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Until now, Toyota has been hugely successful making cars that are functional, affordable and perhaps even likeable. Being a skilled chameleon it has churned out products to suite all walks of life. But even this giant carmaker cannot ignore the increasing fundamental importance of design, as its new global design manager, Wahei Hirai, tells Nargess Shahmanesh-Banks in an exclusive interview at the Paris Motor Show.

J-factor is Japanese originality that will have global appeal,” Hirai

Europe is key to Toyota’s global strategy. The carmaker refers to a ‘superior quality’ that needs to be injected further into its cars for Europe. Hirai says that Toyota already knows a great deal about quality and reliability, what it now needs to instil into its cars is design. “Surface is very important,” he explains. The designer brings as example the company’s recent show car, the Lexus LF-C on the stand in Paris. Here he thinks the use of positive and negative aspects as well as the strong, sharp and round forms create a certain contrast on the surface. “There is harmony on the exterior design, but at the same time the interior must introduce the same perceived quality,” he says. This means using quality material and paying extra attention to form to create the quality that is desirable.

The global giant has never been famous for its design signature, especially when it comes to the interior. Hirai thinks that there has been substantial change in the right direction fuelled mainly by the emergence of Toyota’s European design centres, the first of which was set up in Brussels ten years ago. The location was chosen primarily because of its geographic proximity to mainland Europe, but has since moved to Nice in the shape of ED². “We began to study European taste,” he says of the Brussels experience. Although with Europe, he admits, it is much more tricky to understand taste. “It’s not one country, you know,” he says mockingly.” There are so many different cultures and tastes in Europe that need to be understood.”

In general, he says: “design and styling need to appeal more to the European taste to achieve the level of perceived quality.” More importantly the perceived quality itself will take on a more global vision. “Although the fundamentals will state the same, how we appeal will be different according to taste,” says Hirai.

Toyota’s core product line-up in Europe includes from bottoms up the Yaris -- also a big hit in Japan according to Hirai -- the Corolla and the Avensis. With the Yaris, Hirai explains, the packaging is quite new and unique. “The exterior may be compact, but the interior has a lot of space,” he says. Following the success of the small car, the Corolla and Avensis as well as their Verso variants were designed and made in Europe for Europe.

What is equally fascinating is that Toyota is reintroducing its European designed cars like the Avensis back to Japan. “At the start Japanese domestic marketing people were very afraid. They thought this is going too far, that the cars are too European for Japan,” he says. However in the end they gave in and sales increased dramatically in Japan. “Now we realise that the European taste will fit the Japanese market,” says Hirai so much so that the current generation of European designed Corollas will be exported to the Japanese market as well.

Across the Atlantic things are different. On the US roads, every other car is probably a Toyota. Hirai explains that his cars have a strong and long history there. They are seen as reliable cars with a reasonable price tag attached. “After a while people there began to like the brand and the company started to match the American customer’s taste,” he says. The Calty (spell?) design centre in California was established over 30 years ago specifically to cultivate the translation of this taste. Here Japanese designers have been working with their American counterparts to find the right direction to appeal to the American customer.

Hirai is an old timer at Toyota. He has been with the carmaker since 1976, though you would not know to look at him. “I have been here for thirty-two years,” he says laughing. This included time served at Calty as well as ED², where he was design manager prior to his current promotion. For him it is important for his designers to experience working outside Japan. Toyota does however have a small design centre in Tokyo. “We need to have fresh and trendy information,” he laughs as he describes life in the crazy city. This is incidentally where the designer is based.

Toyota sells an overwhelming number of models in its home market. Including commercial vehicles, the number is a staggering 99. This is a completely different market for the carmaker where it has 43 per cent market share. “We don’t need to think too much about our own identity in Japan. It is already strong there,” he states proudly.

The designer is more than aware of differences outside Japan. In Europe especially, he sees each car company owning its own unique identity based on its background and cultural heritage. “We have less of a history than European carmakers,” he admits, which is why the company has been ploughing away to find its own design identity. “First we need an originality that is based on our Japanese background. A German car looks like a German car and a French one like a French car, so why shouldn’t a Toyota look Japanese,” he asks.

Following some major brainstorming sessions a conclusion was reaches that Toyota’s DNA isn’t simply a representation of the old Japanese art and design, but rather in context with the younger generation, it can be extremely advanced and high tech. Hirai’s vision is to combine the old Japanese concept of simple design and architecture, infuse it with high technology that can often be complicated to create an entirely different design language. “For example in the interior we can use very high tech methods to create something that looks natural and comfortable. This will lead to something that is very different from European design,” says Hirai.

There are two aspects to life in Japan: one is serenity, the other an embrace of technology. One minute you may be working in compact and high tech Tokyo, but in two hours you are transported on the high-speed train to the idyllic tranquillity of ancient Kyoto. “If these opposite parts get together there is the possibility of creating something very new,” says the designer.

J-factor, or Japan factor, is the buzzword for Toyota. It will apply not only to the design of all future Toyota cars, but also to engineering as well as corporate identity. “J-factor is Japanese originality that will have global appeal,” says Hirai admitting that it was this unique factor that was perhaps missing in past Toyota cars. His team have just begun injecting the new DNA into the brand. For instance ED² currently has sixteen designers with nine nationalities. “Each has a different background, but it is equally interesting to see what view each nationality has of Japan. I think we can create something completely new,” he says enthusiastically.

Hirai has a global vision when it comes to Toyota, but most importantly he will introduce emotion into the brand

At Calty too the design team are thinking in the direction of the J-factor. “They may have a completely different view of this, but we can meet somewhere in the middle. The most important thing, though is for our design to be independent and original,” he says, “especially in the future.” All Toyotas, including concept cars, will have J-factor as their DNA.

Toyota, Hirai reminds us, has two separate brands, Toyota and Lexus. “The question is how do we define the two,” he says. Lexus sells well in the US and has more or less established itself as a worthy premium brand. In Europe, however, the cars are considered perhaps a little old fashioned in terms of design, something that Hirai agrees adding with a hearty laugh the promise of a whole new generation of Lexus cars.

With the more luxury marquee, Toyota has come up with another jargon, l-finesse. “L stands for leading edge and finesse is a nice word, it has a good sound that can inspire a designer,” Hirai explains and he would like to continue using this term when designing Lexus cars globally.

The Toyota brand itself is a harder candidate, admits Hirai. “We have so many different body types, it is difficult to be vibrant and have clarity,” he says which is why he has come up with a third keyword to push Toyota design forward, called aptly vibrant clarity. “Therefore Lexus will have l-finesse, Toyota vibrant clarity and all brands will function under the J-factor.”

Toyota has been pushing ahead of many of its competitors in the alternative fuel car market with the Prius hybrid proving that a mainstream green car is extremely production as well as public friendly. The new GT version and Lexus RX400h, launched at Paris, are proof that a so-called performance hybrid is also feasible. “This has dramatically changed the layout of the car,” says Hirai. “Maybe we can even completely change the package with different proportions. We have a good chance to propose some extreme advanced design,” he says adding that the hybrids too will flourish under the umbrella of J-factor.

LF-C is the third successive LF concept car to reflect new Lexus design, an entirely new design rationale for the brand. It shows elements of styling and technology anticipated on the next generation IS range

Toyota wants its designers to think pass at all times, where ‘p’ stands for proportion, ‘a’ for architecture, ‘s’ for surface and the second ‘s’ for something special. Hirai doesn’t want Toyota or Lexus cars to be distinguished by say a similar grille. He sees this as very much a European strategy. Instead he thinks that Toyota needs to find out some other way to instil harmony and brotherhood within the brand.

“We used to design maybe using only this area,” says Hirai pointing at his head, “but now (touching his heart) we have to use this area as well. Not only in styling, but also the whole concept has to become more emotional. We need to deliver a lifestyle,” he says passionately. “In the future we want people to buy our cars because of this, because of design.”