Lexus LS - Manufacturing

Manufacturing

The Lexus LS has been consistently produced on dedicated Lexus assembly lines at Toyota's flagship Tahara factory, located in the city of Tahara, in Aichi Prefecture, Chūbu region, southwest of Nagoya, since 1989. Tahara remains the sole production site, having inaugurated its new line number four specifically for assembly of the original LS 400.

For the Lexus LS, the Tahara plant developed new molds and enhanced assembly techniques and instituted measures aimed at increasing the precision of the sedan's fit and finish. The 1989 LS 400 became the first production automobile to receive extensive laser welding, allowing for seamless steel welds. A large sheet metal press was developed to reduce or eliminate panel gaps by stamping large sections whole instead of singly. Separately installed parts, such as exterior lights, were also spring-loaded for a tighter fit. On the LS 400, engineers reduced door panel gaps in half versus Toyota-brand vehicles, from 7 mm (0.28 in) to 4 mm (0.16 in), with measurements made within 0.01 millimetres (0.00039 in); on the LS 430, measurement margins were increased tenfold, to 0.001 mm (3.9×10−5 in). When production switched to the LS 460, the number of laser welds was doubled.

Despite Tahara's large-scale automation, Lexus LS production also involves specialized personnel who are tasked with key production points, such as testing each vehicle's V8 engine via dynamometer and stethoscope for calibration before installation. With the LS 460, a hand-sanded paint process was introduced. The production standards used on the Lexus LS were eventually adopted by the manufacturer for other vehicles; in 2007, the assembly of Toyota Corolla economy cars used the same panel gap measurements as the LS 400 did eighteen years earlier.