A new definition to Lexus' Relentless Pursuit of Perfection

[Koolaba]

Lexus takes pride in its motto "The Relentless Pursuit of Perfection". The first generations of Lexus indeed live up to the expectations of its motto.

 

But how about the current generation of Lexus?

 

First, let us take a look at the new IS250 which has reached our shores not long ago.

[Koolaba]

A look at the fit and finishing quality of the centre console of the IS250.

[Koolaba]

A look at its bigger brother, the GS300.

[Lukie102]

omg...u r picking on all the cars

[Watwheels]

I believe Lexus do not manufacture each & every component/part for their cars. A lot of it comes from other suppliers in the market. If these are the best Lexus could find, what to do?

[Ahbengdriver]

speaking of uneven gaps, I also noticed in the mitsubishi outlander SUV I saw at the suntec road show, that there is a 1/2 cm gap between the inside of the front door which is plastic material and the actual metal part of the door. rather bad for such a nice car.

[Miles]

for any other car, such defects is acceptable.

but not on a lexus who claims they are perfect.... or rather, pursuit relentlessly for perfection.

it is even acceptable for bmws, merc or audi to have such defects because they keep their big mouth shut and dont claim they are perfect.

 

i think the ordinary skoda or vw has better fit and finish.

[Koolaba]

Hi,

 

To clarify, I am picking on brands which claim to be:

- perfect

- maintain the same quality of standards even though they have opted to assemble their cars in countries which guarantee lower cost

- charge a premium because of a certain brand reputation.

 

My heart goes out to those buyers who purchase these cars based on a combination of the following factors:

- Marketing gimmicks

- Purported brand reputation

- Promise of better resale value

 

As such, I strongly feel that consumers need to be educated on the fact that branding is not everything, especially when they are spending on the 2nd big ticket item in Singapore.

 

In my opinion, most of these so-called top Japanese car makers are either resting on their laurels or have failed to maintain the qualities which they have set in the past. My family has owned Toyotas before. As an ex-Toyota owner, it is certainly depressing to see the modern Toyotas (& Lexus) relegate to such a state. Yet, the current Toyotas and Lexus are not exactly cheap if you consider the quality of these cars.

 

On the contrary, Korean car manufacturers are slowly but surely catching up on their paces. The build qualities of Hyundais, Kias have improved by leaps and bounds over the years.

 

Take the latest Hyundai Sonata for example. It has a very commendable fit quality. I could not detect any gripes in the exterior fitting quality, in particular the levelling of the front and rear doors. The gaps between the front and rear doors have a tighter clearance than the IS250's. The quality of the interior finishings are coming close to Japanese standards.

 

Give these Korean makes a few more years to polish up on their engine technologies to achieve better efficiency, quality of materials. I believe they will be able to win more customers for themselves in time to come.

[Fortress]

maybe we should all make re-badges for our new car, called Rolls Royce or something.

[Cool_jazz]

You are the man........

They better hire you as the TQM Director

[Odyssey02]

yepp. you should be the quality controller of lexus or toyota, but i just don't understand why everyone raves about toyota build quality when its obvious the standard has gone down over the years.

[Topgun]

Lexus takes pride in its motto "The Relentless Pursuit of Perfection". The first generations of Lexus indeed live up to the expectations of its motto.

 

But how about the current generation of Lexus?

 

First, let us take a look at the new IS250 which has reached our shores not long ago.

 

Don't flame me, but maybe NOT assembled in Japan but in a neighbouring country? Hehehe!

[Odyssey02]

no larr. all lexus are assembled in japan.

[Guitar77]

YOU ARE THE MAN!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

 

Should sent the pics to LEXUS!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

[Klchua]

Look like they are still pursuiting the perfection....

[Superblackbox]

hey bro.. kinda agree with u on the korean cars..

since the days or hyundai Excel and Stellar.. they haf improve a lot and still improving to be on par with the japs....

 

Well done korea......

Edited June 25, 2006 by Superblackbox

[Speeddemon]

....yeah...they r probably still in the process of relentlessly pursuing....just that havent reach perfection yet....

[Ahbengdriver]

I think the misalignment in the GS300 is slight n not a biggie vs the one in the IS250. Speaking of customer awareness, my friend and I was told something by the BM Sales Exec who attended to us when I accompanied by friend to look-see the IS250. I already got my car so was just tagging along to give second opinion/observation. The SE told us when we were in the test drive IS250 that the quietness of LEXUS cars were due to its powerful engines loaded into most models, so that it takes less effort and strain on the engine to push the car and plus the fact that the SE claimed the VVTi engines is silky smooth, hence LEXUS is quieter over not only conti cars, even over other Jap brands. He even mentioned that thats how cars shld be but in Singapore bcos of high road taxes, people usually can only afford smaller cc cars but then the underpowered engines creates loud noises, which the lEXUS doesnt.

 

Ok, sales is sales n a bit of marketing talk is fine. I dont blame the SE as he needs to sell cars to survive. But I am not an expert in the area of engines. What do the gurus think. I thought the quietness of the lexus is due to the extra thick insulation padding materials which cut off external noises? Any car will give out loud noises, maybe not heard from inside but surely from outside the car, if driven hard enuf?