus dealers, has taken “more advance orders for the RX 400h than for any other vehicle since Lexus began sales in 1989,” said sales manager Darrick Usiadek. About 20% of his orders are from people who had never owned a Lexus, he said -- a trend Toyota expects to hold up nationwide.
The mid-size RX 400h blends Toyota’s hybrid technology with the nation’s bestselling luxury sport utility, the gas-powered Lexus RX 330. Prices are expected to start around $44,000 for the 400h, about a $5,000 premium over a similarly equipped conventional model.
For several years Toyota and Japanese rival Honda Motor Co. had the hybrid market to themselves, but with demand outstripping supply, most major automakers are racing to add hybrids to their lineups. Last year 88,000 hybrid vehicles were sold in the United States, and analysts at J.D. Power & Associates expect the segment to climb to 535,000 in 2010, representing 3% of the passenger vehicle market.
Lexus is betting that its newest hybrid will appeal to customers who don’t find Ford Motor Co.’s year-old Escape SUV hybrid classy enough.
Many buyers “will be people who have disposable income and want to make a statement about social consciousness without giving up luxury and comfort,” said Dennis Clements, vice president and general manager of the Lexus division.
Said Ron Cogan, publisher of San Luis Obispo-based Green Car Journal: “They’re positioning it as just another model in the Lexus lineup, one that happens to be a hybrid. It’s a great strategy that says hybrids are not just a fluke.”
Lexus’ RX hybrid includes all the luxury features of its conventionally powered cousin, including leather upholstery, plush carpeting, power front and reclining rear seats, a moon roof, dual-zone climate controls and a high-end stereo system.
It also caters to buyers who want the latest in technology and extra power, said Masaki Sanayama, assistant chief engineer and project manager for the RX hybrid. The RX 400h offers a new system that combines traction control, anti-lock brakes, stability control, all-wheel drive and speed-sensitive steering in a computer-controlled package.
Those who have driven advance models of the new Lexus SUV have commented on its firmer ride and snappier acceleration.
With front and rear electric motors and a V-6 gasoline engine, the RX 400h puts out 268 horsepower; that compares with 230 in the conventional V-6 model. The RX 400h zips from zero to 60 mph in 7.3 seconds, half a second faster than the RX 330 and better than some gasoline-powered V-8 SUVs.
Like all major hybrids, the 400h is also stingier on gasoline; it has a combined city-highway fuel rating of 28 miles per gallon, compared with 21 mpg in the conventional RX 330. To conserve fuel, the RX 400h’s gasoline engine shuts down when the vehicle stops. And at low speeds the SUV can be powered solely by its electric motors.
Toyota Motor isn’t limiting its new hybrids to the Lexus brand. A hybrid model of the Toyota Highlander SUV is due in June, and executives say they intend to offer hybrid versions of all the company’s cars and trucks within a few years if there is sufficient market demand.
Other automakers are hoping that the hybrid hoopla will continue. Ford Motor promises a hybrid version of its Mercury Mariner SUV this year, followed by a hybrid Mazda Tribute SUV in 2007 and a pair of hybrid sedans, the Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan, in 2008. General Motors Corp. has said it will have hybrid versions of its Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon large SUVs ready by 2007.
DaimlerChrysler is working on a hybrid Dodge Durango SUV for 2008, and Nissan Motor Co. plans a hybrid Altima sedan for next year. Most other automakers, including Porsche, are developing plans for hybrids.
The introduction of the 400h also signals a revamping of Lexus’ luxury models. Lexus has been the nation’s leading luxury vehicle brand in annual sales for five consecutive years without a significant redesign of any of its vehicles. That’s changing, though.
The hybrid RX will be followed this spring by a completely redesigned Lexus GS mid-size sedan that will compete with BMW’s 5-Series and other luxury names. The first new GS cars will have conventional gasoline engines, but Lexus promises a hybrid version by next year.
In a recent interview, Toyota President Fujio Cho said that regardless of the type of propulsion system used in future vehicles, hybrid technology can be added as part of the package to increase fuel efficiency.
“Hybrids will continue to be the core technology in the future,” he said.
Toyota’s U.S.-traded shares rose $1.12 to $78.63 on Friday on the New York Stock Exchange. Since the beginning of 2004 the stock is up 14.4%, while GM’s shares are down 30.3% and Ford’s are off 17.4%.
