Originally Posted by Joe Z

[ The production line was as simple as possible, consisting of trim, chassis, and body stages. Company president Akio Toyoda made sure of it. The dedicated LFA division within Motomachi was to be an example for the entire company. It would be streamlined, organized, efficient, and intelligent. There would be no overly complicated production techniques, and no internal divisions among staff. The concept of obeya, the sharing of ideas in a big room, was imperative for success. The artisans would return to how their Toyota forefathers built cars 70 years ago.

According to Masahito Miyoshi, Lexus LFA Works project manager, back in 2005, Toyota purchased other automakers' CFRP technology. But engineers soon realized the material wasn't up to snuff, so they scrapped everything and established a dedicated division. They needed to learn on their own. Ninety of the 170 takumi were assigned to carbon-fiber creation in the chassis and body stages. They revisited Toyota's textile roots and applied past technological and philosophical tenets to their current assignment. They focused on the idea of saiteki, the mind-set of using optimized techniques for certain parts, when determining their production processes. They studied other industries, visited various factories, and constantly amended their methods. Since the LFA's 425-pound chassis was 65 percent CFRP and 35 percent aluminum and its body was also mostly CFRP, they specialized in the most innovative fabrication techniques, including pre-impregnated sheets (pre-preg, used on the dash and firewall), resin-transfer molding (RTM; floor panels, seatbacks, and powertrain tunnel), and carbon-fiber sheet molding compound (C-SMC; rear hatch).


A robotic loom with 144 spools that spin strands of 24,000 carbon threads made just one part: the hollow door surrounds. The loom (the only one used in the automotive world), along with neighboring weaving machines, represented more than just an efficient way to build rigid parts. They were physical reminders of Toyota's early 20th-century loom-making origins. The craftsmen learned fast. They educated themselves in how to handle delicate layers of carbon threads. They became erudite in the ways of the vacuum seal and the Ashida autoclave. They reported their every failure and success in "Takumi Books," a trove of notes outlining personal methods of CFRP constructing and application. The notebooks served as study manuals for the entire facility. Toyota had never before kept such an exhaustive record for one production procedure. Although a critical element of the LFA's genome, carbon-fiber production was not the sole DNA strand that needed decoding. Body and trim stages went through growing pains. Many body parts and chassis pieces were scrapped for being faulty or painted incorrectly. Improvements to rigidity were implemented with successive prototypes. Quality control experts created a list of 9000 checkpoints.

Like ordained ministers, these final assemblers presided over the marriage of powertrain, chassis, body, and interior. They filed every chassis' "Evidence List," a record of data for each of the 500 units. The 1300-page books stuffed with drawings, measurements, torque specs, tire pressures, assembly procedures on every LFA built are locked inside Motomachi. On December 14, 2012, nearly a month after my visit, the takumi completed chassis No. 500, a Whitest White Nuerburgring Edition. In so many ways, the Lexus LFA Works fulfilled its mission. What the hand-picked artisans accomplished and learned in Motomachi will permeate throughout the various reaches of Lexus and Toyota manufacturing, particularly when it comes to CFRP. Current ES, GS, and LS models utilize extensive takumi work. "I would like to use the takumi skills I learned here and apply them to a new carbon project," said CFRP Vacuum Group leader Tatsuya Sato. "I have a dream of creating a car using carbon."
]

Originally Posted by bitkahuna

what happens to the takumi now that the production run is over?

Originally Posted by GiantsFan

That last picture says "LFA 1" ... Forshadowing a LFA 2? If there really wasn't going to be a LFA 2 or 3, why would they put a "1" there? Hmmmmm....