Lexus Retains Best-Selling Luxury Brand Title For Fifth Year In A Row

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With record-breaking 2004 annual sales, Lexus retains its crown as America's No.1-selling luxury brand for the fifth consecutive year. The automaker today reported total year-end sales of 287,927, up 10.5 percent over last year's record-breaking sales.

"It's great to be number one, but that's not a major priority at Lexus," said Denny Clements, Lexus group vice president and general manager. "Our continued success is based on two fundamental ideals — deliver the perfect product and provide the perfect customer experience. It's a tall task for all our associates every single day, and we owe a great deal to the quality of our products, the loyalty of our customers, and the commitment of our dealers and all our retail associates to provide an exceptional owner experience."

In addition to all-time best-ever sales, Lexus luxury utility vehicles enjoyed a record sales year, up 13.8 percent at 151,797 compared to 2003 totals of 132,935 units. The RX 330 was the luxury utility vehicle sales leader in 2004 with 106,531 units sold, an increase of 15 percent over the same period a year ago and the first Lexus to break 100,000 units in annual sales. The GX 470 mid-size luxury utility vehicle recorded annual sales of 35,420, a 12.5 percent increase over 2003.

The LX 470 premium luxury utility vehicle sold 9,846 units, a 6.8 percent increase over the previous year. Sales of passenger cars also achieved all-time record breaking results with 136,130 units reported, an increase of 7 percent over 2003 sales of 126,820 units. The Lexus flagship LS 430 premium luxury sedan continues to be the segment leader with record sales of 32,272 units, up 34.6 percent over 2003. The ES 330 was the entry luxury sedan sales leader with 75,916 units sold, an increase of 15.1 percent compared to the same period a year ago. Sell-down of the GS mid-luxury sports sedans continued on schedule with 8,262 units sold. The all-new 2006 GS 300 and GS 430 arrive at Lexus dealerships late next month with an official on-sale date of March 1.

Lexus also scored an all-time, best-ever December with 32,481 units sold. Record-breaking December luxury utility vehicle sales of 18,189 units, up 12.7 percent over last December, were ignited by all-time best-ever December sales of 12,367 RX 330 units.

The LX 470 was up 17.2 percent for the month, while the GX 470 mid-size luxury utility vehicle also enjoyed an all-time, best-ever month with 4,407 sales, up 12.2 percent over the same period last year.

December passenger car sales also achieved best-ever results of 14,292 units, an increase of 8.9 percent over the same period last year. For the month, the ES 330 sedan led the way with 8,496 units, an all-time, best-ever sales month, and a 21 percent increase over the same period last year. The SC 430 hardtop convertible sports coupe reported an 18.6 percent increase over last December and the LS 430 flagship sedan reported December sales of 3,460 units, a 7.9 percent increase over last year’s December.

In addition to record-breaking new vehicle sales, Lexus Certified Pre-Owned (CPO) vehicle sales hit all-time record highs in 2004. Lexus CPO sales of 43,420 for the year were up 8 percent over 2003 calendar year totals. December sales of 3,754 units was also a best-ever month with an increase of 21.2 percent over the same period last year. The most popular Lexus CPO models continued to be the RX 330 and ES 330, mirroring the appeal of new car sales.