Nope.
Finally we agree on something! I don't understand what the fuzz is about, all I'm saying is that a Lexus is a Lexus and a Toyota is a Toyota. Lexus makes cars I want but can't afford, Toyota makes cars I afford but don't want. The brands have different target audiences, simple as that. A Volvo XC90 is not a Ford Focus ST, it's the same engine but it's not the same car. A Skoda Octavia is not, despite being built on the same platform, an Audi TT. A Dacia Sandero is not, despite being made almost entirely out of Renault parts, a Renault Clio.
If a Lexus were only a Toyota, they would run out of customers fast. There's a reason people pay three times as much for a Lexus as they do for a Toyota, it's because the two are not equal. As for my previous pondering, I have now come up with a segment asian car manufacturers have been class leaders in for years, hybrids.
You're completely missing the point! Let's go through the Lexus lineup:
Lexus ES: Exact same chassis, drivetrain, and shitloads of other important parts as a Toyota Camry.
Lexus RX: Exact same chassis, drivetrain, and shitloads of other important parts as a Toyota Highlander.
Lexus GX: Exact same chassis, drivetrain, and shitloads of other important parts as a Toyota 4Runner
Lexus LX: Exact same chassis, drivetrain, some sheetmetal, and shitloads of other important parts as a Toyota Land Cruiser (Amazon)
...UNLIKE the Skoda Octavia, whose platform actually went through modifications to become the TT's, ie being flattened a bit.
Lexus LS: EXACTLY the same as a JDM Toyota Celsior apart from badges (and trim details), until Toyota discontinued the Celsior and brought the Lexus brand home.
Lexus GS: EXACTLY the same as a JDM Toyota Aristo apart from badges (and trim details), until Toyota discontinued the Aristo and brought the Lexus brand home.
Lexus IS: EXACTLY the same as a JDM Toyota Altezza apart from badges (and trim details), until Toyota discontinued the Altezza and brought the Lexus brand home.
Lexus SC: EXACTLY the same as a JDM Toyota Soarer apart from badges (and trim details), until Toyota discontinued the Soarer and brought the Lexus brand home. Plus it's an ugly slow posemobile for brand-snob trophy wives and isn't worth mentioning.
Oh, and no Lexus is 3 times as expensive as its equivalent Toyota; I have no idea where you got that number from. Lexuses are Toyotas with lipstick. The end. The fact that American consumers don't give a shit just speaks to the kind of person that buys a Lexus.