AutoBeta(AutoBeta.net)08/27 Report--

Recently, a video of a car blogger refusing to buy a Lexus LM at a guided price in the Lexus showroom of the Chengdu Auto Show has been circulated on the Internet.

The video revealed that the blogger said he wanted to buy Lexus LM, asked the sales staff in the Lexus showroom that the guiding price was about 1.1 million, and he wanted to book the car on the spot, but the salesperson said he would not accept the guided price. Then came a salesperson from the Lexus showroom, who said that the guiding price of the Lexus LM is 1.19 million, which cannot be bought at the current market price of 1.2 million. According to the current market industry, the naked car price of the Lexus LM is mostly around 1.7 million.

In response to the price increase behavior of Lexus, many netizens said: the situation of price increase has existed for many years, just don't buy it, why can it increase? It's not because there are so many people who want to buy it. If everyone doesn't buy it, you can see whether it will increase the price. Another netizen said: this is something that one is willing to hit and another is willing to suffer.

In fact, the price increase of Lexus LM is no stranger to most cyclists. Lexus, as a luxury brand of Toyota, was officially sold in China in 2005. relying on Toyota endorsement and the halo of imported brands, the products sold by Lexus in the Chinese market were once difficult to find and could not be bought without a price increase. It is understood that the new seven-seater version of Lexus went on sale on August 7 this year, with an official guiding price of 1.199 million yuan. After the new car came on the market, it also received the attention of the majority of netizens. Shortly after its launch, on Aug. 19, a netizen in Beijing posted on the online platform that he had mentioned the first new Lexus LM350h in Beijing, saying that the car landed 2.1 million and the price increased by 900000. The intensity of the fare increase also surprised many netizens to lose their chin.

Subsequently, many media friends visited the relevant Lexus stores, and the latest offer is that the current price increase range of Lexus LM is about 500000. In addition, after the car blogger revealed that he had been refused to buy a car at the guide price of the Chengdu auto show, other bloggers also went to the Lexus showroom to consult the sales in the showroom about LM's car pick-up policy. As for the price increase, the salesperson said: this may be based on different market conditions in different periods. It said that at present, the actual price of its 4S store is 1.699 million, plus the purchase of tax insurance and other fees, the final landing is about 1.87 million.

Some people may wonder why there is a price increase in Lexus but no one cares? In fact, as early as the end of 2019, Toyota was ordered by regulators to stop illegal activities and impose a fine of 87.6131 million yuan because of the price monopoly imposed by Lexus. At that time, Toyota China responded by saying, "accept the punishment of the General Administration and seriously rectify it." Although Toyota was punished, the price increase of Lexus has not stopped, and the price increase seems to have become the "label" of Lexus. Of course, there is a price increase in 4S stores, which has something to do with car manufacturers. For example, why can independent brands restrain dealers to avoid price increases, while joint venture brands are affixed with "suggested retail prices" to acquiesce in dealers' price increases? This may have something to do with the management of car brands.

Under the halo of Toyota brand power, although the price of Lexus is a little expensive, the market is hot. Scarcity is precious, even if the price is a little higher, there are still many consumers are willing to pay for it. Selling cars with price increases can reflect the relationship between supply and demand in the market to a certain extent. When a car becomes a popular style, the relationship between supply and demand will be out of balance. In this regard, some people in the industry said that the short-term price increase is due to insufficient supply of initial products and high market demand, so pricing will naturally rise.

It is worth noting that the domestic development of Lexus has not been smooth since 2023. Lexus brand sales totaled 86500 vehicles in the first seven months of 2023, down 16% from a year earlier, including 16000 in July, down 18% from a year earlier, according to the Federation of passengers. Judging from Lexus sales data from 2019 to 2023, Lexus sales have been declining since 2022. Perhaps, in the context of the supply chain, product price increases are inevitable, but with the rapid growth of new energy vehicles and the start of a domestic price war, Lexus may no longer be able to sell cars through price increases again. it's not easy to get sales back to their peak.

Welcome to subscribe to the WeChat public account "Automotive Industry Focus" to get the first-hand insider information on the automotive industry and talk about things in the automotive circle. Welcome to break the news! WeChat ID autoWechat