En route to the top spot, Lexus achieved the highest rankings for the interior and comfort, exterior and reliability categories. Significantly, the results are based on the opinions and experiences of car owners rather than experts and commentators, and Britain’s motorists once again responded in their thousands to the survey.

Lexus models also dominated the Driver Power model categories, with the RX taking the award for Best Premium Large SUV and rated best for interior and comfort; the RC coupe emerging as Best Sports Car and best for reliability and build quality; the IS saloon Best Compact Executive Car and runner-up to the Best New Car of the Year; and the GS saloon named Best Executive Car.

Driver Power is the UK’s largest, most comprehensive car satisfaction poll. Success in the survey is based on the first-hand experience of thousands of UK car owners who responded to Driver Power survey questions about the quality, reliability and performance of their vehicle (up to two years old) and the service they receive from retailers and repair shops.

Steve Fowler, Auto Express Editor-in-Chief, said: “It’s fantastic to see Lexus top the Driver Power brand ranking for the third year in a row. The company has a proven track record of building luxurious, desirable and comfortable cars, and the stellar reliability rankings Lexus continually generates will be the envy of many carmakers, too.”

Ewan Shepherd, Director of Lexus in the UK, commented: “It’s 30 years since the Lexus brand was born and it’s always been our aim not just to deliver the best customer service, but also to redefine what great service means to today’s customers. It’s this core commitment to excellence, a line-up of great new products and the hard work and dedication of everyone who works for Lexus – especially our retail partners – that has helped us once again claim top place in the Driver Power manufacturer rankings.”

For more information please visit: https://www.autoexpress.co.uk/driver-power

Brussels, Belgium - Lexus Europe sold 36,405 vehicles in the first six months of 2016, an increase of 16% compared to the first half of 2015, in a premium market which increased at a slower pace (+12%).

Alain Uyttenhoven, Head of Lexus Europe, commented: “Over the last couple of years, Lexus has completely renewed its line-up, and expanded its range with new models such as the NX and the RC. We also remain by far the leading manufacturer of luxury hybrid vehicles, globally and in Europe. This provides a solid foundation for continued sales growth in the future.”

Following enthusiast market response for its all-new, fourth generation model, sales of RX more than doubled in the first half of 2016 (+123%) to reach 8,815 units. Overall, NX was the best seller in the Lexus range, with 12,689 units sold, keeping the pace with 2015 when the new model was in full launch.

The RC coupe, launched at the start of 2016, also gained a strong foothold with already 972 units sold in the first half of the year.

Sales in Eastern markets were boosted by the new LX (3,067 units, +143% vs. H1 2015) and the revised ES (986 units, +19%).

Hybrid vehicles represent 98% of Lexus sales in Western Europe. Including Eastern markets, about two-thirds of total Lexus Europe sales are hybrids, reaching 23,021 units (+12%). The most popular hybrid models are NX 300h (8,788 units), RX 450h (4,715 units), CT 200h (4,452 units), and IS 300h (3,182 units).

There was substantial sales growth in all parts of the region managed by Lexus Europe, with increases in excess of 20% in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Poland, Central Europe (Hungary, Czech Republic and Slovakia), Balkans, Belgium, Ireland and Iceland.

In Russia, Lexus sales increased by 17% in a premium market down by 6%. With 11,089 units sold in the first half of 2016, Lexus has now a premium market share of 14.4% in Russia (+2.8ppt).

Ukraine is currently the fastest growing market for Lexus Europe (+256%; market share increasing by 3.2ppt to reach 8.9%).

Brussels, Belgium - Sales in Europe increased 20 percent to approximately 64,000 vehicles, the most for a major market in percentage terms; including a 31 percent gain in Western Europe. Sales in China increased to approximately 88,500 vehicles, a 14 percent increase; and North America sales increased to approximately 368,000 vehicles, a 12 percent gain. Accentuating its luxury hybrid leadership, with almost 1 million hybrid Lexus vehicles sold to date, hybrid sales globally were approximately 149,000 vehicles and accounted for 23 percent of sales.

Mark Templin, Executive Vice President at Lexus International said: “2015 was an amazing year for Lexus International. In addition to the new and redesigned models in our stable, we began rolling out our most advanced vehicle safety portfolio – Lexus Safety System +, and began ES production in North America. Our entire vehicle line-up design has evolved to be more bold and emotional, and our brand initiatives are resonating as an extension of the Lexus ownership experience. We appreciate luxury consumers taking notice and honoring us with a fourth straight year of double digit percentage growth.”

At Lexus, we believe growth is the product of doing the right things for our customers and building brand advocacy. The following are just some of the activities we undertook and industry honors received in 2015.

Initiatives

The first INTERSECT BY LEXUS luxury brand experience space outside Japan opened in Dubai, UAE. This new two story space is located in the heart of the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC).

Lexus named the first automaker winner ofthe Milano Design Award for Best Entertainingfor its "Lexus – A Journey of the Senses" exhibit at Milan Design Week, the world's largest design exhibition. Additionally, the first-ever Lexus Design Award Grand Prix winner was announced.

The third Lexus Short Films Series winners announced at the Napa Valley Film Festival. In 2013, Lexus Short Films was launched with the goal of supporting and nurturing a new generation of emerging filmmakers.

Lexus partnered with leading super conductive technology experts to create one of the most advanced Hoverboards ever. The Lexus Hoverboard is part of the global ‘Amazing in Motion’ campaign.

Lexus Safety System +, a portfolio of active safety technologies designed to help prevent or mitigate collisions across a wide range of vehicle speeds package began rolling out in Europe, Japan and North America.

Honors

Lexus named the Luxury Brand with the Best Resale Value in Kelley Blue Book’s 2016 Best Resale Value Awards. This is the fifth year in a row Lexus has been named the luxury brand with the best projected retained value through the initial five-year ownership. Six 2016 Lexus models were honored with Best Resale Value for their perspective vehicle categories: RC 200t/RC 300/RC 350, ES 300h, GS 200t/GS 350, RX 450h, GX 460, and LX 570.

The NX 200t was awarded ‘Best Compact Premium SUV’ at the 2015 Middle East Car of the Year Awards (MECOTY).

CT was the overall winner in the Car Environmental List, an annual evaluation by the Traffic Association Germany (VCD).

Lexus topped the largest car satisfaction surveys, Autoindex, in Sweden and Norway, for the fourth time.

Lexus dominated the Auto Express Driver Power 2015 survey, receiving six awards including those for best manufacturer and – for the IS sedan – best car. The IS also took the top spot in the best compact executive car category and was the highest­ rated model for ease of driving. The NX was named best car for build quality within its first six months on the road in the UK.

The independent German institute for environmental research ‘Ökotrend’ (Ecological Trend) and the car magazine ‘Auto Test’ recognized the GS 300h as the most ecological car in the premium middle class. The evaluation of the vehicle’s environmental performance was conducted based on its fuel consumption and emissions for its entire life cycle, including production, logistics and recycling.

RX achieved the best-ever pedestrian protection score out of all large SUVs ever tested by Euro NCAP and achieves a 5 –Star rating.

CT , ES, RC, and NX, earned the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) TOP SAFETY PICK+, IIHS’s highest recognition for crashworthiness and front crash prevention.

Lexus ranked highest in vehicle dependability among all nameplates for a fourth consecutive year in the 2015 J.D. Power and Associates Vehicle Dependability Study (VDS). The ES ranked highest in the Compact Premium Car segment and the GX was awarded among Midsize Premium SUVs. The ES was the highest ranked model among all vehicles in the study.

Sales by Region

North America: Approximately 368,000 vehicles, 12 percent increase

China: Approximately 88,500 vehicles, 14 percent increase

Europe: Approximately 64,000 vehicles, 20 percent increase

Japan: Approximately 48,000 vehicles, 9 percent increase

Middle East: Approximately 44,400 vehicles, 5 percent increase

East Asia and Oceania: Approximately 30,000 vehicles, 10 percent increase

Other markets combined: Approximately 9,400 vehicles, 26 percent increase

For more information, please visit the following:

newsroom.lexus.eu

lexus-int.com

intersect-by-lexus.com

lexusshortfilms.com

lexusdesignaward.com