The irony for the Lexus brand is that the Americans love it more than the Japanese. Part of this has to do with the fact that Lexus was first launched in the US in 1989 but the first Lexus store didn’t appear in Japan until 2003. The other reason is also because few countries are more brand conscious than Japan.
So while Lexus ‘The relentless pursuit of perfection’ motto has built an tank-strong reputation for reliability and excellent customer care, the reality is that as a luxury lifestyle product, brand cachet matters more than reliability, which is also why Lexus has since shifted its direction towards the more emotional ‘Experience Amazing.’
Lexus’ Tazuna cockpit is the new Mazda Jinba-Ittai infused with old BMW driver-centric interior (the latter now wants to be closer to a smartphone company than a car company), while Lexus’ Takumi craftsmen are regularly tested for hand dexterity – folding an origami cat in under 90 seconds, using their other, non-dominant hand.
Why? Because only Takumi craftsmen with supersensitive hands, with at least 25 years of experience can put together an art piece on wheels with a Lexus badge on it, in ways that machine-dependent Germans can never understand.
Lexus calls it Experience Amazing and although it has taken quite a while for Japanese buyers to warm up to the Lexus brand, it seems that Lexus has passed a new milestone with its home market’s super fussy customers.
As of May 2022, Lexus is leading BMW in Japan, with 17,812 units (cumulative) versus 11,067 units, but it’s still behind Mercedes-Benz (20,048 units).
But unfortunately for Lexus, the change in opinion is happening at the worst possible time.
On-going disruptions in the supply chain and resurgence of Covid-19 in Japan means that it is very difficult for Lexus to keep its plant running as planned.
In June 2022 alone, production of the at the Tahara plant was stopped for 9 days in total (non-consecutive, which is actually worse, because manufacturing plants are not on-off switches).
Japanese buyers walking into a Lexus store are being cautioned that the waiting list for a Lexus NX is now more than 10 months, with some dealers erring on the side of caution, with a super conservative estimated delivery date of early 2024 – because the social penalty of not honouring one’s word is very high there.
Thankfully for us (and to the detriment of Japanese buyers), Lexus is prioritizing fulfilling orders in overseas markets first. Checks with Lexus Malaysia revealed that the waiting period for the 2022 Lexus NX is around 3 to 4 months, which is now the norm for almost any new car here anyway.
Also, another reason why the waiting period of shorter for Malaysia is because the majority of bookings in Japan are for the hybrid NX 350h and plug-in hybrid NX 450h+ variants, which are not offered here.
Similar to the (at least 4 months waiting period), hybrid models are seeing longer waiting period as they are more affected by the shortage in semiconductor parts.
In Malaysia, the 2022 Lexus NX is offered in two variants, the 2.5-litre naturally aspirated NX 250 Luxury sells for RM 370,888, while the 2.4-litre turbocharged NX 350 F Sport sells for RM 389,888. Prices are inclusive of 50 percent discount for SST, valid until 30-June 2022.
Come 1-July, prices will of course be higher once SST resumes, but if Proton is already increasing prices of its X70 and Saga even before SST resumes, due to rise in logistics and materials cost and a weak Ringgit, what more about the fully imported Lexus NX.
Keyword: Japanese buyers understand Experience Amazing - 10-month waiting list for 2022 Lexus NX but Malaysian buyers enjoy fast lane priority