Lexus Posts Best-Ever October Sales; Year-to-Date Sales Up 9.1 Percent

TORRANCE, Calif., Nov. 1 -- Lexus ended the month with best-ever October sales of 19,784, an increase of 8.6 percent from last year. Year-to-date sales of 182,127 represent a 9.1 percent increase from 2000.

Lexus' record sales were led by the all-new, redesigned ES 300 entry luxury sedan with sales of 5,726, up 73.2 percent from last October. The SC 430 hardtop convertible continued its strong pace with sales of 1,495. The LS 430 premium luxury sedan posted sales of 2,260, while the GS high-performance sedan series finished the month with 1,663 units sold. The IS 300 reported sales of 1,597.

Total passenger car sales for October totaled 12,741, up 17.6 percent from last year. Year-to-date passenger car sales of 111,044 represent a 37.6 percent increase from a year ago.

Sales of the RX 300 mid-size luxury sport utility vehicle were up 0.5 percent with 6,228 units sold. The LX 470 premium luxury SUV finished October with sales of 815. Month-end sales for Lexus SUVs were 7,043, down a slight 4.6 percent from last year. Year-to-date SUV sales of 71,083 are down 17.6 percent.

``Although we were confident October sales would be solid, we were truly surprised at the number of people who turned up at dealerships this month,'' said Denny Clements, Lexus group vice president and general manager. ``And in addition to Lexus' outstanding new vehicle sales, our pre-owned sales were through the roof, despite a slow-down in this segment of the market.''

Total Lexus pre-owned sales had a best-ever October with 4,921 units sold, up 33.4 percent from last year. Of those pre-owned sales, 3,009 were Certified Pre-Owned representing a 51.1 increase from a year ago. Year-to-date, pre-owned sales of 47,520 are up 20.3 percent, while Certified Pre-Owned sales of 27,185 are up 19.3 percent.