The overall global tally was the second-highest annual result for Lexus and came despite tight inventories triggered by the global semiconductor shortage. The 2021 finish could not quite match Lexus’ all-time sales record of 765,330 units booked in 2019 before the pandemic.
If supply and inventories had not seized up the second half of 2021, Lexus likely would have notched a new record last year, spokesman Norihiro Tsuji said in a briefing on Tuesday. And assuming smoothed-out supply in 2022, Lexus aims to top 2021’s results in the new year, he added.
“We utilized inventory in the U.S. fully, with inventory getting lower, there was still leftover demand for Lexus,” Tsuji said. The Lexus brand’s U.S. inventories dropped to 22 days as of Jan. 1, down from 23 days a month earlier and down from 29 days a year earlier.
To tease the brand’s all-electric future, Lexus also released new photos of the RZ450e Prototype, which previews the brand’s upcoming midsize electric crossover.
The shots show a sleek crossover with a pinched rear-end, steeply raked rear window and wrap-around taillights emblazoned with the brand name Lexus spelled out in all-caps.
In the front, a curving fender crease spins off the front wheel well and peels down along the side of the car, finally melding into a distinctive sheet-metal kink under the C-pillar. The hood bends low for a planted stance, and the wheel arches get black cladding that lend a more rugged look.
The brand’s trademark spindle grille gets filled in for a solid look to telegraph the EV drivetrain.
