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Did BMW really win the luxury car sales race?

As anyone who follows our monthly By The Numbers series already knows, the luxury car sales race in the United States was close all of last year as BMW, Lexus and Mercedes-Benz seesawed up and down for sales supremacy. At the end of the year, it was BMW on top of the standings with 346,023 total sales. Or was it? According to data released by Polk, comparing the actual number of vehicles registered between the three top luxury players in the US paints a slightly different picture. Polk's data suggests that only 335,259 BMWs were registered in 2015, compared to 340,392 Lexus models. Why the disparity? It's all a matter of timing. Actual end consumers buy new cars, in almost all cases, from a franchised dealer. BMW delivered 346,023 vehicles in 2015, but only 335,259 of them were registered by their new owners. Presumably, those 11,000 BMWs did (or will) end up registered in the driveways of consumers, but they hadn't before January 1, 2016. Lexus General Manager Jeff Bracken wrote in an email to Automotive News, "Luxury sales leadership as measured by vehicle registrations is important to Lexus as it represents actual consumers engaging directly with our dealers." Of course, it goes without saying that we'll be paying keen attention to the 2016 luxury car sales race as it unfolds. If it's anything like it was in 2015, it'll come down to the wire, and even then may not be entirely clear. Related Video: News Source: Automotive News - sub. req.Image Credit: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty BMW Lexus Mercedes-Benz Car Buying Car Dealers Luxury luxury cars

2018 Lexus RX 350L Quick Spin Review | Minding the gap in the Lexus lineup

PORTLAND, Ore. — Why on Earth does Lexus still make the Jurassic GX 460? It's old, inefficient, body-on-frame and completely atypical of the rest of the three-row luxury segment. Well, the answer lies in that segment descriptor: three rows. People want them, yet Lexus didn't offer anything else between the two-row RX and the $85,000, Land Cruiser-based LX 570. Despite this lineup gap lasting for two decades, Lexus decided to finally attempt filling it with a seemingly quick-and-dirty solution: Lengthen the RX 350, shoehorn in a third row, add an L to the name, wipe hands together, call it a day. The resulting 2018 Lexus RX 350L does indeed have a third row of seats and is generally a far superior vehicle to the GX. It's better to drive, massively more efficient, and its beautiful interior is up to the current Lexus norm. The cargo door doesn't swing into the curb. Plus, unlike some other slapped-together lengthened jobs over the years like the Chevrolet TrailBlazer EXT or even the long-wheelbase Range Rover, the RX 350L doesn't suffer visually for its extra inches. In fact, it can be difficult to tell the L apart from a non-L unless the two are parked together in profile. If everything, the extra 4.4 inches of length might actually improve the RX's proportions from certain angles. Of course, quite a few people find the current RX to be hideous, so finding comments below that include the words "lipstick" and "pig" would not be surprising. Adding the L also doesn't seem to take away from the RX's driving experience, which continues to impress. The current model is buttoned down and involving in a way its couch-like predecessors never attempted to be. From the lowered driving position to the more responsive steering, this is a far more driver-oriented vehicle. You don't even need to engage Sport mode, but doing so dials in an appropriate level of steering weight and sharpens throttle/transmission response. This general sportification also hasn't taken anything away from comfort, as a three-hour road trip from Portland to Seattle proved it to be a superb highway cruiser. Both seat and ride comfort are excellent. That was with two people aboard, however. Later in the week, we managed to easily fit an extra pair in the second row along with a rear-facing baby seat. That's all well and good, but the regular RX can do that.

Calgary Airport converts handicap parking to Lexus-only stalls

At the YYC Calgary International Airport, travelers found that the usual accessible parking spots (referred to handicap or disability parking here in the U.S.) near the doors had been painted over, no longer saved for the people who need them. Instead, they were reserved for Lexus drivers as part of a marketing campaign. Understandably, the airport received a complaint after a family with access needs entered the short-parking area to find the Lexus logos painted where the accessible parking had been, as CBC News reports. The airport had sold the spaces to Lexus as a way to generate revenue as part of a marketing campaign. Even worse, YYC hadn't replaced the accessible spaces yet, though Calgary Airport Authority spokesperson Jody Moseley told CBC News the airport was in the process of moving them when it started to draw attention. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. The story ends well, however: The Calgary Airport Authority is converting the Lexus spaces back to accessible parking, and said in a statement of apology that the new accessible stalls meant to replace the original ones will also remain in place, so it's a net gain for disabled travelers. YYC also apologized to Lexus Canada, which it says "did not play a role in selecting, and was not aware of, the locations for the campaign." Lexus issued its own apology, saying it would "more carefully scrutinize the details of these types of marketing campaigns" in the future. Related Video: News Source: CBC News via JalopnikImage Credit: Geography Photos/Universal Images Group via Getty Images Government/Legal Lexus Luxury parking disabilities airport handicapped accessibility airport parking