Next Gen Lexus CT To Target Tesla's Model 3 - What Should They Do Differently To Ensure Success?

The Model 3 with very limited production is already destroying the CT in sales. More Model 3s were sold in the last 3 weeks than all the CTs in 2017. The 3 will be the car to beat, so Lexus can either try to compete or kill CT and try something else.

The model 3 is NOT supposed to be in limited production - SJD - they are that way because they cannot get it right - no matter how hard they have tried - they have been behind for over a year now. And the Model 3 has been represented by TESLA as an ENTRY LEVEL car for the masses (Although how you can represent a car that you only sell above $40,000 currently - the lesser ones are not yet being produced - only they can know)

Meanwhile - Lexus is a legitimate Luxury brand - something the Model 3 is not - and Luxury brands DO sell in limited quantities - they are not some entry level nonsense. You cannot compare a top of the line Model 3 to a CT - the model 3 is that basic inside.

AS far as what Lexus needs to do - the CT was really a stop gap measure with a Hybrid powertrain - and it is not really comparable directly down market to the Model 3 - which is not. When I am 1/3 of the way to Florida in a Model 3 - I have to stop and charge the battery - while in the CT - I can finish the trip straight through - as I have in other Hybrids. That means It takes 6 days of driving for me to use a Model 3 to go to Florida from NJ - and I get ONE day there. IN a HYbrid - I can go straight through - which I still do - and have 4 more days in Florida - and there is currently NO WAY an EV can solve THAT problem. And it is HYBRIDS that - once stripped of those FOWL CVTS - will be the long distance car of choice for the suburbs and rural areas - where electric cars still have LOTS of problems to overcome.

The Model 3 is an entry level premium car, just like the Model S/X bill themselves as premium cars. It perfectly competes with the Lexus IS/A4/3-series/etc., much more so than a Camry or Accord.

The interior is minimalistic, but it is far from basic. It has every feature function you would expect on the luxury makes, and then some. Just because a button has been consolidated to a screen does not mean it is missing that functionality. It has the largest screen of any car in its price range with the best nav, free internet/internet radio, camera-based auto wipers, auto-high beams, memory seats based on user profiles, pano roof, GPS based auto garage door opening/closing, autonomous safety features, and optional Autopilot. The car is also plenty comfortable and spacious. Performance and handling also blow away other sedans in this price range.

It's a compelling car, and you're going to start seeing a ton of them.

Start by buying the Model 3 body from Tesla. Like it or not the Model 3 body is better than Lexus styling.

I'd rather have Lexus styling over the nondescript crap from Tesla.

To me overly complex cars look like crap now, super outdated and sometimes ostentatious. I like the clean, utilitarian look of the 3, in some ways more than the S.

If they have the CT as pure EV, they will have a winner. Lexus still have plenty of federal credit left (compared to Tesla), better quality, and most importantly, they can push the car out of production.

If they're going to have it as a hybrid, don't even bother to bring to the U.S.

The model 3 should be pretty easy for any major automaker to beat. It is extremely unreliable, has a horrible interior and Tesla cant deliver them in a reliable manner.

I don't think it has been proven less (or more) reliable than any competing car yet... time will tell.

What do they need to do differently than Tesla's Model 3? I don't know, actually make and deliver it?

You realize more Model 3s have been delivered in the last month than every CT delivered in the last year right?

You do realize that Lexus stopped the CT model line in 2017, right? And you do realize the Model 3's expected deliveries were grossly delayed, right?

That photo is not the next CT. The real photo is on Lexus enthusiast.com.

I think the problem with the CT was that it looked like what it was: a Corolla hatchback. The road to success would be for it NOT to look like a $15K hatchback.

I believe that to be the problem of a LOT of different Hybrids and EVS - not just the CT. I do not understand why Car Manufacturers believe that because a car is efficient - that the people who drive them are BLIND and cannot see how "unusual" these cars often look. Even the Chevy Bolt would sell a lot more if it had more conventional styling.

How come all of these companies are trying to copy Tesla?

Explain oh wise oracle how the CT is copying Tesla.

Probably in the same ways that Tesla is copying Stanley Steamer

THe fact is - the Prius LONG predated Tesla - and the NT was simply an offshoot of the Prius. Tesla was not smart enough to include a range extender of some type in its models.

I think it will make sense by the end of the year even to people on this forum why companies are copying Tesla.

Also, range extenders are like aiming to be the best in 2010, Tesla's eye is on the future, not the past. It's only relevant for niche use cases and adds unnecessary weight, complexity, and maintenance.

(Driving 800+ miles in a day like you do is also a super niche use case, probably 0.00001% of trips in the US... only a prius will do that nonstop).

Make it beautiful. The current CT has long begged to get beaten with an ugly stick.

Have an average interior. The Model 3 has the worst interior of any car, next to the Audi A3. If Lexus puts any "luxury" styling in the interior, it will win over some market share.

Strongly disagree, and think it will grow on most people after being in one a few times. I wasn't a huge fan either at first, but after spending some time in the 3 it is really impressive what they did.