Talk about clever marketing, Lexus came up with a decent TV series presented by race car drivers/champions, Justin Bell and Townsend Bell. The episodes not only feature Lexus cars, more recently the new Lexus IS, but also engage the audience in voting for the route or area chosen for each episode.
In short, each episode shows Justin and Townsend enjoying private access to a different winding road, or a scenic route somewhere in North America, pushing their car to the limit. Not only is the show entertaining in terms of the little pranks and shenanigan they play on each other, it also features some decent camera work and scenic photography.
Make no mistake about it, the cars are the spotlight of the show and at the end of the days it's all about (clever) marketing. But what better way to present the amazing Lexus cars? I really gotta give credit to Lexus USA for making this possible and I only wish Lexus Europe would come up with a similar idea given the vast amount of racetracks, winding roads and scenic routes in Europe! Oh, and while you're at it, make sure this stuff gets a DVD or BD release, please!
The first episode features a Lexus GS F SPORT in Orgeon
Season 2 - Episode 1 - Lexus IS 350 F SPORT @Whidbey Island, Washington
Season 2 - Episode 2 - Lexus IS 350 F SPORT @Angel Fire Road, New Mexico
Season 2 - Episode 3 - Lexus IS 350 F SPORT @South Mountain Road, Arizona
Season 2 - Episode 4 - Lexus IS 350 F @Mulholland Highway, California
Toyota is undeniably an amazing company. Whether you look at their management style, the production system, including project/process management, or the marketing… well, at least in Japan. Unfortunately, over here in Germany people prefer to ignore Toyota's long lasting success story and their global brand positioning, including Lexus, in the light of domestic carmakers. Some of these perceptions are indeed self-made… but that's another story.
However, if you - like me - enjoy sporty Toyota and Lexus sedans, you've gotta love the newest Toyota Crown Athlete. And, yes, Toyota did release this car as "ReBORN PINK" edition! In fact, the sporty version of the base Toyota Crown Royal, although in a less flashy white finish, was featured in an entertaining commercial that I found on YouTube the other day.
Without further ado, enjoy "Toyota Crown Athlete Series - A Mission":
Compared to other car makers, it is difficult to find decent photo galleries or YT videos of major Lexus related meetings and events. Sure, you have your dealer events and offline meetings, but I have yet to find an annual Lexus meeting open to all cars of the brand, or at least a regular event, such as trackdays or skyline cruizing, and so forth.
Just the other day, I found a couple of photo galleries, showcasing several meetings by a club called B2IS CLUB, dedicated to the latest generation of the Lexus IS. Those galleries featured several customized IS cars with some of the latest aftermarket parts. Upon further research, I got in touch with members of the club through minkara and learned about their activities (thanks to p_room-san!).
What started as a casual exchange between IS owners online turned into the initiation of a club, meeting offline in November 2013 for the first time. Back then, 12 cars attended the initiation meeting at Lake Suwa, Nagano Prefecture. The following casual meetings were held in Kakegawa City, Shizuoka Prefecture (19 cars attending in April 2014), as well as in Ako City, Hyogo Prefecture (12 cars attending in June 2014). In fact, the next casual meeting is set for October 25 with approx. 20 cars ready to meet up at Lake Hamanako, Shizuoka Prefecture.
If you are interested in the latest Lexus IS trends from Japan and a feast for the eyes in terms of customizing and tuning, make sure you keep an eye out for the B2IS CLUB members here on minkara, or offline, in Japan!
「ReBORN PINK」の新トヨタクラウンアスリートをはじめて見たら、ビックリしました。私は、トヨタが本当にあの車をセールできると分かりませんでしたが、色々なフォトギャレリーを見ながら、どんどん好きになりました。あのピンクカラーはレクサスIS F SPORTの場合どうでしょうか。。。
Toyota is undeniably an amazing company. Whether you look at their management style, the production system, including project/process management, or the marketing… well, at least in Japan. Unfortunately, over here in Germany people prefer to ignore Toyota's long lasting success story and their global brand positioning, including Lexus, in the light of domestic carmakers. Some of these perceptions are indeed self-made… but that's another story.![Lexus IS Club "B2IS"](/image.aspx?src=https%3a%2f%2fcdn.snsimg.carview.co.jp%2fminkara%2fblog%2f000%2f034%2f129%2f828%2f34129828%2fp1.jpg%3fct%3d22db90eb5124 "Lexus IS Club "B2IS"")
Compared to other car makers, it is difficult to find decent photo galleries or YT videos of major Lexus related meetings and events. Sure, you have your dealer events and offline meetings, but I have yet to find an annual Lexus meeting open to all cars of the brand, or at least a regular event, such as trackdays or skyline cruizing, and so forth.
