Yukihiko Yaguchi | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1955 (age 69–70) |
| Education | Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Technology |
| Engineering career | |
| Discipline | Mechanical engineering |
| Significant design | Toyota Supra |
Yukihiko Yaguchi (矢口幸彦,Yukihiko Yaguchi) is a Japaneseautomotive engineer anddesigner responsible for the design of the first generationLexus IS F. Born in 1955,[1] he has over 30 years of experience in car design,[2] having worked as head of development and planning forLexus, where he holds the title of chief engineer. His involvement with Lexus and Toyota is likely how the SC 300 received the renowned inline-6 2JZ-GE from the Mark IV Toyota Supra in a naturally aspirated format. Yaguchi previously worked on the development of theToyota Chaser and all generations of theToyota Supra.
Yukihiko Yaguchi was raised by the Japanese tradition, which is very traditional and strict. At theTokyo Metropolitan Institute of Technology he studiedMechanical Engineering but did not specialise in a subject. However, long before he studied mechanical engineering it was obvious to him that he would work for theJapanese automobile industry. AtTMC (Toyota Motor Company) he found his first job. Yaguchi joined TMC in 1977.[1]
After he graduated from the university, Yaguchi took part in an entry exam atToyota and started to work with the company. One of his first projects was the design of theToyota Supra. He worked on the Supra Mark 1, Mark 2, Mark 3 and Mark 4. Yaguchi was involved in the design of a variation of theToyota Mark II model called theChaser, which was intended to be a mix between a luxury car and a very sporty car. The car that resulted had the suspension and the engine of the Supra. This car can now be seen as predecessor of theLexus IS F.[3]
While he designed theSupra Yaguchi-san was at the 1980s birth ofLexus as a part theTMC. He spent a lot of time with the new designs forLexus cars (especiallyLexus LS 400) and became head of general development and planning forLexus.[3] In the year 2006 he was asked to manage the design for the IS F.
The IS F is the sports version of the normalLexus IS sedan. For the IS F, Yaguchi was inspired by driving in a lot of other cars.[4] In an interview, he said that he loves sports cars, but thinks it's a pity that the most sports cars have 2 seats instead of 4. Exactly that idea was the basis for the IS F.[5]
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