Lexus vs. Prius

No and no.

By the time the new Lexus sedan hybrid hits the market the tax credit will be, if not all of the way gone, mostly gone. Lexus is counted together with Toyota, not separately.

And there are only about 5,000 HOV stickers left. So he'll miss out on those too.

But hey, if he can afford to drive a Lexus he can always drive in the HOV lanes and then just pay the ticket.

 

you'll top his mpg with no effort whatsoever...

 

Since the original post was put under News, but contained none, I'm throwing in some links to press reviews of the Lexus GS 450h.

Automobile magazine - Lexus Hybrid to Enter Endurance Event

Lexus hybrid -- luxury, handling, style, with carpool lane thrown in

fluffy video summary of a better Road and Track article: BMW 550i vs. Lexus GS 450h

While the San Francisco Chronicle article says that the GS 450h is eligible for carpool lanes, I believe this is the result of careless editors, who are ignorant of cars and buying articles written for the Washington Post. I believe the GS450h is eligible for car pool lanes in Virginia but not in California.

The GS450h does use hybrid synergy drive, but is not comparable with the Prius in price, performance, fuel consumption, or luxury. I think of it as a much more upscale Accord hybrid.

Lexus is also planning to release hybrid versions of the ES (6 cylinder) and the LS (8 cylinder).

 

Lexus is so far building gas gussling hybrids. Sure, they are ricket ships and have a lot of cool gadgets but they are not what I would consider green cars.

I'm still holding out hope that Lexus or Mrec will launch a luxury car that doesn't try to sell on horse power. I want a Prius built by Lexus. I'll trade some MPG for a 100% quiet ride, better seats etc.

As long as lexus (and others) continues to build luxury cars only aimed at H.P (and not FE or envionmentally careful cars) I won't consider them.

In a way it's good for me as I'm very happy in my Prius but I think I would have fallen for the marketing of a Lexus prius.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Alnilam @ Jul 23 2006, 08:09 PM) [snapback]291239[/snapback]</div>

The 60,000 limit applies to Toyota Motors as a whole, which includes Lexus.

Besides the 75,000 HOV stickers limit, which is right around the corner, a car must have a combined EPA rating of 45 MPG in order to qualify for the sticker. Thus far, the only eligible hybrids are the Prius and Honda's Civic Hybrid and Insight.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Godiva @ Jul 23 2006, 11:39 PM) [snapback]291256[/snapback]</div>

The GS450h is on the market now. There's a wait, but they are on the market.

28MPG on an SUV with V8 performance is a gas guzzler?

Unfortunately nobody else wants a Prius built by Lexus.

Gas mileage is a factor, but its not enough on its own to sway a $40,000-$70,000 buyer. Why do you think they made the LS600h top model with an estimated price around $100k with V12 performance, because thats how you sell them.

Selling luxury cars is not like selling midmarket cars like the Prius or the Camry. Carmakers are PENALIZED for having small efficient vehicles because the people who buy the higher line vehicles don't want to have theirs serviced next to the little efficient one. A "Lexus built Prius" would hurt Lexus' brand image. Thats why Acura just canned the RSX, a model that always sold very well. It was holding them back. Same with BMW and the 318ti. I bet you won't see a C class hatch next time either.

These are luxury cars. If your main concern is frugality at the pump, the Prius is your car. If you want performance, quality, a smooth and quiet ride, excellent customer service AND good gas mileage and clean emissions, a Lexus hybrid is your car.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(IsrAmeriPrius @ Jul 24 2006, 12:14 PM) [snapback]291526[/snapback]</div>

I read an article in the Los Angeles Times saying that each model has the 60,000 limit. They said that the Prius has sold 48,156 Prii this year. The article could be wrong and the link is: http://www.latimes.com/classified/automoti...ghway1-features

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(uclabruins @ Jul 24 2006, 12:28 PM) [snapback]291532[/snapback]</div>

This is what Toyota has to say (it is not the first time that a Los Angeles Times reporter got his or her facts wrong):