5 comments about Toyota Prius, '01-'08 (Hayne's Automotive Repair Manual).

1. For under $20, this might be an ok repair manual, but it has glaring omissions, as is usual with Haynes. For example, when replacing the spark plugs on the Prius (a typical DIY procedure that you might expect to have thorough coverage in this type of repair manual), the torque value for the plugs is provided, but the torque value for the individual coil hold-down bolts (a critical connection for environmental sealing and ignition electrical ground) is not provided, or even mentioned as being important to check.
   I'd wait until the Bentley manual is published and take a look at it first before buying this manual.



2. Seems that it was the first after market service manual for the Toyoto Prius for which I am grateful as the factory manuals cost rip off prices. I have felt helpless owning a car for three years with no manual although there have been no problems not even a burned out light bulb. The paper could be better. I wish that manuals were printed on greasy finger resistant paper.



3. This manual fills a critical need for Prius owners. From those who do not like being helpless at a repair center or dealership to those who like to do their own maintenance and repair this is a simple well-photographed description of almost all jobs to be done on the Prius. The only thing it lacks are the exploded diagrams that made the earlier Haynes manuals the state-of-the-art resources to which many of us "shady-tree" mechanics were accustomed . Photographs are acceptable, but due to focussing, printing and labeling limitations are just not as good. The instructions are concise, logical and well-written and include appropriate safety information. Having priced the Prius shop manuals at over $700.00 the reasonable price (about $15) makes it a bargain. It is a good book even for the average owner for it goes a long way toward demystifying Prius characteristics such as the hybrid system and regenerative braking. I still miss the exploded diagrams though....



4. I bought this book to learn more about the hybrid systems in this car, which is becoming more or less ubiquitous here in San Francisco. Who knows, someday I might even have one. The cover of the book even says, "Includes essential information for today's more complex vehicles."
   
   Unfortunately, the chapter covering the hybrid systems (ch. 5) is a scant seven pages. Service on these parts is limited to removal and replacement on a module by module basis. (Wearing thick rubber gloves, for insulation.)
   
   Still, it's interesting info, and if you own a Prius, you'll want to have a copy of this book for when your car goes out of warranty.
   
   By the way, there is zero info on "hacks", if that's what you're looking for.
   
   Otherwise, this is a typical Haynes book. It's only about half an inch thick, and I'd expect a factory manual to be 2-3 times that, so, you can bet it's both simpler to understand and missing a few details.



5. I've been purchasing them for every car I've owned as I own them and it has saved us so much money because on multiple occasions we've been able to fix minor issues, and once or twice we've fixed a major problem, without paying someone else to fix it. They're great buys if you own a car. In all the years I've used them, I only once couldn't find information about the installation of a part (hence the 4 stars instead of 5), and it was a windshield washer pump, so it's not like it was difficult to overcome.

5 comments about Haynes Toyota Camry Automotive Repair Manual: All Toyota Camry and Avalon Models 1992 thru 1996 (Haynes Repair Manuals).

1. With Haynes and Chilton's, you pretty much get what you pay, although in my opinion you get a little bit more from hayens than chiltons...but that's another topic. as far as manuals go, you're always better off with the 3 volumes of the toyota factory manuals ... for the three volumes-but are much better quality than these other two manuals. as far as this manual goes, it's not bad, there's some good information (that is if you care about dismantling your entire engine block and suspension/struts/shocks the whole 360) as far as simple things like knowing which wires to replace your speakers with, or tearing out the door panel to grant access to a window driver cable...this book is a little iffy. not great photos by any means, all b&w. this book is dominated by photos for the more mechanically inclined tasks, with only one section reserved for the actual interior of the car itself. it's not a bad manual, even still the mechanical instructions are not that great themselves, but still...it's better than nothing. I'd recommend these to any DIY person, you gain a little insight into the inner-workings of your car and how they're put together-but NOT how they work. for ex: I would like to DIY install an anti-roll bar for my suspension for my camry, this book doesn't venture into how to install after-market parts, or even how the original OEM parts all work together, JUST how to disassemble and reassmeble the car's OEM parts.
   overall: 3.5 really, but you're better off with the toyota factory manuals (the same manuals your mechanic uses).



2. Haynes manuals used to be fantastic; sadly, that is not the case with this one. Some key information is just plain wrong! For example, the description of how to replace the rear suspension arms contains some serious omissions. Even a simple operation like removing a front seat is explained in an inadequate and slipshod manner (yes, I am still trying to figure out how to do it).
   
   Maybe detailed diagrams like those found in competing manuals (e.g., Chilton) would be more useful than the photographs in this manual.
   
   Haynes claims that the manual is based on a complete tear-down and rebuild; was it a Camry they were working on?



3. It's the same manual you'd expect. The photos are black and white and not exactly crisp and clear. I think the step by step format of the text is great. It's worthwhile to pickup a copy, especially if you want to do your own maintenance.



4. What I don't understand is why a book like this is not included with your car? Purchased a used 92 Camry, did quite a bit of work to it. This book has already paid for itself 100 times over. Unfortunately, the car is so old that most diagnostics tools are no longer available making this manual even more valuable with it's diagnostic tips and hints.
   
   Good do it yourself book, definitely recommend having at least this book, if not this book and the other guys books as well.



5. This book is ok. Most of the repair in my camry was to the interior. When you couple hot miami summers (the car's first location) with cold Minnesota winters (the car's second location), you tend to get some brittle plastic interior components. Put that with a younger sister who didn't really know that much about the care of automobiles and you get SHATTERED interior components. Well, there was plenty of repair to be done in this vehicle by the time I decided to take it over and this book really didn't help me with that much of it. MOST, I just figured out myself. Maybe when the engine components start to go I'll need this a little more. But heck, it's toyota with over 175,000 on it. It's just getting broken in. ;)

3 comments about Toyota Landcruiser Series FJ60, 62, 80 and FZJ80, 1980-1996 (Haynes Manuals).

1. xxxx



2. If you own a land cruiser, this is a very useful book. My only gripe is that it spends a lot of time detailing stuff we already know, but that is probably intentional given the target audience. Very handy stuff that always remains in my glove compartment!



3. The troubleshooting and computer code information covering how to bridge the circuits is most useful. I had no idea it was possible to do this without a computer. This manual is the best one I have found for an 80 series with an 1FZ-FE engine. The main purpose I bought the book for was to obtain a little information as we often travel in remote areas where outside help is unavailable.

5 comments about Conquering Complexity in Your Business: How Wal-Mart, Toyota, and Other Top Companies Are Breaking Through the Ceiling on Profits and Growth.

1. Businesses talk about reducing complexity but have trouble determining it and simplifying it.
   
   The books provides a roadmap and technique that organizations can use to identify the bad compelxities that customers will not pay for. The book goes further and identifies possible solutions with a plethora of real life examples that make the theory easy to understand and apply



2. I found Conquering Complexity provides an excellent framework and lays out a compelling business case for why and how you should focus on complexity.
   This is the best guide out there in terms of a comprehensive approach to identify, quantify and attack complexity. The book is a very practical and pragmatic read with a wealth of real world examples and illustrations that reinforce concepts layed out in a logical sequence.
   In researching a number of books though there are many that contain bits and pieces of concepts that relate to complexity, I have found that none of them tackle the concept of complexity as a discipline that must be mastered as Conquering Complexity does. I found it to be a refreshing, compelling book that you can follow step by step to create a complexity focus and agenda in your organization. There is tremendous power in purchasing the book for co-workers or Managers to help raise their complexity IQ and see what is possible. I continue to learn from the book as I refer back to it frequently. I would highly recommend it to anyone or any organization that is looking to continuously improve or to create greater value. I really found the sections on Product/Service proliferation to be right on, and a wealth of information. - Rodney



3. This book, like the others in the series by Mike George (Fast Innovation, Lean Six Sigma) is right on target. The examples clearly show how complexity clutters business operations, products and decision making, thus reducing economic performance and shareholder value. The rigor (and mathematics)used to support and analyze the assertions is insightful and reinforces what is intuitively obvious when you understand their thesis. This is an important book for executives that would proabably be much more widely embraced if not for the math involved. Pity, the Japanese and others will pay attention.



4. This is an amazingly revealing book about the dangers of complexity that is not consciously managed. And just what does managing comlexity entail? I the authors' words, it means
   
   - Eliminating complexity that customers will not pay for
   - Exploiting the complexity customers will pay for, and
   - Minimizing the cost of the complexity you offer
   
   In part 1 the case is made for conquering complexity in your business' portfolio (number of offerings) and processes (number of ways of doing the same thing). Part 2 develops the conceptual framework for measuring and managing complexity. In part 3, you are shown how to apply these concepts to the elimination, exploitation and reducing the costs of complexity.
   
   Lastly, part 4 shows how to create an organisational culture that supports complexity management, conquer the complexity in your value chain and even apply the principles in mergers and acquisitions.



5. As the Six Sigma and Lean practice areas mature, the challenge is to discover new ways to apply these methods. Michael George proposes that an analysis that looks at complexity of a business is a way to identify areas of opportunity for improvement. The method is based on some patented equations that attempt to put numerical values on a company's complexity. When the complexity is calculated, and is found to be out of balance with the company's strategic direction, then action can be taken using Lean Six Sigma to reduce (or increase) complexity.
   
   This book proposes methods that cross conventional organizational boundaries, so the mission and the methods must be adopted by senior people who can see the benefits of crossing the boundaries. To make a difference managing complexity, these senior people must have the people and power to calculate new business measures and deploy teams that may not align with current organizations and departments.
   
   The method seems sound, although the case studies are few. Anecdotes fill in the gap between idea and practice, and the anecdotes seem forced or coincidental (for example, Wal-Mart and Toyota can be used to justify nearly every business improvement method, even if neither of these companies goes on record as having used the method).
   
   As usual in the improvement business, it's a matter of cost versus benefits. It seems to be a low risk analysis method that can reveal a potentially high risk, but high reward, payback. Since the equations are patented, presumably the only way that one can actually try this method is to contact (and hire?) Mr. George's consulting company.

3 comments about Toyota Highlander 2001-2006 & Lexus RX-330 1999-2006.

1. If you have an automobile, occasionally to work on it yourself, & and are not a mechanic, the Haynes manual provides detailed information on services & peace of mind.



2. This manual is by far the best one on the market, for instruction, and pictures.



3. Book was missing the error code I was looking for, P0135, so I had to search the internet to find what code meant. The pages are as thin as newspaper. My owner's manual states 87 octane or higher. Book has 91 octane or higher. So always check a second source before you start working on the vehicle.

2 comments about Going Lean: How the Best Companies Apply Lean Manufacturing Principles to Shatter Uncertainty, Drive Innovation, and Maximize Profits.

1. This Audio CD of the Book "Going Lean" by Stephen Ruffa is a must have for the Lean Practitioner or any one in a leadership postion in the 21st Century who wants to lead their team to excellence.
   
   Ruffa does a great analysis and expands on current (2008) global business culture for multinational corporations in current times. Going Lean brings us up to date on earlier publication by Jim Womack, (The Machine that changed the World, Lean Thinking) and Liker's (The Toyota Way). Ruffa also gives credit and supports the early Lean Pioneers (Henry Ford, Ono, Deming, Peter Drucker and more experts within the recent age of digitalization and globalization.
   
   A good reference source for Business school students at the undergraduate and Graduate School Level.



2. When traditional managers apply traditional methods to chaotic events - Katrina, for example,or steep oil price increases - they get - you guessed it - traditional, disappointing results. Enter Steve Ruffa's approach to lean, as demonstrated by Toyota,Walmart and Southwest Airlines, three notches and two thousand miles above day to day lean operations. Ruffa provides hard answers and clear examples to the questions managers have been struggling with for over 15 years - how to take lean into bigger, crazier, more dangerous environments. Cross a hard aerospace engineer who loves real numbers, with great and flexible lean giants, and what you get is an over-riding lean approach dubbed Lean Dynamics by Shingo Prize winning author Ruffa, that US industries need right now. My only complaint? The title should have been Lean Dynamics.

5 comments about The United States of Toyota: How Detroit Squandered Its Legacy and Enabled Toyota to Become America's Car Company.

1. As an auto insider, I read this book a bit more critically than most people would. While I find that DeLorenzo's criticisms are mostly valid, some of his pronouncements are contradictory. On the one hand, he blames the Detroit Three for not having seen the challenge from the imports(in terms of producing cars that people want), he also chews out unions for not giving back wages and benefits that he believes puts American vehicles at a disadvantage. So what do we have here: cars that don't excite people, or cars that are too expensive because of union labor?
   
   Most overseas companies that manufacture in the US(Honda, Nissan, Toyota, Subaru) offer a wage and benefits package that is comparable to UAW employees, within a couple of dollars an hour(and under the recently negotiated agreements with the UAW, many new employees at the Detroit 3 will make substantially less than their counterparts at the Asian manufacturers). The difference between Detroit labor costs and, say, Toyota's is the "legacy" cost of retirees' pension and health care. Those costs are a burden to Detroit, primarily because of the auto companies failure to build those costs in during the working lifetime of the retirees. Granted, not all costs can be foreseen, but it seems like the "Big 3" fudged their obligations to make the balance sheet look better(and to pad executive compensation, lest we forget), and now it's time to pay the piper. So do current employees of the Detroit Three have to pay for the mis-steps of GM, Ford and Chrysler with respect to obligations toward retirees? Prima facie, Detroit direct labor cost is not a significant factor in the competition with the foreign companies who manufacture in the US, and American companies are beating this drum just to hide their own deficiencies.
   
   Peter DeLorenzo devotes much of the book to alternately praising and bashing Toyota. He praises Toyota for its relentless persuit of perfection and at the same time criticizes it for "blandness". Perhaps he does not understand that "edgy" might work for niche manufacturers, but when you are trying to be Number One in the world, you are going to style cars that would have the broadest appeal. I agree with him, however, that Toyota's foray into NASCAR is a mis-step, but on the other hand it might just be a PR expense that Toyota feels is necessary to overcome import bias.
   
   DeLorenzo is a self-professed "car guy" and you can see his bias toward other "car guys" in the business. Nothing wrong with that, except when you are building a bread-and-butter 5-seat transporter with good fuel economy and decent styling, the "car guys" usually mess it up with doo-dads that price the vehicle out of it's intended market. Look at Chrysler, with it's $38,000 Dodge Grand Caravan minivan and $50,000 Dodge Ram truck: I don't think that's where a mass-market American manufacturer should be.
   
   As someone who makes a living in the auto industry, I have seen for myself the failure of the Detroit 3 to fully and effectively utilize tools such as Lean Processing, ISO or ANSI procedures, waste control and customer clinics. This includes things like over-production, poor material handling/packaging, tens of millions spent on "concepts" that don't have a ghost of a chance of making it into production, failure to optimize the dealer experience and so on. I have calculated that, quite literally, billions of dollars are being wasted by Detroit in costs that can be controlled almost instantly.
   
   DeLorenzo seems to think that if you build "visceral" cars like the ones that (he claims) put Detroit at the top of the automotive heap in the 60s, you would return "desirable" to the qualities of Detroit products. But this is the 21st century, with buzz terms like "fuel efficiency", "going green", "eco-friendly" and "5-star safety" that were not part of the lexicon of the 60s. Chrysler's experiment with putting out a high-performance(read "visceral") version of almost everything they build in the form of SRT-badging has been a dismal failure except for a handful of enthusiasts. Retro-styling has pretty much run its course, and people are now looking for new, exciting and affordable products. Unfortunately, that's not something you are likely to see at a Detroit 3 showroom, with the exception of vehicles like the Corvette(which, in it's class, is outstanding value for money besides being a truly beautiful sports car).
   
   This book gives you an insider's look at some of the politics that took Detroit down the road to mediocrity, and of the complacency and sycophancy that let the Asians eat their lunch. It is a book more valuable for it's historical insights than for it's prescription to restore Detroit to health. Unfortunately, little has changed in Motown.



2. Peter DeLorenzo is something that the auto industry has long needed: a gadfly. Not a car-hating, unsafe-at-any-speed the-car-is-the-source-of-all-our-problems kind of gadfly, but a car-loving gadfly.
   
   I once worked at a Detroit ad agency where we were told not to visit Mr. Delorenzo's [...] website on the company's computers. (If you know advertising creative people, then you know that only fueled our passion to visit the site every week.)
   
   "The United States of Toyota" is basically a compilation of Mr. Delorenzo's weekly rants from the website. His writing is brash, arrogant, egotistical, conceited, and darn near always right.
   
   If you live somewhere other than Detroit, if you don't work in the automotive industry, then you will have a hard time believing any industry could be run like this. But I spent 25 years at it, and Peter is right.
   
   We're now seeing the American car companies starting to do some of the things Peter has been ranting about for years, and as a result, perhaps starting to turn the corner.
   
   I learned nothing new from the book, having read the website rants from the beginning. I bought the book mainly to show support for the one accessory American cars have long needed--a gadfly.
   
   (Full disclosure: I worked at the same ad agency as Mr. DeLorenzo for several years, and would watch with amusement and admiration as he would appear at the office with a different car, often on a monthly basis. He would careen back and forth between every possible type of vehicle; a Jetta to a 911 to a Civic to a `70s Seville, etc. He clearly loved cars.)



3. Peter Delorenzo's book is a delightful and aggressive attack on the arrogance and narrowmindedness that has driven the Detroit auto industry to the brink of disaster and that gave Toyota a huge opportunity to create its own empire with its attendant risks. The United States of Toyota is made interesting because of Delorenzo's intimate knowledge of the auto industry and because of his 'take no prisoners' style of writing. I was alternately amused and disgusted by the events he described. Even if I had not been involved in the automobile industry I would have enjoyed this book.



4. 
   "The United States of Toyota" is a must read for anyone who wants an unbiased perspective of the past, present, and possible future of U.S. auto industry. With a global economy many economists discount the fact that the fall of Detroit will impact the U.S. economy for many generations. While it is now trendy to bash Detroit for its lack of vision and poor management, Peter DeLorenzo has been warning of the demise of Detroit and the U.S. auto industry for dozens of years. Until recently very few have listened to his advice but there is still time to heed his sage advice.
   
   A combination of historical perspective, insider secrets, reality checks, prescient predictions, dire warnings, and tongue-in-cheek irreverence, this book is informative and easy to digest. Auto industry drones, apologists, bean-counters, and "yes men" who have driven Detroit to the edge of disaster should pay special attention--remember the louder they complain the more accurate is DeLorenzo's aim.
   
   DeLorenzo accurately points out that profits of the foreign automakers are returned home and that their respective governments do all in their power to support their own, whether currency manipulation, tax breaks, investment incentives or just plain hard ball politics. This begs the question whether there is such a thing as a truly "free economy" as we are led to believe.
   
   DeLorenzo is a rare breed: an automotive visionary with an automotive family pedigree who has industry depth, analytical skills, automotive expertise, and racing knowledge with significant time on the track. With his "no holds barred" approach, DeLorenzo tells it like it is regardless of who may get sideways in the process.
   
   The words of Niccolo Machiavelli, written almost five centuries ago in The Prince, still hold true for a visionary like DeLorenzo when attacked by his critics:
   
   "It should be borne in mind that there is nothing more difficult to handle, more doubtful of success, and more dangerous to carry through than initiating changes.... The innovator makes enemies of all those who prospered under the old order, and only lukewarm support is forthcoming from those who would prosper under the new. Their support is lukewarm, partly from fear of their adversaries, who have the existing authority on their side and, partly because men are generally incredulous, never really trusting new things unless they have tested them by experience."
   
   DeLorenzo's long-standing advice to GM, Ford, and Chrysler that courage, vision, and significant change are needed can no longer be ignored. One can only wonder what would happen if DeLorenzo had authority for the design, manufacture, and marketing of just one division or just one product line or just one vehicle.



5. I became a regular reader of DeLorenzo's Autoextremist blog a few years ago, and looked forward to his weekly rants about the Detroit scene. Unfortunately, this book reads a little too much like a blog. Some of the chapters are just three or four pages, and are written in the style of blog posts. In fact, quite a bit of the prose in the book had already been previously published on the Autoextremist blog, and was immediately recognizable as such.
   
   If you're an Autoextremist reader hoping DeLorenzo will further develop the ideas he presents on his blog, you're going to come away from this at least a little disappointed. Nobody is going to agree with every last thing he says, and some will be put off by his informal style (replete with catchphrases and vulgar language.) His strongest points are probably his dissection of Chrysler's woes and his demonstration of how Toyota's PR department so masterfully manipulates the American media (as he saves his strongest vitriol for New York Times columnist and Toyota apologist Thomas Friedman.)

3 comments about A Study of the Toyota Production System: From an Industrial Engineering Viewpoint (Produce What Is Needed, When It's Needed).

1. I enjoyed it since it gave me insight on how TPS evolved and allowed me to better understand not how TPS works but more why.



2. There are a lot of books about the Toyota Production System, but this is one of the most useful for those actually attempting to implement elements of this system. Most of the books on TPS by western authers are just superficial glosses written by MBA's who don't seem to have a clue how to make anything. This book is detailed, specific, clearly written, and very well translated. Some of the material is repetative, nevertheless this is the book to get on TPS.



3. Shigeo Shingo was the mastermind behind the Toyota Production System, constantly experimenting and thinking on how to improve. The result was an approach that significantly reduced required inventories (and their associated costs and losses), improved quality, and reduced throughput time.
   
   "A Study of the Toyota Production System" is somewhat difficult to read, due to translation issues, but more importantly will make you stop to think, scratch your head in disbelief, and then finally agree in amazement.

2 comments about Toyota Tundra & Sequoia 2000 thru 2005: All 2WD and 4WD models (Haynes Repair Manual).

1. I am dissapointed about this manual. I was expecting more details for the 2005 Tundra, specifically on the transmission maintenance. If you already have the 2000-2002 version, that's all the information you are going to get. Dont buy it



2. Excellent book - written by a pro with lots of valuable drawings and photographs to assist the do-it-yourself person.

3 comments about How Toyota Became #1: Leadership Lessons from the World's Greatest Car Company.

1. The subtitle of this book, "Leadership Lessons from the World's Greatest Car Company", let's the reader know that this is really a book targeted to the insatiable market for people looking to develop their business leadership skills rather than a scholarly analysis of Toyota's rise to leadership in the auto industry suggested by the title. We don't get a penetrating analysis of the automobile markets or how the national markets have developed into a global market over the past 50 years or a deep look at the macroeconomic conditions facing the American versus the Japanese (or the European) car makers. Nor do we get a consistent set of measures that capture the shifting ups and downs among the various car companies over decades.
   
   Basically, we get a hagiography of Toyota that does everything right for noble reasons that are justly rewarded by the marketplace and a bunch of bumbling and undeserving American car companies get the pounding they deserve. While those of us who have grown up in Detroit over the past decades know very well that the Big 3 have made huge mistakes and have persisted in behaviors that have exacerbated their decline, we also know there are additional reasons helping Toyota and hurting Detroit. For example, do we even get a simple comparison between the demographics, pay, and benefits in the Japanese plants in America versus the plants of GM, Ford, and Chrysler? Nothing much beyond the $2,500 cost advantage Toyota enjoys and blaming the union contracts with the UAW.
   
   Certainly, there is truth in blaming the US auto companies and praising Toyota, but not much beyond Toyota's ethos is explained in this book. When we did automotive case studies while I was in business school, it became clear that Toyota had earned its success and does do things better than any other car company in the world. However, the book does not discuss this year's explosion on recalls by Toyota and the concerns being raised about Toyota's quality this year. What went wrong? Where were the hallowed principles and the company culture? Who wasn't pulling the cord and why? Why was Toyota management called on the carpet by the Japanese government?
   
   These misgivings aside, we do get a popular history of the development of the firm from its origins as a loom manufacturer. Much of the text focuses on the Toyota Production System and examples of how Toyota has benefited when living its principles and found difficulties when it hasn't. We are told about the power in the more egalitarian ethos of the Japanese executives, the daily striving to find new improvements in quality and finding waste to eliminate. The benefits of long-term investment and building customer trust are highlighted as are importance of learning from mistakes, executing big plans by paying attention to even the tiniest details, why management by example rather than command is more effective, and so on. The appendices cover Toyota's seven guiding principles, a bulleted summary of The Toyota Way, a glossary of Japanese terms used in the Toyota Production System, and a few charts comparing the favorable trends of Toyota's share price, revenue, and net income versus GM and Ford.
   
   If you aren't already a student of Toyota and its production system or the principles that make up its culture, you will find this book an informative and well written overview of what the company is trying to do each and every day. However, if you are already familiar with the TPS and the auto industry, this will likely seem a bit on the light side. And if you work for GM or Ford, even as frustrated as you likely are with the past couple of decades, the way your companies are depicted in this book will likely be more than irritating to you.
   
   I do believe that business leaders who follow the principles stated in this book will do better than those who don't. However, the principles also need to be supported by the corporate culture and there is a bit of a chicken and egg problem. How do you get the culture without people who live these principles? And how do you get people to live these principles if the corporate culture doesn't support and reinforce them? These are important questions to answer and the discussion of NUMMI in the book is not encouraging to the notion that the principles can be transplanted to another company.
   
   I liked the book, but wished for things the book didn't offer. That is not really the author's problem, but mine. He wrote his book and I thank him for it. However, I am still looking for something more.
   
   Reviewed by Craig Matteson, Ann Arbor, MI



2. 
   Several years ago when explaining the success of Southwest Airlines, then CEO Herb Kelleher observed that "the intangibles are far more important than the tangibles in the competitive world because, obviously, you can replicate the tangibles. You can get the same airplane. You can get the same ticket counters. You can get the same computers. But the hardest thing for a competitor to match is your culture and the spirit of your people and their focus on customer service because that isn't something you can do overnight and it isn't something you can do without a great deal of attention every day in a thousand different ways. That is why I say that our employees are our competitive protection." The same could be said about Toyota Motor Corporation. As David Magee clearly indicates in this volume, Toyota would not have been able to achieve and then sustain the excellence of its automotive products without "a professional lifestyle - a proven and time-tested way of progression, improvement, ambition, and betterment" for its employees and especially for its customers. Magee focuses on the most valuable and useful leadership lessons to be learned from Toyota's unique approach to business.
   
   Here is one of them. Gary Convis (Toyota's top manufacturing executive in the US when interviewed by Magee) recalled being advised by his superior to avoid being a dictatorial boss and to manage as if he had no power. For example, he went to a superior to get sign-off for a large capital expenditure. He had researched the need and presented the findings to his boss. The superior, ultimately responsible for the decision, told Convis to make the decision himself and come back to him not with a request for approval but with a recommendation. "It turned the worm for me," says Convis. "It made me think, `I better check again.' It teaches you not to reach an opinion, but to get the facts; all of the facts." Consider the implications of a core principle that affirms the importance delegating authority as well as responsibility, at all levels and in all areas of your own organization, if everyone managed as if she or he had no power.
   
   How serious is Toyota about this principle? Andons are lights attached to machines or production lines that indicate operation status. The andon cord connects to the lights and runs along both sides of the assembly line. Literally anyone can stop a process if she or he has a valid reason. "When a team member pulls one of the draping cords, activating the lights, the entire line is automatically stopped so processes remain in coordination and the problem can be addressed. The message workers learn early on and find continually reinforced is that finding and pointing out problems is a good thing, even though it stops the process." At many Toyota plants such as the one in Georgetown, Kentucky, andon cords are pulled up to 5,000 times a day for safety and quality reasons. Moreover, all Toyota employees (top to bottom) view all problems, flaws, errors, etc. as valuable learning opportunities. All Toyota employees are never satisfied even with continuous improvement (i.e. kaizen) because, as one group manager asserts, "The customer is a moving target. The customer always wants more." Therefore, each Toyota employee must always want better in what continues to be, throughout the entire Toyota organization, a relentless pursuit of perfection.
   
   David Magee would be the first to insist that it would be a fool's errand to attempt to apply all of what comprises the Toyota Production System (TPS), if for no other reason than the fact that it is constantly undergoing refinement and, when necessary, major revision. However, there are indeed dozens of valuable and useful leadership lessons for the reader to learn from the material he shares. Among these, I think one of the most important is the need to manage as if you had no power...except the power of your vision, of your values, of your concern for the welfare of others, and of your determination to prove worthy of whomever and whatever may be entrusted to your care.



3. Somewhat disappointed by this book. Maybe the title over-promised. I have read other books about the auto industry which were more informative on all levels. Too general and goal reliant.