type division of toyota industry automotive founded 1989 ; 27 years ago 1989 founder eiji toyoda headquarters nagoya japan area served worldwide key people tokuo fukuichi md mark templin vp global vince socco vp asia pacific alain uyttenhoven vp eu jeffrey bracken vp u.s. products luxury vehicles services automotive financing owner toyota divisions f marque website official sites select by country lexus rekusasu is the luxury vehicle division of japanese automaker toyota . the lexus marque is marketed in over 70 countries and territories worldwide 1 has become japan s largest selling make of premium cars and has ranked among the ten largest japanese global brands in market value . 2 lexus is headquartered in nagoya japan . operational centers are located in brussels belgium and the u.s. in torrance california . lexus originated from a corporate project to develop a new premium sedan code named f1 which began in 1983 and culminated in the launch of the lexus ls in 1989 . subsequently the division added sedan coup convertible and suv models . until 2005 lexus did not exist as a brand in its home market and all vehicles marketed internationally as lexus from 1989 2005 were released in japan under the toyota marque and an equivalent model name . in 2005 a hybrid version of the rx crossover debuted and additional hybrid models later joined the division s lineup . in 2007 lexus launched its own f marque performance division with the debut of the is f sport sedan followed by the lfa supercar in 2009 . from the start of production lexus vehicles have been produced in japan with manufacturing centered in the ch bu and ky sh regions and in particular at toyota s tahara aichi ch bu and miyata fukuoka ky sh plants . assembly of the first lexus built outside the country the ontario canada produced rx 330 began in 2003 . following a corporate reorganization from 2001 to 2005 lexus operates its own design engineering and manufacturing centers . since the 2000s decade lexus has increased sales outside its largest market the united states . the division inaugurated dealerships in japan s domestic market in 2005 becoming the first japanese premium car marque to launch in its country of origin . 3 the brand was introduced in southeast asia latin america europe and other regions . the division s lineup also reflects regional differences for model and powertrain configurations . contents 1 history 1.1 1980s the f1 project 1.1.1 brand development 1.1.2 launch 1.2 1990s growth and expansion 1.3 2000s global reorganization 1.3.1 hybrids and f models 1.4 2010s recent developments 2 corporate affairs 2.1 management 2.2 regional operations 2.3 sales 2.4 financial performance 3 automobiles 3.1 vehicle lineup 3.2 f marque 3.3 model nomenclature 4 design and technology 4.1 l finesse 5 production 5.1 assembly plants 5.2 quality rankings 6 service 7 motorsport 8 marketing 9 see also 10 references 10.1 notes 10.2 bibliography 11 external links history edit 1980s the f1 project edit in 1983 toyota chairman eiji toyoda issued a challenge to build the world s best car . 4 the project code named f1 flagship one 5 developed the lexus ls 400 to expand toyota s product line in the premium segment . 6 the f1 project followed the toyota supra sports car and the premium toyota mark ii models . 7 both the supra and mark ii were rear wheel drive cars with a powerful 7m ge or 7m gte inline six engine . the largest sedan toyota built at the time was the limited production 1960s vintage toyota century a domestic hand built limousine and v8 powered model 8 followed by the inline six engined toyota crown premium sedan . 8 9 the century was conservatively styled for the japanese market and along with the crown not slated for export after a complete restyle in 1982 . 9 the f1 designers targeted their new sedan at international markets and began development on a new v8 engine . 8 9 lexus television debut with champagne glasses stacked on the hood of a revving ls 400 japanese manufacturers exported more expensive models in the 1980s due to voluntary export restraints negotiated by the japanese government and u.s. trade representatives that restricted mainstream car sales . 10 in 1986 honda launched its acura marque in the u.s. influencing toyota s plans for a luxury division ; 11 the initial acura model was an export version of the honda legend itself launched in japan in 1985 as a rival to the toyota crown nissan cedric gloria and mazda luce . 12 in 1987 nissan unveiled its plans for a premium brand infiniti 13 and revised its nissan president sedan in standard wheelbase form for export as the infiniti q45 which it launched in 1990 . 14 in 1988 mazda began selling the luce as the mazda 929 in north america and later began plans to develop an upscale marque to be called amati but its plans did not come to fruition . 13 toyota researchers visited the u.s. in may 1985 to conduct focus groups and market research on luxury consumers . 15 during that time several f1 designers rented a home in laguna beach california to observe the lifestyles and tastes of american upper class consumers . 15 meanwhile f1 engineering teams conducted prototype testing on locations ranging from the german autobahn to u.s. roads . 16 toyota s market research concluded that a separate brand and sales channel were needed to present its new sedan and plans were made to develop a new network of dealerships in the u.s. market . 17 brand development edit in 1986 toyota s longtime advertising agency saatchi & saatchi formed a specialized unit team one to handle marketing for the new brand . 11 image consulting firm lippincott & margulies was hired to develop a list of 219 prospective names ; vectre verone chaparel calibre and alexis were chosen as top candidates . 18 while alexis quickly became the front runner concerns were raised that the name applied to people more than cars being associated with the alexis carrington character on the popular 1980s primetime drama dynasty 18 19 and as a result the first letter was removed and the i replaced with a u to morph the name to lexus . 19 ls 400 sedan launched in 1989 the etymology of the lexus name has been attributed to the combination of the words luxury and elegance 20 and another theory claims it is an acronym for luxury exports to the u.s. 20 according to team one interviews the brand name has no specific meaning and simply denotes a luxurious and technological image . 18 just prior to the release of the first vehicles database service lexisnexis obtained a temporary injunction forbidding the name lexus from being used as they stated it might cause confusion . 21 the injunction threatened to delay the division s launch and marketing efforts . 21 the u.s. appeals court lifted the injunction deciding that there was little likelihood of confusion between the two products . 21 the original lexus slogan developed after team one representatives visited lexus designers in japan and noted an obsessive attention to detail became the relentless pursuit of perfection . 22 the lexus logo was developed by molly designs and hunter communications . 23 24 the final design for the lexus logo featured a stylized l within an oval and according to toyota was rendered using a mathematical formula . 18 the first teaser ads featuring the lexus name and logo designed by team one appeared at the chicago los angeles and new york auto shows in 1988 . 25 launch edit the f1 project was completed in 1989 involving 60 designers 24 engineering teams 1 400 engineers 2 300 technicians 220 support workers approximately 450 prototypes and over us 1 billion in costs . 26 the resulting car the lexus ls 400 had a design that shared no major elements with previous toyota vehicles with a new 4.0 l v8 gasoline engine and rear wheel drive . 27 28 the car debuted in january 1989 at the north american international auto show in detroit 13 and went on sale the following september at a network of 81 new lexus dealerships in the u.s. 29 the ls 400 was sold along with the smaller es 250 a rebadged toyota camry . 16 the launch of lexus was accompanied by a multimillion dollar advertising campaign . 30 1991 sc 400 coupe was the third lexus model the ls 400 was praised for its quietness well appointed and ergonomic interior engine performance build quality aerodynamics fuel economy and value 16 31 although it was criticized by some automobile columnists for derivative styling and a suspension regarded as too compromising of handling for ride comfort . 16 32 in some markets it was priced against mid size six cylinder mercedes benz and bmw models 33 and was rated by car and driver magazine as better than the higher priced mercedes benz 420 sel and bmw 735i in terms of ride handling and performance . 34 the ls 400 also won motoring awards from automotive publications including automobile magazine and wheels magazine . 35 36 lexus quickly established customer loyalty and its debut was generally regarded as a shock to existing luxury marques . bmw s and mercedes benz s u.s. sales figures dropped 29 % and 19 % respectively with bmw executives accusing lexus of dumping in that market while 35 % of lexus buyers traded in a lincoln or cadillac . 34 in december 1989 lexus initiated a voluntary recall of all 8 000 ls 400s that were sold based upon two customer complaints over defective wiring and an overheated brake light . 34 a 20 day operation to replace the parts on affected vehicles included technicians to pick up repair and return cars to customers free of charge and also flying in personnel and renting garage space for owners in remote locations . 34 this response was covered in media publications and helped establish the marque s early reputation for customer service . 37 38 by the end of 1989 a total of 16 392 ls 400 and es 250 sedans were sold in the four months following the u.s. launch . 39 although sales had begun at a slower pace than expected the final tally matched the division s target of 16 000 units for that year . 40 following initial models plans called for the addition of a sports coupe along with a redesigned es sedan . 41 1990s growth and expansion edit 1998 rx 300 first lexus crossover suv in 1990 during its first full year of sales lexus sold 63 594 ls 400 and es 250 sedans in the u.s. 42 the vast majority being the ls model . 42 that year lexus also began limited exports to the united kingdom switzerland canada and australia . 16 43 in 1991 lexus launched its first sports coupe the sc 400 which shared the ls 400 s v8 engine and rear wheel drive design . 41 this was followed by the second generation es 300 sedan which succeeded the es 250 and became lexus top seller . 41 at the conclusion of 1991 lexus had become the top selling premium car import in the u.s. 44 45 with sales reaching a total of 71 206 vehicles . 42 that year lexus ranked highest in j.d. power and associates studies on initial vehicle quality customer satisfaction and sales satisfaction for the first time . 46 the marque also began increasing u.s. model prices past those of comparable american premium makes but still below high end european models ; 45 by 1992 the ls 400 s base price had risen 18 % . 47 in 1993 lexus launched the mid size gs 300 sports sedan based on the toyota aristo using the toyota s