Lexus is the luxury car division of Toyota and traces its’ beginnings to 1983 when the Toyota Chairman asked his engineers to build a quality luxury car that would be one better than the world’s best at the time.
Lexus History
Legend has it that it all started as a secret project even as lots of research was carried out mostly in the United States to find out the tastes of American luxury car buyers.
The first Lexus prototypes made an appearance in 1985 and were then extensively tested, mostly in Germany and America. The V8 powered LS 400 was launched at the Detroit Motor Show in September 1989 and reached Australian car dealers in 1990.
The model range was quickly extended to a mix of luxury and sport sedans that have been very well received in the market. We have also seen luxury 4×4 Lexus models being produced and doing very well in the market against more established rivals like Range Rover and BMW.
Actually there is now a huge demand for all Lexus cars in markets all over the world. In Australia it will be remembered that there were long queues in 1998 outside dealers in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide waiting to purchase the Lexus LX470.
Lexus still retains as its’ signature phrase, the guiding mantra given by the Toyota chairman for its’ creation. And that is; “The Pursuit of Perfection.” It is therefore hardly surprising that today Lexus blends quality, luxury, reliability and power to rule the luxury car market which many car experts consider to be the most competitive.
