The new Lexus Power of H commercial debuted yesterday, and today has surfaced on Youtube:

After reading the synopsis released a couple days ago, I wasn’t sure how the commercial was going to pan out, but the idea is fairly strong and well executed. Most important is that Lexus has moved away from touting the “green” features of hybrids, there isn’t an environmental tone at all. At first, this confused me, I wasn’t sure what the commercial was actually saying, but I was looking at it the wrong way. The general public already knows about hybrid technology and its benefits, but they might not realize how many hybrids Lexus has available. This is really about brand awareness, not technology awareness.

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Also, just a note about Youtube videos — I’ve gotten some emails from people digging through my archives only to find that Lexus commercials and video clips are no longer available due to copyright infringement. There isn’t much I can do about this, save hosting the videos myself, and all that would do is bring Lexus’ lawyers to my doorstep. My advice is watch early, you never know when the clip is going to disappear.

Building off his presentation at the Automotive News World Congress, Lexus general manager Mark Templin outlined the future direction of Lexus dealerships in the US in an interview with Ward’s.

There’s a lot of information hidden in the details, but the primary point made is that Lexus will start to take on some characteristics of Scion, particularly in the way it deals with younger customers:

We’re learning about what young people want,” says Templin…“And that gives us a glimpse into the future. We can see what our future looks like by looking back and seeing what those people want today.

“The reality is, we’re all going to become like those young people. They’re not going to become like us.”

What Scion buyers want – and future Lexus customers will desire, as well – is a quicker purchasing and no-fuss service experience.

“Time is very important for them,” Templeton says of the Scion customer. “So we have to figure out how to speed up the process for them, whether it’s buying the car or whether it’s the parts and services side of the business. Those are important things.”

What’s interesting is how Templin plans to introduce these elements into the Lexus experience, with the most notable being “around-the-clock service facilities”. I can’t even imagine how difficult it would be to pull this off, though it’s an easy statement to misinterpret. It could mean that servicing and repair could be put on a 24-hour schedule, and not that it would be possible to get an oil change at three in the morning. But who knows? It would certainly be a one-of-a-kind service, that’s for sure.

It’s an indepth interview, and very interesting to read.

[Via: TTAC]

It almost seems like the LF-A Roadster Concept is playing second-fiddle to the Lexus amenities at the Detroit Auto Show — The Driving Woman weblog (who’s been providing insightful updates since the convention doors opened) shares their experience:

Whenever I thought that the show was getting to me I just climbed that set of stairs, relaxed into a fabulous bamboo chair, ate organic goodies and sipped cucumber infused mineral water. And when I got my head healed upstairs, I descended to Lexus’s main floor for a chair massage.

“Is this a prototype for Lexus’s dealership of the future?” I inquired of Mark Lawrence, Creative Director at George P. Johnson Event Marketing Agency, who helped to conceptualize the booth.

“We did a discovery process on where Lexus wanted to take the consumer experience,” Lawrence noted. “And yes, the overall theme is a hi-end boutique auto dealership. It’s all about contemporary luxury.”

“The lounge was designed as the ultimate experience in a harried workday environment as a place to relax and refuel,” he added. “Yes, refuel,” I thought, grabbing a couple more chocolate chip cookies and a handful of organic almonds.

Lexus’ presence at the Detroit Auto Show isn’t just limited to their impressive booth, there was also a Luxury Lounge, where harried reporters could take some time to relax. MLive reports:

I have heard that Lexus knows how to take care of their customers (think: fancy buffets and massages while getting your car serviced at the dealership.) The car company brought these decadent sensibilities with them to the North American International Auto Show, with their Lexus Luxury Lounge.

While many car companies had displays catering to journalists’ needs, the most impressive of these had to be the Lexus Luxury Lounge. If other displays were like mini bars or coffee shops, Lexus offered the mini country club, smack in the middle of Cobo.

Seems as though Lexus went out of their way this year to make a serious impression, and judging by the various accounts, I’d say they were quite successful.

Industrial Design website Core77 took a trip to the Detroit Auto Show and came away particularly impressed with the Lexus booth:

Designed by Mark Lawrence of the George P. Johnson Company, Lexus’ new exhibit combines highly refined materials and strong organizational qualities. Much of exhibit design is marketing through architecture, and this stand speaks very well for the brand. Abundant use of stainless steel and glass is paired with stone and wood, reflecting Lexus’ design philosophy of technology balanced with humanity.

It’s a unique perspective, for sure. Writer Michael Doyle even admits he’s more interested the architecture than the cars themselves, though I don’t find it all that surprising — all those photos of the Lexus exhibit and not even a glimpse of the new LF-A Roadster Concept!

I stumbled on this image while looking for something appropriate for a previous post, and it was simply too good not to post. As for the story behind the photo, it comes from a 2005 Customer Service program run out of Lexus UK:

Lexus aftersales consultants are being given a taste of the luxury living enjoyed by their customers. All in the name of good business development, staff from Lexus Centres across the country are being pampered at top class hotels as part of a programme to raise customer care to an even higher level: experiencing for themselves the kind of quality and service their clients enjoy and expect, will help them hone their own customer care skills.

The hotel visits are not just about the high-life, however, as the training sessions include “trust” scenarios, for example where one person is talked through the procedure for shaving a blindfolded colleague with what they believe to be a cutthroat razor. This relates to the way in which new customers need to be introduced step-by-step to the aftersales procedure, without, of course, any risk of blood-letting.

For a company already renowned for its customer service, Lexus knows better than to rest on its previous success, and what better way to improve than to have sales consultants cutting at each other’s throats?

[Source: Lexus UK]

There’s been rumblings for some time that Lexus could release a super-small sedan to compete with the likes of BMW’s 1-series and Audi’s A3, and a recent article from GoAuto suggests it’s much further in development than previously thought:

To be manufactured in sedan and/or hatch guises beyond 2010, the new entry-level model plan was signed off by Toyota’s luxury car brand just prior to the Tokyo motor show, a Lexus insider told GoAuto.

“The booming small passenger market in Europe has required us to rethink the situation in terms of the sub-RX entry-level SUV we had planned,” said a Lexus executive. “In response, we have decided to shift from SUV to passenger car, under the project name of C-Premium.”

Though he would not specify what type, group manager for Lexus brand planning Shuhei Miyashita confirmed the widely speculated “new entry-level” (NEL) model, among others, was under development at Lexus.

“Yes, of course, smaller cars are a high priority,” he told GoAuto exclusively. “Yes, a new entry-level model is a strong possibility. We are always considering smaller, as well as larger, cars.”

I’ve touched on this before, and found it confounding that Lexus would think it necessary to release such a car. However, so much of my thinking is from the perspective of a North American, and all indications seem to point to this car only being available in Europe, where this small luxury car segment is strongest.

However, Lexus’ European sales cannot compare to their competitors, and it’s still very much a case of establishing the brand as a worthy competitor. Is traveling downmarket really the best strategy?

Ward’s Auto had a chance to sit down with Toyota Design Chief Wahei Hirai to discuss the unfavorable reaction to the Lexus IS-F’s design:

Critics say the derivative does not distinguish itself enough from the current IS, especially with the interior, and that its bulbous nose is downright ugly.

Toyota Motor Corp. design chief Wahei Hirai is familiar with the complaints but says creating a unique feel for all F-performance models, more of which are said to be coming, is a bigger priority than tweaking the IS-F.

“We have to establish our own identity as a Lexus premium brand,” Hirai says at an event here during the Tokyo auto show. “Maybe we will put some flavor or dynamics, or more emotion, toward (F models) than the basic Lexus design.”

For one thing, Lexus can be more aggressive in designing its F cars than the German brands, Hirai says. “They appreciate consistency, or continuity, very much. We like to make (our vehicles) a different way.”

There’s a bit of circular logic in Hirai’s response, which almost sounds as though future F models will be uniquely designed. In a way, it makes sense, the GS may be the only other model that could pull off the IS-F design elements, and it sounds like there’s much more than a GS-F in the pipeline. Maybe we’ll actually see an RX-F!

Not that I don’t trust the words of an outgoing executive, but Jim Farley’s comments last week in Automotive News seem to take a rather dark spin on Lexus’ future:

The news comes from former Lexus General Manager Jim Farley, who spoke with Automotive News prior to leaving his job last week to head to Ford. According to Farley, Lexus needs to “look very critically at the 30 to 40 year old customer.” As an example of how severe the situation is Farley explains that the Lexus ES 350’s average customer is aged 61, and their number-one occupation is “retired.” In fact, Farley revealed that 40% of Lexus buyers are over 60.

A study conducted by Power Information Network found that Lexus owners are older on average than all its rivals except Jaguar, Lincoln and Cadillac.

Ok, I can’t ignore it, why is a senior employee, only days away from leaving his job for a competitor, commenting on behalf of his former employer?

It’s very easy to turn this central fact around, as it means 60% of Lexus buyers are under 60, nevermind that using the ES as an example, a car targeted at older buyers, is a poor choice. Instead, let’s look at the luxury entry-level age:

The median age of people who bought a Mercedes C-Class in the first quarter this year was 47, according to data gleaned from J.D. Power & Associates Power Information Network, which parses dealership sales from around the country. By contrast, the average age of a buyer of BMW’s 3-Series cars was 42, while Lexus’ buyers for the IS averaged 41 years of age. The compact premium category average age is 45, per the consultancy.

So, Lexus has the lowest average age in the car class targeted expressly at a younger audience. What was Farley’s point again?

[Via: Motor Authority]

I don’t know about the rest of the world, but here in Canada, the Lexus commercial Moments was in heavy rotation for quite some time, and was incredibly received (I know this, because people actually talked to me about it). In light of that, it comes as no surprise that the ad execs went for another dip in the pool, this time for hybrids:

Maybe a little on the sentimental side, but executed well enough. It’s a much better take than the Moments commercial, which seemed generic, one of those ads that could have been made for anyone. At least in this case, there’s a direct association with the brand.