On December 5, the Inventor Garage at Woven City in Susono, Shizuoka, hosted the world premiere of three new sports cars.
In Pebble Beach they said, “Lexus is boring.”
At the Nürburgring, he heard, “Toyota can’t make cars like this, can they?”
Chairman Akio Toyoda spoke about how these two moments of frustration became his driving force.
On this episode of Toyota Times News, viewers can see presentations by Chairman Toyoda and Chief Branding Officer Simon Humphries, along with footage from the day before the premiere, when Chairman Toyoda offered words of encouragement to staff, as well as the talk session held after the presentations.
The talk session featured Yuta Tomikawa as facilitator, with guests including Project General Manager Takashi Doi; professional drivers Tatsuya Kataoka and Naoya Gamo who assisted with development; gentleman driver Daisuke Toyoda; and Satoshi Toyooka, head of the Advanced Technical Skills Institute Division.
Daisuke Toyoda reflected on Chairman Toyoda’s ambitions for the three cars, saying, “I imagine there were things he achieved with the LFA, and other things he wasn’t able to achieve.”
He continued, “I hope this car can help resolve some of that frustration.”
The panelists also shared stories and insights that weren’t included in the presentations, so be sure to stay until the very end.
A special world premiere edition of Voice-Only Toyota Times was released on the same day as the news. Fresh from his presentation, Chairman Toyoda shared his story with Yuta Tomikawa. What does developing sports ability mean to Toyota? How was he involved in the development process? Giving that episode a listen is a great way to gain an even deeper understanding of the background behind these cars.