Early in the 1980s, the Toyota Motor Corporation started the F1 project. The Japanese manufacturer painstakingly developed the LS over a period of six years at the cost of more than $1 billion – huge money back then – with one purpose in mind: to beat Mercedes and BMW at their own game. Rather surprisingly, Lexus did exactly that with the first-gen LS.
The no-expenses-spared development process ensured the commercial success of the Luxury Sedan through engineering excellence and world-class reliability, but also elevated the Lexus brand to a household name overnight. The aforementioned $1 billion research & development budget caused a few executives to sweat nervously with unease, yet the return on investment exceeded everyone's expectations.
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