A new report
from motoring.com.au says that Lexus has decided to make a production luxury
sub-compact SUV based on this UX concept.
At the 2017 Geneva Motor Show, Yoshihiro Sawa,
Executive Vice President of Lexus International, revealed it to the Australian
publication that the company does plan to evolve the Lexus UX Concept into a
production vehicle. “We are doing (the Lexus UX),” Mr. Sawa said. “Please
expect UX, it’s not so far away,” he added, hinting that the production version
could hit the market as early as next year.
The
Lexus UX Concept was created keeping in mind to attract an ever-wider group of
new, younger customers to the brand for the first time. Owners of all Lexus
vehicles, save the CT hatchback and IS entry-level sedan, are aged. The Lexus
NX compact SUV and Lexus RX mid-size SUV have proved themselves as popular
models among buyers younger than traditional Lexus buyers, and the UX Concept
is a follow-up to that, Mr. Sawa said.
The Lexus UX will likely ride on the TNGA platform
that underpins the Toyota C-HR, Toyota Prius and Toyota Camry. Last year, it
was reported that the UX sub-compact SUV would replace the slow-selling CT
hatchback, and not sell as its crossover alternative.
