Toyota's Lexus brand to enter India in early 2017 with 3 model line-up

Toyota's sub-brand Lexus has been long rumoured for India entry. Emerging reports indicate decisions on the brand's entry into the market have been made and the company will start bookings for the vehicles soon.

The luxury brand will commence bookings for the RX450h SUV, ES300h sedan and LX series SUV sometime in November reports Autocar India. The official introduction of the brand is expected to take place in January 2017 and deliveries will start subsequently.

Lexus RX450h is the most popular product in the company's portfolio. The Lexus RX450h will be powered by 3.5-litre V6 petrol engine complemented with a hybrid unit. The powertrain will return 308hp mated to an e-CVT gearbox. The Lexus RX450h will be pitted against the Audi Q5 and the BMW X3.

The ES300h is based on the Camry sedan and both car shares a lot of part in common. The sedan will be powered by a2.5-litre petrol engine and the electric motor assist mated to the same CVT gearbox. This is the same unit that powers the Camry hybrid in India as well.

Lexus LX450d SUV is based on the Toyota Land Cruiser SUV. The diesel-powered LX450d gets a twin-turbo 4.5-litre V8 diesel engine that develops 269hp and a massive 650Nm of torque. The petrol-powered LX570 is powered by a 5.7-litre V8 engine developing 383hp and 546Nm of torque. The Range Rover, Audi Q7 and the Mercedes GL rivalling Lexus SUV will be priced around Rs 1.5 crore.

Toyota had earlier put the plans of bringing the Lexus to India on hold due to the high custom duties and various other reasons. The Lexus vehicles will be sold as completely built units (CBU) in India initially. Depending upon the market response, Toyota will mull over local assembly.