Lexus: The Relentless Pursuit Kindle Edition

A compelling story of how the greatest car ever built was made. Not a Toyota PR piece, Inside and around California and Japan you get the real human story of how this great brand was created. A great book if you love cars.

This book is well written and researched. Its main achievement is bringing together information from a variety of different sources both in English but particularly in Japanese. It briefly covers the history of Toyota before and after WWII and establishes the context for the launching of the Lexus brand in 1989 with the LS400. An alternative title might be: "Lexus: The Relentless Pursuit of German Luxury" since the company's main focus during the initial planning stages was to exceed in quality and reliability but significantly undercut in price the BMW 7-series and Mercedes-Benz SL500. The references are extensive and include the author's own articles for BusinessWeek as well as his interviews with Lexus officials in the US and Japan. It is no doubt challenging to construct a coherent narrative to describe the history of the most profitable division of one of the world's largest manufacturing companies in one of the most competitive global industries. This is particularly so since Toyota has a social and business structure quite unfamiliar to Western readers. Chester Dawson's proficiency with Japanese and links to the Japanese automotive press distinguish this book from that of another related book also written by a journalist:  The Lexus Story: The Behind-The-Scenes Story of the #1 Automotive Luxury Brand . That other book provides numerous photos, charts, and timelines which complement the main text well; something which this book does not include. The Coda at the end of the second edition, written by Japanese journalist Hisao Inoue, provides important insights into the internal turmoil during the 2008 financial meltdown which led to the company's dark period of massive recalls and consumer complaints regarding product quality and reliability during 2009/2010. This really ought to have become a separate chapter. The book, which ends coverage in 2010, is in need of an update to describe exciting developments in electric/hybrid drivetrains and advanced driving assistance systems.

Business writer Chester Dawson's 2012 update of his 2004 classic on the history and development of the Lexus brand, the most sucessful new car company started since World War II.

At least I got the answer why the LEXUS is a great product and how the engineers took care of all challenges.

An interesting, if long, read about a fascinating company.The pace varies between boring detail and that which is intriguing. Worth a read for anyone looking to improve an industry or an interest in cars.

Excellent read, should be supplied with every Lexus LS400!

While an amazing task to create a new car make from the ground up, it was a stark contrast to see how close it came to not happening at all. A chief Engineer who sounds like a slavedriver, USA based staff being shot down at every turn.Only downside to the book is that i found it put a gloss of perfection on the make, though even the author had to note the struggles once MB and BMW caught back up in terms of price and technology. Lexus makes one heck of a fine product, but they didn't go an invent a flying car or anything.

I was very pleasantly pleased to find this book so engrossing that I did not want to put it down!

Having recently purchased a 2000/X Lexus LS400 I was curious as to the launch history of the original 1989 Lexus LS400.This book is a really good read from cover to cover!The concept story begins way back in 1983 with a 'limitless open cheque book' approach.A figure of $1 billion is indicated in the amount expended to both match and exceed the then quality standards of both Mercedes Benz S Classand the B M W 7 Series.This publication does not disappoint!

Great value on this book. Took a while but that's expected as the used booksellers ship via media mail and that takes at least 6 weeks from USA to Canada. Thanks

Das Buch ist sehr gut zu lesen, auch der nicht perfekte English-Kenner kommt gut damit zurecht. Man erhält nicht nur einen sehr schönen Einblick in die Geschichte und Entstehung sowie Weiterentwicklung der Marke Lexus, sondern kann auch die sehr ausführlich beschriebenen Herangehensweisen, die zur Etablierung einer Marke, zur Gewinnnung von neuen Kunden und zum Erreichen von hoher Kundenzufriedenheit notwendig sind, nachvollziehen und in sein Tätigkeitsfeld übertragen. Das Buch ist ein Muss für jeden, der sich damit beschäftigt, wie man Kundenwünsche antizipiert und nachhaltig erfüllt und damit Kunden gewinnt und an sich bindet - besser noch: begeistert. Viel Spaß beim Lesen!

Very easy to read. Gives the reader an idea as to the mentality and approach in creating a world beating brand. You also appreciate the ongoing work required to keep the brand strong. I would have appreciated the author moving away from merely highlighting the mentality and approach (which he provides in detail) to providing more technical comparatives with other leading brands that led to the LS400 becoming such a dominant force. In addition the author could have provided more information on the development and technical advance of the last of LS400 series regarded by some as the best LS400 and better than its successor the LS430 . However the book is certainly a worthwhile read and provides an insight as to why the Japanese car market is the strongest in the world.

for Lexus owner only