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Lexus denied that GS production and sales were poor and the market competitiveness was insufficient

Original title: Lexus denied that it was a geek

According to sihai.com's news from foreign media, Lexus officially announced that it would stop selling GS cars in the Russian market, and the European side would no longer accept new orders. A reporter from business school asked Lexus China's public relations department, and the relevant person in charge said: 'there is no news of production suspension at present. '

At the same time, the reporter called a Lexus dealer in Beijing. The relevant person in charge said that except for 300h (hybrid electric vehicle), Lexus GS can be normally reserved at present, and the 8th of every month is the deadline for the company to order cars from Lexus. "If you order a car today (May 7), you are expected to pick it up in July. After today, you are expected to pick it up in August. 'the person in charge of the dealer said.

In 2018, the sales growth of Lexus was obvious. According to the data, in March this year, the sales volume of Lexus in China was 14713 vehicles, with a year-on-year growth of 36.9%. In April, the sales volume of Lexus was 14864 vehicles, with a year-on-year growth of 35.6%, reaching a record high in the single month sales volume of Lexus in China. From January to April this year, Lexus sold 53197 vehicles in China. At present, in the sales model of Lexus, ES is the main sales force, while GS, which is rumored to have stopped production, is declining in sales.

Cheers, not seats

The competition in China's luxury car market can be described as "white hot". ABB (Audi, BMW and Mercedes Benz) occupy the leading camp in the luxury car market. The second-line luxury car brands represented by Lexus, Jaguar Land Rover and Volvo are closely related to abb in product layout, in order to win more luxury car owners through differentiated services.

Executive class cars are the "battleground" of luxury cars. The price of Lexus GS ranges from 450000 yuan to 790000 yuan, competing with Audi A6L, BMW 5 series, Benz E and other models at the same level. This level is also the main sales force of the whole luxury car market. When Lexus just entered China, the third generation GS took on the important task of developing the Chinese market, and the fourth generation GS was inclined to sports performance.

However, the industry has different opinions on the fourth generation GS, and some netizens even use 'geek' to describe the car. Among the benchmark models of Lexus GS, the current price of Audi A6L ranges from 406000 yuan to 698000 yuan, BMW 5 series from 436800 yuan to 659900 yuan, and Mercedes Benz e from 419800 yuan to 620000 yuan. Through price comparison, it is not difficult to see that the price of Lexus GS is higher than that of abb. A car lover commented: "the wheelbase is one lap smaller than that of Mercedes Benz E and BMW 5 series. '

The sales volume represents the user's preference in some aspects. Although the reputation of Lexus GS is good in many auto forums and communities, the sales data of Lexus GS is obviously out of place with its reputation. In 2017, the cumulative sales volume of Lexus GS in China was 2055, ranking the seventh in the sales volume of Lexus in that year. At present, the main sales model of Lexus is es, which will sell 58532 vehicles in 2017, accounting for almost 44% of the total sales of 132900 vehicles in 2017. It is the absolute main model.

The positioning of Lexus es is slightly lower than that of GS, and the benchmarking models of ABB are Audi A4L, BMW 3 series and Benz C. At present, in addition to the absolute sales force es, almost all of the main 10 models Lexus is selling are SUV models. In fact, in the whole luxury car field, more and more car owners are inclined to SUV models. The optional models of Lexus on cars, from CT to LS, are more abundant than ABB's models. Whether it is external competition with other brands or internal competition with its own products, GS is the best choice It seems that there are some deficiencies in the advantages of the two, so the sales performance is mediocre.

Optimize product line

For many years, Lexus has always insisted on not making domestic products, and in the sales model, the most typical feature is its rich models. Among them, there are CT, is, ES, GS and LS car models, and SUV models include NX, GX, Rx, LX and three sports cars, covering almost every segment of luxury car market.

In response to the news that Lexus GS may stop production, Zhong Shi, a well-known commentator in the automotive industry, believes that Lexus has a very rich product spectrum, and it is necessary to adjust and merge some models with poor sales to achieve the slimming of the product line.

In Mr. Zhong's view, if the sales volume of a model can't be opened for a long time, it means that it's not competitive enough in this market segment. It's also the right choice to stop at the right time.

At present, the automobile industry is undergoing a round of great changes. Under the background of electrification, intelligence and sharing, the competitors of traditional automobile companies are not only many automobile enterprises, but also new competitors from the Internet and it industry. This is a battle of life and death.

Therefore, more and more traditional automobile enterprises are adjusting their business lines, integrating high-quality resources and strengthening their subdivision products. The news that Lexus GS will stop production has not yet been confirmed. Recently, Ford announced that it will give up the car market in North America and will no longer sell Taurus, carnival, fusion and other cars in North America.

From a commercial point of view, it is the most correct choice to increase investment in products that sell well, and to cut or stop those products whose sales performance is average or even drag down the performance. After the announcement of Ford's cutting off the North American car business, Ford's share price immediately rose by 3.3% to $11.48.

In the whole sales model of Lexus, GS is not a niche personalized customized model. As mentioned above, it was once an important model to expand the sales volume of the market. If the overall sales volume of this kind of model is difficult to reach a certain scale every year, Mr. Zhong thinks that it is' uneconomic 'for Lexus, and it is necessary to optimize the product spectrum.