Lexus hybrid cars show good growth post 50% tax shield

MANILA: The new tax laws came into effect in the Philippines in January and did bring some huge changes in the country’s automobile industry. The tax structure was such that the sales were expected to take a hit following the implementation in 2018 and buying a car before 31st December 2017 would mean rushing in the timeline.

However, there was just one thing that wasn’t very evident at the time of the implementation, that is, how the hybrid and complete electric cars would perform in the market, especially considering the fact that the infrastructure of charging stations wasn’t up to the mark. All of this was considered despite the special provision that allowed 50% and 100% tax shield for hybrid and fully electric cars respectively.

According to the president of the Lexus Manila dealership, Mr Raymond Rodriguez, the new law of excise tax has made the hybrid cars even more attractive. This can be proven once we look into the sales that the dealership managed to churn out following the implementation.

In the Lexus NX (small crossover) range, 16% of the cars sold were hybrids, while the RX crossover range saw 21% of the total sales of the model lineup being hybrid. Moreover, as for the flagship LS luxury saloon, a whopping 41% of all the car units sold were hybrid. This graph show contrasting figures over the meagre sales of such hybrid cars since the company started selling them in the market.

The sole reason behind this increase in sales is the 50% tax shield on hybrid cars. Hence, though these dual-powertrain cars are a lot more expensive than the internal combustion motor counterpart, the prices have gone down significantly.

Presently, the Lexus NX top-of-the-line variant (F-Sport) has a price tag of Php 3.558 million while the NX 300h (hybrid) is sold at Php 3.528 million. Similarly, the LS saloon goes for Php 9.088 million, but the LS 500h goes for Php 9.078 million.