Introducing the myth of Japanese efficiency -- Wide selection : a myth encountered -- Production malapropisms : the BMW-Rover group controversy -- Lean production : the dog that did not bark -- Back to the future : the reorganization of work at Toyota -- Rivalrous asymmetries and the Japanese...

Combining case studies with accessible but rigorous production models and historical background, this provocative book challenges accepted views on Japanese production methods in the world car industry. The book argues that the 'lean and flexible' production model popularly associated with...