Plus the mirror remains visible within the cone of the windshield wipers. You didn’t have to turn your head at all to see the passenger side, especially helpful in narrow streets. The main reason is visibility (obviously) similar to trucks with blind spots. However, some SUVs and commercial vehicles retained at least one fender mirror. Japan mandated fender mirrors until 1983, and when that law expired, most passenger cars reverted to standard mirrors. Therefore, Toyota implemented a small passenger-side fender mirror on its SUVS, a trend that continues to this day. And as previously mentioned, the roads in Japan get quite narrow and difficult to negotiate. And the Toyota Harrier (Lexus RX) was Japan’s first-ever true crossover. Nobody accuses the J80 Land Cruiser of skipping meals. The Extra Passenger Fender Mirror (Various Lexus SUVs) Spray this hydrophobic washer fluid on to quickly melt away snow and frost and keep ice from settling. This canister is bumped up right next to the radiator, so warms up with the car. The wiper stalk featured a corresponding second button labeled, “油膜取り.” In Japanese, this literally translates to, “Oil film/slick remover.” Toyota intended the sprayer to be used with a separate formula of oil-based washer fluid. Under the hood lies a peculiar addition: a second bottle for washer fluid. Dual Washer Fluid Buttons (Lexus LS 400)Īll Lexus LS models up to 2004 (the history of which is covered here) are known as the Toyota Celsior in native Japan. Though the expense and maintenance of the option meant that proportionately fewer JDM cars of all makes ended up with 4WS than almost any other non-powertrain option. Other manufacturers such as Mazda, Mitsubishi, and Nissan also fielded their own 4WS systems during this time. This package, officially the UZZ32 chassis designation, contained active hydropneumatic suspension (A-SUS), active four-wheel steering (A-4WS), and all the other bells and whistles. To help ease the burden in narrow streets, as well as improve everyday handling, Toyota equipped 874 premium-edition Soarers with a special package. As such, its length is nearly 30% longer than contemporary compacts. The Z30 Toyota Soarer, a direct port of the first-gen Lexus SC, is classified as a full-size luxury car in Japan. In addition to less road tax, smaller cars are more maneuverable in tight spaces. There’s a reason why Japanese people buy smaller cars. Japan features notoriously narrow roads, many of which are one-lane with 30 km/h speed limits. 4-Wheel Steering (Lexus SC 300 / Toyota Soarer) But here are a few of the more prominent but sometimes overlooked differences between USDM and JDM Lexus/Toyota models. Dozens of these small idiosyncrasies exist between each version of the vehicle. You have everything from different style turn signals to different standard equipment like folding mirrors. Many of these changes are largely inconsequential. Toyota generally implemented many of these changes either to better suit the intended customers or to satisfy Japanese road laws. But many subtle alterations exist between two otherwise functionally identical vehicles as well. You drive on the opposite side, you get unique engine/transmission combinations, and so on. There are a lot of (obvious) differences between JDM and USDM Lexus/Toyota models. The first wave of the Japanese luxury invasion proved that frugality and forgiveness-mechanical in this case-were more important than history.A few subtle changes make all the difference in the world for these otherwise identical cars marketed to two very different countries. They didn’t require much care and feeding. The first Acuras, Infinitis, and Lexuses-especially Lexuses-had great and accommodating dealers, and the cars were not finicky or pricey like their German counterparts. And they exposed some important things about the people who buy luxury cars: By and large, they care a lot about their money, they care a lot about their time, and they care a lot about how they’re treated. There were differences of dynamic tonality among the three, but none had any real backstory, no significant competition trophies in their cases. JESSICA LYNN WALKERĪnd so set a pattern: Honda as Acura, Nissan as Infiniti, and Toyota as Lexus built reliable, refined, high-value cars to reshuffle the luxury-car deck. The first LS400 did what all watershed products do: force consumers to recalibrate their expectations and assumptions of an entire industry.
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