There are certain landmark vehicles that us car nuts are naturally aware of. The Lexus LS400 is the sort of car my radar is always on for. I’ve been noticing for a few years that I just haven’t been seeing early LS’s around much anymore. Mid and late 90’s versions are still pretty common, not so the first version of this fine automobile. Where are the Series I cars hiding?
I’ll try to answer that question near the end of the article. Two years ago, walking out of Home Depot, my brain radar pinged loudly on a car parked across the lot. I made a beeline towards it, but the owner was already getting in the car and starting it up. Hi Ho Silver! I got out my camera and snapped what shots I could. “Who was that masked man?” someone was heard to say.
The photos turned out just OK, but I figured, “no matter, another one will surely pop up under better photographic conditions.” Well, after two years I’m starting to doubt that any will come out of hiding for me. In that time, I have seen one pretty beat up example driving on the freeway and that’s it.
The LS has been written about before at CC, of course. I wasn’t sold on writing my car up until I ran across a 1989 article in my archive of Motor Trends and was reminded of what a significant car this was. The fact that this is a first year car and apparently one of a very small number still being daily driven made it a subject worth visiting for me, plus a Vintage Review offers some value added for loyal CC readers. So, let’s look at Motor Trend’s first assessment of the soon-to-be-released 1990 LS400 from August 1989.
In almost any field, if you have something to hide, there are things you can do. There’s a saying among lawyers that goes, “If you’re weak on the evidence and strong on the law, pound the law. If you’re weak on the law and strong on the evidence, pound the evidence. If you’re weak on both, pound the table” (or the opposing counsel or the witness, depending on the version). In pharmaco/medical scientific studies, if the data supports your hypothesis, you focus on the data. If it doesn’t, you write the conclusions you want and hope no one looks too closely at the data (which you can also jigger in your favor). In public affairs, if the data supports your preferred policy, go hard on the data. If it doesn’t, obfuscate, intimidate, denigrate, mandate, and definitely don’t show the data.
Like these other fields, marketing can be manipulated. If a product is not of good quality, there are a hundred tricks to divert attention from that and appeal to instinct, emotion, pride or some other time-tested method of selling people. If your product has great quality and value? Then you just sell the product and the people will come along.
Motor Trend’s Jeff Karr (heck of a name for an auto writer) tells the story of Lexus’s first hands-on presentation of their new car to journalists. Toyota brought them to Germany, where they were given three days to drive the car, including on the Autobahn, and given comparable models of Mercedes, BMW, and Jaguar to also drive and compare the Lexus to. He writes, “The Lexus people felt they had nothing to hide-rather, a lot to show off. They were right.”
Here commences possibly the most glowing car magazine review I recall ever reading.
That’s saying a lot given that Motor Trend has had a reputation for being, ahem, optimistic in their evaluations. I don’t personally think that MT was as biased as some people do, but particularly in this era they would not tend to be as biting as Car & Driver and some others could be. As glowing as the article is, it’s fairly understated, much like the Lexus itself. The excellence of the car comes through organically, in the article and in life.
It begins by reviewing Toyota’s strategy for their new luxury division. This was no gussied up Camry (the ES would come a little later) nor even a well-massaged JDM Century or Crown, it was an all-new, no excuses assault on the flagships of the best European luxury car makers. They knew with no luxury brand identity in a crowded marketplace, the car would have to be exceedingly competent and the ownership experience the best possible. Mediocrity would doom the effort. Though very competitively priced, Toyota knew it couldn’t succeed on price alone. It had to excel.
Lexus representatives said the car would have to deliver on its promises right from the start to exceed customer expectations (GM should have been taking notes). With all Toyota’s considerable engineering and manufacturing expertise brought to bear on the project, it would have been foolish to doubt their capability of success.
Any doubts were quickly blown away when the journalists got their hands on the car. Though acknowledging the cars were pre-production, MT was none-the-less impressed by the paint quality, fit and finish, and the simple, elegant interior. The car eschewed Japanese electronic gimmickiness. Everything was tasteful, functional, feeling good to the touch and good to the tush. Engineering was conservative but totally contemporary. The car was surprisingly slippery for an upright sedan at 0.29 Cd.
Suspension was double wishbone in the front and multilink in the rear, with a choice of coil or air springs. Ride comfort was described as “among the best in the world”. A good line: “At first the Lexus seems so compliant you find yourself expecting little of the car in hard cornering. This is a mistake.” The handling impressed them as quite good and the excellent steering let down only by a slight lack in on-center feel.
I include the pages with David Kimble’s characteristically cool cut-away drawing both singly for maximum size, and joined for full effect.
The engine was a new-design 4.0L, 32-valve, all-aluminum, 250hp, 260 lb-ft V8. Combined with the electronically-controlled 4-speed auto transmission, MT called it, “possibly the smoothest, most refined drivetrain that isn’t still on a drawing board.” It propelled the 3770lb sedan to 60mph in 7.8 sec while asking for 17city/23hwy worth of gasoline. This was very competitive for the time and superior to the other cars driven at the introduction.
Lexus offered an optional electronic traction control system which was reported by MT to have worked well in their limited test. To modern eyes, accustomed to the overwrought luxury car interiors of the 2020’s, the LS interior looks really plain. It has real wood veneer, but small amounts found only in the center console and armrests. Even to 1989 eyes, the interior was where the understated nature of the car was at its most understated. However, ergonomics and function were said to be excellent as were fit and finish and materials. Seats were extremely comfortable and the interior was preternaturally quiet. GM had had their Bose systems for many years, but the optional Nakamichi stereo was said to elevate the standard for factory car audio even further. A trunk-mounted CD changer was optional. Remember those?
Overall, they described the car as “breathtaking”, an adjective seldom deployed to summarize a car that doesn’t have hypoxia-inducing levels of performance. A few months later, Motor Trend tested the LS for their Import Car Of The Year. They must have recovered from their dyspnea because it did not win, but came in third. Anybody care to guess what cars that were new for 1990 beat it? (answers below next photo. Let us know in the comments if you guessed and if you got it right!)
By the point system MT used, the Nissan 300Z got the award and the Mazda MX5 Miata came in second. These days, MT very emphatically states that they only evaluate COTY contestants against comparable cars in their market, not other COTY contestants. They said that then, too, but not as formally and I got the feeling that the two sports cars came out ahead because those are the cars that more excited the writers. However, it’s hard to fault them for choosing either, since they were both excellent, well-engineered cars that broke new ground and put their respective competition on notice. MT would combine the COTY and Import COTY in a few years. If that year’s extraordinarily weak domestic COTY contestants were combined with the notably strong field of import COTY contestants, the winning 1990 Lincoln Town Car would have come in 12th out of 26.
Disappointingly, MT didn’t get around to doing a full luxury car comparison test until June 1993. Much of the LS’s competition had advanced by then and the Lexus itself had received a number of improvements, though no major changes. Included here for your possible interest is the introduction, LS review, and conclusion/stats page.
The LS’s base price had increased to $46,600 over the four years since it was introduced at $35,000. Quite a bit more, but still comfortably below the Europeans in the test. As equipped for the test, though, the price was $53,930, almost $3000 more than the Infiniti and only $2,200 less than the BMW and just under $6,000 less than the M-B. Clearly Lexus was confident enough in their car’s competitiveness at this point to give up some of their price advantage over their Old World competition.
The LS’s review is glowing, as expected. They don’t really find any faults in the car, just recognition that the LS’s mission is somewhat different than some of the other cars’. The Lexus is not as much an aggressive performer as the others, it coddles and soothes its occupants while also delivering surprisingly competent road manners for such a serene car. The author notes that the Lexus was rated first or second in five of the six scoring categories.
Despite having a formal scoring system, the scores are not given nor is an outright winner declared. The LS is implied to be in the top three, with the further implication that if comfort is your highest priority, it would be the top choice. (As an aside, the Seville Touring Sedan got a positive review and was the clear-cut value winner. As has been noted at CC in the past, this generation Seville was one of GM’s best cars of the era.)
So why are there so few LS’s still plying the mean suburban streets today (at least in my part of the world)? Any contemporary test you read will describe it as extremely well-made, and in later years it would be considered a reliable older car. The Toyota Of Luxury Cars, you might say (right before you duck to miss the object thrown at you for saying something so silly). Mystified in my search for answers, I joined a couple Lexus forums and put the question to the members: is there any reason why these would be seen so seldom? Are there any mechanical Achilles heels?
They say no, there are no major mechanical weak points. Problems with the ECU (computer) may have doomed some cars due to owners or mechanics not knowing this is a fairly easily conquerable problem. Another problem is that the book value of the car tends to be a lot lower than what the car is actually worth on the market, so a relatively minor accident in an early LS could easily total the car as far as insurance is concerned. There’s also that government-created culling event of 2009 that prematurely doomed a number of daily drivers. I found the full list of cars receiving a lethal injection, which lists 444 1990 LS400’s. A total of 1,785 1990-94 LS’s were executed, a sad end for cars which were so, um… well-executed when new. Forum members speculate that most owners highly value the solid examples still around and don’t daily drive them much. They also added LS’s don’t show up in bone yards very often these days (ES’s do).
Lexus’s introductory car put Toyota’s luxury division on the map and established the corporation internationally as a serious player in all price segments of the popular car market. It sold vigorously right out of the gate, moving over 42k in the U.S. in 1990, then quickly settling into the 20-30k range through 2008. Sales fell drastically during the Great Recession and never fully recovered. In the SUV-obsessed environment of the last ten years, the LS hasn’t sold over 10k since 2013 and only 3,739 in 2021.
How did the Lexus flagship fair against its competition in the U.S.? In its first three years, the LS trounced the Mercedes E and S-class, BMW 5 and 7-series, Jaguar XJ, and the Infiniti Q45 in sales. The Q45 never approached the LS through its end in 2006, nor has the XJ. The E-class and 5-series passed the LS in 1993 (around the time they both began offering V8s) and have easily outsold it ever since and even the 7-series and the S-class have outsold it for the last decade. In total vehicle sales, Lexus beat BMW and Mercedes-Benz for the first half of the 90’s, but the Europeans caught up and all three companies have sold similar totals since 2000.
I would love to hear your thoughts on the LS’s decline in the market. Is it related to the car itself, its competition, or the market’s preference for SUVs? Why couldn’t Lexus maintain its early lead over its main competitors?
Having nothing to hide is a virtue proven righteous by Lexus’s introduction of the LS400. It was a success by any measure and the LS’s early sales showed that quality and value sell themselves, with no need for marketing tricks. Nothing is ever easy, though, and the long-term history of Toyota’s luxury division proves, if anyone ever doubted it, that the auto industry is complicated and cutthroat.
1990 Lexus LS400 photographed in Houston, TX 8/30/2020.
related reading:
Curbside Classic – 1992 Lexus LS 400 – The Industry’s Greatest Hit Of The Last 50 Years? by Brendan Saur – A great, very detailed look at the LS and its significance.
Curbside Classic: 1992 Lexus LS400 – With All Due Respect by Mr. Tactful – An interesting up-close examination of a high-mileage LS.
CC Outtakes: 2004 and 2019 Lexus LS – Does It Really Matter Anymore? by Brendan Saur – Lots of comments on this pertinent question.
Very informative Non-CC webpage summarizing LS changes through the first four generations
I think the loss of momentum the LS suffered in the nineties came down to three principal factors:
Exchange rate woes. The value of the yen relative to the dollar forced the price up uncomfortably high in ways Toyota couldn’t really do much about. (Contrary to some allegations, I don’t think Toyota under-priced the LS400 as a “loss leader”; the dollar bought more yen at launch than it did during the rest of the run.) An increase in U.S. MSRP of more than 30% is a hell of a handicap.
Inadequate followup. The arrival of the LS400 forced the German automakers to up their game, but to really cement the early momentum, the second generation needed to be even better. It wasn’t. The F20 wasn’t awful, but cost-cutting and detail refinements made it seem like coasting. Toyota cancelling the mooted long-wheelbase V-12 LS500 probably made a lot of sense from a numbers standpoint, but it backed away from directly challenging the snob appeal of the S-Class and 7-Series, which didn’t help from an image standpoint.
The incoherent GS. Not pushing the LS further into high-roller territory meant that it would have been risky to offer a mid-level model that was too similar, so Lexus went for something completely different with the GS300, which was underpowered for its class, had some of Giugiaro’s goopiest styling, and managed to seem unrelated to the LS AND the ES. It made the Lexus brand seem out of focus, so there wasn’t the small-medium-large unit of contemporary BMW and Mercedes. (Audi had the same problem in that period — the A4 was sporty, the A8 was technologically daring, and the A6 was just there.)
In later years, the LS just sort of drifted. It was boring to look at, it wasn’t that exciting to drive, and for all its gadgets it didn’t have any must-see technological features (other than I guess their early forays into self-parking). It wasn’t enough better than the ES or RX (at least relative to its higher price) to make buyers of those models covetous. It ended up feeling like it was being kept alive out of pride rather than there being a plan for it, sort of like the way the Rambler Ambassador stuck around because Rambler execs and dealers couldn’t bear the thought of having NO big cars.
Regarding the price, I think it’s significant to compare the U.S. prices of the LS400 with the JDM prices of the equivalent Celsior, which were very similar on a straight conversion-rate basis. The Celsior’s prices in yen went up a bit during the run of the F10 (1st-generation LS/Celsior), but not by any drastic amount. In fact, the increase in JDM list price between the 1990 Celsior and the new 1995 second-generation model was only 5–6 percent for all but the base A Type (which went up 12 percent).
What changed, and what raised U.S. prices of the LS and SC so drastically, was the value of the yen relative to the U.S. dollar. When the F10 LS/Celsior debuted in late 1989, a dollar bought around 140 yen. When the F20 arrived five years later, a dollar would barely buy 100 yen — a decline of 40 percent.
So, Toyota did not surrender its price advantage (at least not voluntarily); it was decimated by the relative strength of the yen.
Thanks for the good analysis! The LS definitely stagnated somewhat. For the first ten years, it changed nary a whit in concept or even appearance. Lots of detail refinements, but no major appearance or performance changes despite getting an all-new generation for 1995. Personally, though, that second generation is my favorite. But I certainly have never been a new luxury car buyer.
I liked that the F20 shed, what, 150–200 lb? And there were some worthwhile detail improvements (like VVT-i). It didn’t do anything to address the blandness accusations, though
On the third point, I think there’s an argument to be made that the LS and SC were the only “true” Lexus models. (Obviously, the Z30 SC was also sold as the third-generation Toyota Soarer in Japan, but it was developed with the understanding that it would be a Lexus, and offering the LS400 in Japan as the Toyota Celsior was afterthought.) All-new body shells, high-end hardware like the 1UZ-FE engine, etc.
The rest of the line ended up being a hodgepodge of other Toyota products, dressed up a bit. That wasn’t necessarily BAD, but next to the more or less clean-sheet LS and SC, it made the Lexus brand feel just a bit like Geo. Of course, the sales figures demonstrated that a fair number of Americans were just fine with the world’s fanciest Camry, but there was a sharp contrast between the ES and the 3-Series or 190E/C-Class.
At the same time, there was a similarity of character between the ES and the LS that ended up making the latter seem a little extraneous. It was more sophisticated, but if you’re more interested in a plush ride than in agile handling, does it matter if you have struts or double wishbones, and if you can barely hear or feel the engine regardless, is a slick, decently powerful 3-liter V-6 that much of a sacrifice compared to a 4-llter V-8? There’s nothing wrong with that, but it meant that the ES came to define the Lexus brand much more than the LS did, and the GS certainly didn’t help. (I’m sure SOMEONE must have like the looks of the S140 GS/Aristo, but it wasn’t advancing the art of anything.)
I wonder if it might have helped if Toyota had introduced the Altezza/IS in 1993 or 1994. The XE10 Altezza was a lot more aggressive than the ES, more the sort of thing a younger buyer might want to trade up to from an Integra or G20 or consider as an alternative to an A4. I think its detailing left something to be desired (I didn’t love the styling gimmicks and thought it a bit plasticky), but it had a sharp chassis, RWD, and inline-sixes; it was NOT a Camry in a rental tux. Offering the twin-turbo 2JZ-GTE on the GS (a powertrain available on the Aristo, so it would certainly fit) concurrently would have also set a different tone for the brand and set a direction for the evolution of the LS rather than having it stagnate as kind of an honored chairman emeritus.
The car that gave Cadillac dealers heartburn and their sales force nightmares.
Don’t think many people who were considering a Cadillac cross shopped with Lexus or vice versa. I mean how often do you hear people say “I want a Lexus RX or a Cadillac Deville”?
I think Mercedes, BMW and to a lesser degree Acura dealers had the most heart burn.
Nice writeup, this car has a legendary reputation for a reason.
It looks like Lexus caught the Europeans napping and really put them on the defensive for the first model cycle. But, they had enormous experience in capturing and holding the luxury sport sedan market and so they were able to adapt and go back on the offensive fairly quickly. It’s an arms race that is difficult to win.
The LS held to its formula through the end of 2017, providing a conservative, comfortable, very well-crafted executive car with exceptional levels of refinement and nearly-competive performance. But sedans have fallen out of favor, the Germans have high performance divisions and threw a lot of tech to “dazzle teenagers” as Karr wrote, and rather than appearing ambitious and disruptive as it did in the 90s, the Lexus approach soon appeared…old.
They obviously tried to reverse that with the current origami LS, but the ship has sailed on full size flagship sedans and the newfound swagger seems to have alienated traditional buyers the LS relied on without bringing in many new ones.
Borng to drive and cheap interior fittings compared to the Mercedes S class 126 series. OK the Merc was more expensive but it’s what UK buyers brought ,for the badge. A posh Toyota had little prestige in the German n Jag dominated British executive market hence LS400 sales didn’t match the numbers in the US . Still it sold well to the London Asian and Indian community.
I always harbored the idea of finding one of these at the bottom of their depreciation curve and enjoying Lexus Luxury. I convinced myself that my old mentor Howard’s advice of “never buy an old luxury car” came with an asterisk that luxury cars built by Toyota in the 1990s were an exception. But alas, one never came along at the right moment. They always held their value really well and most of the ones that were in a price range that would have been tempting to me had racked up loads of miles. And like you, I have noticed that these have become less and less visible, to the point of near extinction.
I have not taken the time to research it, but another variable is the prices charged by the German competition, particularly MB and BMW. It is my memory that the German cars had become priced into the stratosphere by the time these hit showrooms, and exchange rates aside, the German companies raised thrift really high on the priority scale, which may have added to the reduction in gap between the Lexus and the Germans. With a big gap there was a reason to go Lexus but when the price was close, buyers choose the one with the most prestige. It is my sense that by the mid 90s the MB was not the car it had been in the late 80s, but new car buyers either would not know or possibly would not care.
I still remember being at the local auto show the year these made their debut. In truth, I kind of liked the style of the Q45 better, but we all know how that shootout ended.
I view the market from the perspective of a Mercedes fan.
The E class improved during the final few years of the 124 chassis. Mainly the engine changed from the sohc six (M103) to a dohc six (M104) and it gained (from memory) about 40 horsepower. Furthermore, the price declined for the ’93 and on cars. More E class, less money.
The V-8 came too. First was the M119 ’93 400E. For ’94/’95 that became the E420. This was as subtle as the six, just with more guts (and this was not the all out 5 litre banker’s hot rod).
When the 124 was retired after ’95 the new E class was the 210. It started with the dohc six but got a new V-6 shortly and continued the availability of the V-8 as the E420 and then the E430. The 210s were more modern, quicker cars and sold well and were well priced.
The E-class looked different/new, had a different six and could be had with a V-8. The LS was essentially the same. Mercedes did something.
I worked at a MB dealer when the E class 210 series was launched I could not believe how MB went from a vault like 124 series to a cheap, tinny 210 series. Today, 124 s are holding their price and becoming collectable. whilst the 210 is a cheap rusty clunker with only the AMG models holding ones attention.,just. . The 210 ,infamous for introducing the steady decline of MB build quality.
All too true. The LS forced MB into a 180, drastically cost-cutting. The “built to a standard, not to a price” days were over for good.
This may be the true legacy of the LS400: it forced the luxury car competition to significantly up their game.
These are still a bit thick on the ground here in central Iowa. They can be found on the road, a search reveals plenty for sale and they are common in the junk yards.
My good friend bought a meticulously serviced, preserved ‘06 LS a few years ago when his Tacoma frame rusted. It’s been a great car for him.
One of those meme/millennial car guys has an LS with well over 1 million miles on it out there. Still going strong.
By “these” do you mean the early 90-92 models? I see the mid and late 90’s models pretty regularly (most easily spotted by their larger wheels). It’s very early models I hardly ever see.
The interesting element to consider is how the competition reacted. The Germans upped their game with new V-8s, stronger 6s and diesels, and new models and variants (including AWD variants/wagons/M-AMG) with nice styling, leading edge technology, and excellent driving dynamics, while keeping price increases in check. In comparison, Cadillac and Lincoln did relatively little besides introducing new DOHC V-8s (flawed in the case of the Northstar and handicapped by FWD), and actually fell behind in gadgets, automatic transmissions, A/C systems, and interior opulence that they had always been known for. As a result, BMW and MB annually duke it out for top luxury share, Lexus is typically a strong 3rd, and Cadillac and Lincoln are nowhere to be found. In other words, the US brands did the same sort of weak response they did when the Europeans started making inroads in the 1970s, and got the same result.
The Europeans may have caught up with lexus in terms of performance. They still miss the brand by a wide margin in terms of quality, value, dealer experience and reliability. Many of my family, friends and associates have lamented their audi, mercedes and bmw decisions yet they continue to be seduced by the ‘status’ cache of the marques. The stories they have passed on to me about ther experience parallel my experience with bmw and mercedes in the 80’s.
I respect the toyota commitment to the brand.
I have not owned a lexus as I have no need for such an expensive appliance.
My stepson has had several, as well as a couple of bmw and mercedes and his experience is similar. The lexus is like granite, while the other cars are flash and fragile.
I respect the early LS and SC as very well done cars but my overwhelming memory of the LS400 is the overdone fake wood and the Nokia cell phone face plates that were a perfect match for a Lexus dashboard.
“Another problem is that the book value of the car tends to be a lot lower than what the car is actually worth on the market, so a relatively minor accident in an early LS could easily total the car as far as insurance is concerned.”
And why people continue to let insurance companies total fixable cars just because of their age is beyond me. Either use money from a savings/investments account to fix the car and tell insurance to pound sand, or get a lawyer/appraiser involved.
I blame it on the fact most people see their car as appliance, or a lot of them being owned by poor people, or people who cave under pressure/lack the knowledge to know the legal routes they can take.
The point of car insurance is so that you don’t get stuck with huge, unexpected out-of-pocket expenses. Even fairly affluent people don’t necessarily have the resources to suddenly come up with thousands (potentially tens of thousands) of dollars to fix a car their insurance company considers too expensive to fix.
Keeping it after that point likely means saddling it with a salvage title. In some states, reviving a salvage is difficult or nigh impossible, and even if you do, resale or trade-in value will be low and getting insurance for it troublesome. All that is a big hassle, and really navigating it requires being cognizant of a bunch of different legal, financial, and mechanical issues. Getting a lawyer involved is expensive, and depending on the nature of the accident, dealing with the fate of the car may be in addition to personal injury claims issues.
Is it wasteful to send cars to the junkyard because of their age? Sure, but that doesn’t mean people are idiots or careless not to want to deal with the hassles of fighting the insurance company over the fate of an older car.
Car insurance is a scam that discriminates against old cars. I own a car that sells for 10k plus on BAT and C&B and other enthusiast auctions/dealers. Of course normal car insurance will blatantly discriminate and say it’s worth a thousand dollars. On top of that despite selling for 10k plus on enthusiast auction sites/dealers classic car insurance companies want nothing to do with it. My only choices are Agreed Value Policy or stick with liability and use money from either of my savings accounts or my investments account.
Even as a Cadillac lover, I will admit that Lexus was really a breath of fresh air in the market. Lexus delivered what Cadillac and Lincoln used to; a big, comfy, well built car that was a great road car as well as reliable. Was it something original? Not really, it kind of cribbed the solid look of the big Mercedes. The American competition was doing poorly at this time, they’d been in decline for years. Many of my co workers had Cadillac HT4100 powered cars that had been nightmares of unreliability.
The early Model Lexus LS is still seen in the Bay Area, but many have just been run until they are worn out. These cars were bought to be driven and they were. The original owner got their use out of it, and the second and third owners added to the total. One of my current coworkers bought his LS400 new and after putting 250,000 miles on it decided that he just needed something newer. When I see these offered for sale on CL they are all well into the mid 200K mileages. They are similar to the Acuras of that era. Bought and used for their purpose. Toyota proved that if you want to be considered a great car maker, you’ve got to make great cars. You can’t fake that!
Perhaps Lexus’s didn’t tend to get lightly used the way more established luxury brands might. Plenty of older Cadillac or Mercedes buyers might put low miles on their cars then sell them (or their estates sell them) 10 or 15 years later as very low mileage cars. Those types of buyers weren’t buying the brand new Toyota luxury brand as much as more active younger folks who drive a lot.
I daily drive my 1991 Toyota Celsior the JDM version of the LS400, looks exactly like this one, with 65k miles.