Hitoshi Otake, executive vice-president of Lexus China, said: "Chinese consumers are younger and more demanding, with diverse needs.

"To better satisfy Chinese customers, the all-new Lexus ES has an extended wheelbase and offers a splendid driving dynamic, together with superior quietness," he said.

The all-new model is fully upgraded in terms of design, performance, tranquility and safety, bringing an even more luxury driving experience to the new generation of Chinese customers through exceptional drivability, class-leading safety technology and the automaker's Takumi concept of craftsmanship, inspired by Eastern aesthetics.

Lexus China is planning to impress its Chinese audience with memorable, brave design elements, beyond-imagination technologies, Takumi craftsmanship, and outstanding driving performance, according to Otake. "These approaches are expected to express the unique glamour of the Lexus brand and help build customers' loyalty to the Lexus brand," he said.

"We are expecting the all-new Lexus ES to achieve better market performance than the previous generation's 60,000 sales last year in China." The company plans to strengthen its brand presence in tier-one cities such as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, in order to keep target customers informed and help them gain more understanding of the Lexus brand.

At the same time, Lexus' dealership networks are set to expand into tier-two and three cities, after careful research into optimizing dealership coverage in such regions.