1In August, 983, Mr. Toyoda Hideyoshi, the president of the Japanese industrial giant Toyota Motor Corporation, held a high-level secret meeting attended by the first-class elites in the Japanese automobile industry.
Mr. Hideyoshi Toyota raised a shocking question: "After accumulating half a century's experience in automobile R&D and manufacturing, can Japan make a top-class car that can stand out in the world?" In other words, the direct competitor of this new car will be a well-known European car brand.
Everyone realized that what he raised was not only a question, but also a comprehensive challenge to the Japanese automobile industry.
However, everyone present was very determined, "Yes, we can!" As an answer, we all know that this is not an impulsive reaction, but a group of experienced and skilled professionals' firm commitment to the future mission.
Toyota is ready to compete for the luxury car market.
However, Toyota is well aware of its weight. Like most Japanese cars, the image of Toyota and its Corolla, Crown, Camry and other brands as "low-end, fuel-efficient and cheap cars" has been deeply rooted in the hearts of consumers.
It is not easy to change the ideas inherent in the public mind.
So Toyota launched a brand-new high-end car brand Lexus.
After several years of painstaking research, it was listed grandly and successfully in World War I..
The company name is deliberately hidden on Lexus, and the Toyota logo is not marked on the car body, while other Toyota brands such as Corolla and Camry are marked with the Toyota logo.
This is a deliberate arrangement made by Toyota in order to avoid consumers' contact with Toyota's traditional brands and new brands and eliminate the marketing obstacles of Toyota's image to high-end cars.
If Lexus puts Toyota's logo on it, or simply uses Toyota, Camry, Crown and other brands to promote high-end luxury cars, can it compete with luxury brands such as BMW, Lincoln and Mercedes-Benz that everyone has long admired? Coincidentally, when Honda launched a high-end car, it also adopted a brand new brand Acura, and the Honda logo was deliberately hidden on the car body.
Since then, Japan has opened the prelude to high-end cars.
Toyota paid $35,000 to an American naming company to name the brand, because the pronunciation of "Lexus" is similar to the English word "Luxury", which reminds people of the impression that the car is a luxury car.
Lexus Lexus automobile trademark adopts the capital letter "L" of the automobile name "Lexus" and is surrounded by an ellipse on the outside of the "L".
The ellipse represents the earth, which means that Lexus cars are all over the world.
[Edit this paragraph] The origin of Lexus.
1983 In August, Toyota Motor Corporation held a significant board meeting.
It is the starting point of Lexus cars.
This time, the board of directors concealed Toyota's ambitions from the outside world with some irrelevant discussion topics. When the media and the public thought that this was another meeting of Toyota's routine summary, statement and inspiring remarks, the door of the conference room suddenly closed because they were going to start the real and top secret topic of the board of directors.
This topic revolves around the letter F (F is the plan of F 1, and F also means the English word flagship, 1 means the first car).
The atmosphere of the meeting is no longer as calm and silent as before, and there is a rare debate in the board of directors.
For Toyota, this is a crucial project.
Chairman Toyota Hideki threw a question to the company's top management, designers, engineers and corporate strategy research experts: Can we build a luxury car to challenge the top market? Unexpectedly, everyone's answer is the same-"yes".
The word "can" is full of doubts and worries.
But Toyota must take this gamble. Toyota's development to 1983 needs another breakthrough, just like World War II and 1950s.
In fact, apart from Toyota Yingzhi, no one agreed with the horn of entering the luxury car market from the beginning.
Toyoda Shoichiro, the son of the founder of Toyota, later inherited the position of chairman and president of the board of directors of Toyota Yingzhi. He is an indecisive person.
He thinks Toyota should do what they do best better-produce affordable cars for everyone.
But Toyoda Shoichiro, like other seemingly grateful but worried people, finally changed his tone.
"You put this question on me. Why did Toyota succeed in the United States for 30 years, but we have to invest billions of dollars and tens of thousands of hours of R&D and design to put into production a brand-new high-end car? Maybe, you know, I don't like riding other people's brands of high-end cars. " Shortly after Lexus went public in the United States, Toyoda Shoichiro joked to American dealers: "From now on, I don't have to take Cadillac or Lincoln or Mercedes-Benz."
Toyota Yingzhi was also very aware of Toyota's situation at that time, and he didn't want to board Noah's Ark for a futile thought journey.
He believes that once Toyota sets foot in the luxury car market, it will inevitably be the enemy of the top rivals in this field. Toyota will face the Mercedes-Benz S-Class and compete with BMW's top 7 Series sedan.
If Toyota demeans itself, the risk of investment will multiply.
In order to produce top luxury cars, Toyota must invest heavily in developing new engines and chassis, but the consumer demand orientation of luxury car market is too strange for Toyota.
Even if Toyota does everything under the hood perfectly, it still needs to consider ride comfort, interior and aesthetic appearance-these are not Toyota's strengths.
The most embarrassing thing for Toyota is the reputation of Lexus.
Toyota has never sold luxury cars.
Can you imagine how difficult it is to persuade consumers to buy a luxury car that comes from the same company as the cheap Corolla (an entry-level car in the American market) but costs tens of thousands of dollars? Toyota's main competitors in the luxury car market can sell cars with their brand names.
Because it's called Mercedes-Benz, I buy it. I like it because it's called BMW.
However, will consumers be willing to spend nearly as much money as a Mercedes-Benz S-Class to buy a Toyota car, or even a Toyota-made car not called Toyota? This is really a serious problem.
"Toyota produces Lexus? Toyota is the base of producing tens of millions of cars, and Lexus is out of place with it.
It's like selling Wellington steak at McDonald's. "This was Fortune magazine's sarcasm to Toyota Motor Corporation at that time, but their evaluation was also reasonable.
Toyota's research found that the market is quietly changing.
American baby boomers (these people born in the late 1940s and early 1950s are called baby boomers, which means babies born in the baby boom in Chinese.
Compared with their war-torn parents, their values are obviously different. ) They are growing up and will soon enter the official career, and their spending power will be greatly improved.
They were loyal consumers of Toyota when they were young, but now they want to buy more expensive cars.
Toyota smells an opportunity in the luxury car market.
At that time, luxury car brands became more and more powerful, happier and more confident.
Because they have ushered in a new generation of luxury consumers.
Toyota Yingzhi's "ambition" is enormous. He didn't want to let go of every growing market, and the order to enter the luxury car market was issued accordingly.
In six years, with an investment of 500 million dollars, Lexus was born.
Lexus 1989 goes on the market. They have two models that have not been tested by the market, the flagship ls and the entry-level sedan ES, which sold 16302 vehicles that year.
Two years later, they became the best-selling imported luxury brand in the United States, and launched the third model SC Gubei.
In 2000, Lexus usurped Cadillac's position as the best-selling luxury car in North America.
Since that year, Lexus has never left this position.
In 2003, the sales volume of Lexus reached 259,000, with 8 different models, 3 of which were sports luxury cars.
At present, there are about 6.5438+0.3 million cars with Lexus L logo running on American highways.
However, Lexus can only be said to have achieved initial results in the United States, but in Europe where luxury cars gather, it is still difficult to get recognition from the rich.
As the European luxury car market is more important in the global market, Lexus will be prepared to pay more attention to the European market, which is almost a nightmare for Japanese luxury cars, in the pace of going out of North America and expanding the world.
In Europe, the birthplace of luxury cars, Mercedes-Benz has survived tenaciously for more than 65,438+000 years by relying on Stuttgart's geomantic treasures, and BMW cars from Munich, Bavaria have also stood at the top of the global luxury car market with the full support of Quant family. Relying on the full-line revival of Volkswagen Group, Audi, a new luxury aristocrat, also issued an oath to the world to enter the luxury car boss, and the "German Three Musketeers" began to jointly attack the global luxury car market.
However, the sales ratio of these three German luxury car brands in Germany has remained below 30%, which is in sharp contrast with Lexus' 85% market share in North America. In order to prove that Lexus is a global luxury brand, it first captured the fortress of global luxury car brands-Europe.
Since 2002, Lexus has tried to enter the European market many times. Lexus plans to bombard the European market with $5 billion in turn. This budget is more than twice that of Lexus entering North America.
However, Lexus's road to Europe is extremely difficult. In 2005, Lexus sold less than 20,000 vehicles in Europe. Although the growth rate was good in 2006, the sales volume was still around 30,000 vehicles, which was far from the sales volume of Mercedes-Benz and BMW exceeding 500,000 vehicles.
Lexus has a long way to go in Europe.
[Edit this paragraph] logo
According to the official statement of Toyota Motor Sales Company of the United States, the L letter surrounded by an ellipse is decorated according to an accurate mathematical formula, which took more than three designers and advertisers more than half a year to complete: this outstanding symbol defeated five design competition demonstrations.
1987, MollySanders, the director of Molly Designs Inc, spent three months carefully making this unique ellipse and L, replacing the most promising version-an L that looks like a seagull's wing but has no circle.
The new Lexus logo made its debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show in June1988+1October.
1986 10, the top management of Toyota American Sales Company and luxury car R&D department held a meeting to discuss the naming of new models.
Finding a suitable name is like a hot potato.
Must be elegant, but not feminine; Be noble, but don't be sissy; Natural and graceful, but not unscrupulous.
It must be unique and outstanding.
Lippincott & a brand management company in new york; Margulies compiled a list of 2 19 possible names.
They filtered out the last 10 from the original list.
Then after further debate, the list was narrowed down to five people: Alexis, Cali, Cha Paraire, Wachter and Verona.
Alexis is the only name unanimously recognized by everyone in the place.
But the most criticized thing is that it sounds like a person's name, not a car name. To make matters worse, Alexis is the name of a crazy woman in a TV series, which means infamous.
Finally, John French, the project manager of Toyota Motor Sales Company and the main contact of American brand management company, casually wrote some names according to Alexis, and Lexus was born.
French erased Alexis' A, and after some discussion, the team changed I to U.
Last name is Lexus.
No one will forget the shock brought by Lexus LS400 when it was officially launched in 1989. Some people even predict that German luxury cars may be forced to withdraw from the American market.
Today, Lexus has swept the top buyer market and become the best-selling luxury car in the United States.
I believe many people still remember the classic commercial of LS400: On the running hood, one champagne cup after another is stacked high to form a crystal cup tower. Even if the engine is running at full throttle, the cup tower is always as stable as Mount Tai; This is really the best way to celebrate the birth of the new rich in the automobile industry.
Lexus now has a huge series of cars such as LS, GS, IS and RX. One award after another may be the best evidence for Lexus to prove itself.
When you look at the whole Lexus car system.
You will feel from bit by bit that Toyota has invested considerable resources and efforts in maintaining the consistency of top quality.
Whether it's a luxurious four-door sedan or a handsome two-door hardtop sports car, every Lexus also adopts the advanced design of ingenious touch tools, meticulous precision construction and incredibly strict quality control to ensure that you can have the best ride experience.
Let's expect Lexus to create new miracles for us.
[Edit this paragraph] Lexus China official website
Lexus
[Edit this paragraph] Introduction of all Lexus models
Introduction of ES series
ES is one of the most successful and best-selling models in the history of Lexus.
With a history of 15 years, ES has long been synonymous with luxury, elegance and comfort in the international market.
ES also inherited this design concept. It has a strong sense of design, a simple and smooth waistline, and a rich and changeable inner room, which is the perfect combination of "strength and elegance".
The success of Lexus in North America and the reputation accumulated over the years have made this Japanese high-end brand gradually known to the world.
ES is one of the representative works, locking competitors in high-end luxury cars such as BMW 5 Series and Mercedes-Benz E-Class.
The new generation ES350 perfectly presents the design concept of LEXUS Lexus L-finesse, which takes human senses as the design origin and completely meets all the expectations of drivers.
Domestic model: ES350 (RMB) 489,000
Introduction of GS series
The original development concept of Lexus GS series is to produce a luxury car with high performance and comfort, which is between LS and es. Aiming at the market share of Mercedes-Benz E-Class or BMW 5 Series, a new generation of products with more advanced equipment, stronger jumping sense, wider carriage and larger luggage storage space is the selling point, and the younger generation and customers who advocate speed and enjoyment are the sales targets.
GS fully embodies "L-finesse".
"L-finesse" is a brand-new design concept of Lexus, which contains three elements-"former", "pure" and "wonderful".
These cars are modern, eye-catching, rich and humanized.
Refine a single independent element and improve the overall performance.
GS430/GS300 fully embodies' l-fine'.
"L-Refine" is a brand-new design concept of LEXUS, which includes three elements-"purity", "beauty" and "front".
Domestic models: GS300 (RMB) 688,000 and GS430 (RMB) 944,000.
Introduction of IS series
Lexus was born to compete with famous European brands for the luxury car market in North America, and BMW is one of its main competitors.
It is such a very young brand, and competitors are now afraid to underestimate it. Lexus not only won numerous awards, but more importantly, it took the lead in launching IS series compact luxury sports cars in the United States ten years after the birth of the Lexus brand in the eyes of consumers. Like many best-selling Japanese cars, Lexus is cheaper than Mercedes-Benz and BMW at the same level, and its main competitive means is high cost performance.
The current IS series is the second-generation new car that went on the market in 2005, and formal sales channels have also appeared in Europe and Asia.
IS series prototype embodies the ideal of Lexus in extreme technology and perfect technology, and gives it a new interpretation of dexterity and dynamic.
Its position in the hearts of car fans has soared, just like speeding on the highway.
The widespread praise in the consumer satisfaction survey and the success in the international track have also continuously verified the natural excellent pedigree of IS series.
Now, the spirit of freedom inherited from the first IS series car has reached a new level-the birth of the ――IS 300 will completely liberate your driving.
Domestic models: IS300 (RMB) 399,800, IS300 Flash Edition (RMB) 484,000 and IS300 Deluxe Edition (RMB) 520,000.
Introduction of LS series
As the flagship model of Lexus, LS makes people unable to resist its surging power and noble temperament, all of which reflect its extraordinary design concept as a modern car.
Lexus LS takes aerodynamic design, strong performance, luxurious interior and safety performance of leading cars of the same class to a new height.
With smooth driving, exquisite design and quick response, LEXUS LS car series interprets the true definition of luxury, dignity, elegance and agility from the perspective of top performance, and integrates elegant appearance with technological innovation to forge a LEXUS luxury car with flawless design, mature technology and excellent quality.
With its elegant appearance and powerful strength, * * * will belong to your luxurious palace.
Lexus LS460/LS460L has many firsts in the world, especially in the field of safety, both active safety and passive safety are extremely powerful.
What is even more memorable is that the seemingly infinite power reserve can be smoothly output and obey your driving will.
Domestic models: LS460 (RMB) 1, 23 1, 000 LS460L (extended version) (RMB) 1, 350,000LS600HL (RMB) 1, 5 1.
Introduction of LX series
As a large-scale SUV, lexus LX series has always been the product of pyramids.
Since 1996, 1, the first LX has landed in the North American market, creating a precedent for a full-size luxury SUV, which has been well received by the media and consumers.
LX series is world-renowned for its excellent off-road capability and luxurious and comfortable interior space.
The new lexus LX570 not only enhances the core elements such as power, luxury and comfort, but also introduces the most advanced technology and top-level configuration of Lexus in terms of intelligent control and safety, reaching the highest level in its class and setting a new benchmark for sports multi-functional vehicles.
Today, Lexus brings a new dimension of luxury SUV-LX 570.
Whether it's a five-meter-long, two-meter-high body with only eight seats, or the control sense of active height control and active suspension height control system, or the center console panel and gear lever, they are decorated with rare Bubinga solid wood, which is more in line with Euro IV emission standards ..... All these recreations of luxury SUV standards are only worthy of you.
Domestic model: lexus LX570 (RMB) 1.593 million.
RX series introduction
RX is the representative of Lexus sports luxury SUV. RX sport utility vehicle combines multi-purpose, intelligent technology and luxury equipment, providing strong power, precise control and highly participatory driving pleasure.
Both RX350 and RX400h have charming sports nature, and set a new benchmark for SUV cars with their exquisite craftsmanship and momentum.
RX400h is a hybrid power system.
So far, luxury SUVs have been mass-produced worldwide, and the second model that can compete with RX400h cannot be found.
RX400h combines gasoline power with electricity to effectively reduce the damage to the environment, which has been one of human dreams since the birth of the automobile.
RX sport utility vehicle combines multi-purpose, intelligent technology and luxury equipment, providing you with strong power, precise control and highly participatory driving pleasure.
Both RX350 and RX400h have charming sports nature, and set a new benchmark for SUV cars with their exquisite craftsmanship and momentum.
After careful tasting, you will find that RX400h has subtle differences. Unique circular fog lights and brand-new front grille design are symbols of more powerful power.
Of course, RX350 is enough to provide you with the same excellent performance; The only difference is that the RX400h is driven by a forward-looking Lexus hybrid car.
Domestic model: RX350 (RMB) 783,000.
Introduction of SC series
Lexus SC is a bunch of envious eyes.
As one of the few luxury sports cars introduced to China, SC430 brings the free and romantic temperament of the convertible to the extreme with advanced technology and performance.
It brings pleasant appearance, color and movement to your life, presenting a personalized driving experience.
The competitors of Lexus SC are BMW Z4 and Mazda RX-8.
It is a high-end, personalized consumption pattern.
Appear in applause and expectation, and gather envious eyes.
With advanced technology and performance, SC430 has brought the free and romantic temperament of sports cars to the extreme.
It brings pleasant appearance, color and movement to your life, presenting a personalized driving experience.
Domestic model: SC430 (RMB) 1.32 million