It feels like the only automotive topic left, but the slumping automotive sector certainly left its mark on Lexus USA’s 2008 sales, dropping 21.2% compared to 2007. Here are the year-end totals:

The 219.7% increase in LX sales is quite possibly the greatest single anomaly in 2008 US auto sales. Both the Nissan Rogue & the Audi A5 saw bigger percentage jumps, but then again, both vehicles were introduced during 2007, and neither is a 6,000lb. monster-SUV. Depending on the actual sales margins, the super-selling LX could have made the 21.2% overall drop a little more bearable.

Another thing, could the new RX model be any more important? In 2008, the outgoing SUV made up 32% of all Lexus sales! If the reasoning behind the evolutionary design of the upcoming 2010 RX wasn’t clear before, it should be crystal now.

It’s hard to look on the bright side of such a poor year, but Lexus still managed to retain its position as the top-selling luxury car manufacturer in USA, besting BMW by 10,974 total units. It was certainly a tight race right up there until the end, and if the 1-series (only 12,018 sold) and the X6 (4,548 sold) had done even slightly better, it wouldn’t have been a contest.

The sales for Lexus USA’s last month of 2008 are in, and it wasn’t exactly a December to Remember. Here are the model-by-model numbers:

A couple things I noticed right away: sales of the LS are nervously low & sales of the RX are extremely high.

With the LS, my reaction is tempered because I know it’s the most expensive car in the lineup, but the design is less than two years old and sales are down sharply. It’s no wonder a facelift is expected this year, and the introduction of an LS-Sport (which I’ve had confirmed by A++ sources) makes a whole lot of sense. Something needs to be done.

Compare that with the RX, which saw the smallest drop despite the fact it’s being replaced by a brand-new model in February. There might have been some impetus to get rid of the outgoing RX’s, but the sales surprised me.

And how did Lexus do over the full year? That’s up next…

[Source: Lexus]

In preparation of the debut of the new HS 250h hybrid sedan at the Detroit Auto Show, Lexus has updated their website to include a small microsite.

While it’s basically just an email form and the above badge image, there is one other interesting detail. According to the microsite, the HS 250h will not be released until Fall 2009, which is later than expected (most rumors suggest a Summer 2009 release).

Listen to this custom Lexus IS-F exhaust treatment from Royal Muffler, a company based out of California:

This design is unique among the current IS-F options as it’s using four race mufflers rather than the more typical muffler/resonator combination. According to Club Lexus, the price is $2,300, which includes install and lifetime warranty. Certainly on the pricy side, but it’s hard to argue the results.

[Via: Luxvelocity]

It’s only been eighteen months since Deborah Wahl Meyer left Lexus to become Chrysler’s Chief Marketing Officer — unfortunately, it was eighteen months that were especially unkind to the automotive industry:

As Chrysler heads into a month-long plant shutdown, the automaker has announced a realignment of its sales and marketing operations.

After 18 months on the job, Chrysler CMO Deborah Meyer is stepping down from her post, effective immediately, in order to pursue “other opportunities,” per the company. The short-lived chief marketing position is being eliminated altogether.

Meyer joined Chrysler in August 2007 from Toyota Motor Sales USA, where she served as vp, marketing of the company’s Lexus unit. She was Toyota’s first CMO.

As you may remember, Meyer was one of two high profile departures from Toyota’s senior management last year. Former Lexus General Manager Jim Farley also left the company, taking on the CMO position at Ford.

I wonder if either would like a mulligan now?

[Source: Adweek]

Turns out, the Lexus shipping crate video that I posted earlier this week is the first part of a series of green movement infomercials. Here’s a small intro to The Power of H:

More details on the next two parts showed up in Brandweek:

“Landfill,” which is currently online at NBC.com, details Wilkinson and De Maria reusing metal shipping containers to create chic, eco-friendly and structurally sound homes. A voiceover compares their mission to that of Lexus, which aims to be landfill-free. “Shipping containers transformed into homes, waste transformed to value.” A second spot chronicles the construction of the houses. Tagline for the ads: “The ‘Power of h.’”

Two other ads show a Tokyo man using the vibration of cars to light a bridge and relating it to a Lexus braking system, and a solar tree that lights a park at night.

Combined with its traditional advertising, this is a smart, natural direction for Lexus marketing. The focus on efficient, responsible manufacturing is only going to grow, and increasing public awareness of the steps Lexus is taking allows it to carve out a very important position in the market.

[Source: Brandweek]