Five years ago, Jonathan Ward wanted a car that didn’t exist: one that had the rugged look of an old-school Toyota Land Cruiser, but with up-to-date performance capabilities.
At the time, Ward was making a good living refurbishing old Land Cruisers for collectors. So he designed and manufactured his dream car himself. Then he built another. Before long, he had started a manufacturing company to produce his own brand of high-performance off-road vehicles.
The company, Icon, is far from challenging any of the established car manufacturers such as Toyota, G.M. or Ford, which each produce millions of vehicles a year. Icon, in contrast, only turns out between a dozen to 20 vehicles a year – but each one typically sells for $79,000 to $180,000.
Ward said there’s a good reason for Icon’s low-volume approach to car-making: Every vehicle is made from scratch. Icon custom orders parts from auto suppliers, many of them in Southern California, and assembles them in its Van Nuys warehouse. Every bolt, wire and hose is attached by one of Ward’s 14 employees.
Ward said the typical Icon buyer has a net worth of at least $15 million, and usually uses the vehicle to drive around vacation properties or ranch homes. David Letterman owns two; industrial designer Marc Newson also has one.
“It’s not as ostentatious as a Bentley or Lamborghini, which is very in your face,” Ward said. “We find that our clients are sometimes more comfortable acquiring our product because it communicates a different message.”
Icon vehicles still stand out – they may look like Jeeps, but they’re bigger. They have V8 engines and aluminum bodies, and they’re supposed to be sturdy enough to traverse jungles and deserts. But Ward doesn’t install the amenities found in most other high-price vehicles: There are no climate-controlled interiors or mini-TVs. He aims for a strictly rugged, utilitarian approach.
“We refuse to put in things like touch screens because it goes against the whole aesthetic of the vehicle,” he said.
Driving ahead
The company was launched in 2005 and annual revenue is now at $2.2 million. The recession has put a dent in its unit sales, taking them down from about 20 before the recession to 14 in 2008. Icon sold 16 in 2009.
The recent spike in the price of gasoline that torpedoed SUV sales had no effect on Icon, Ward said. “Our customers are largely past the point of caring about gas prices.”
More difficult have been the day-to-day struggles of running a small-volume car manufacturer. Most automakers buy supplies in bulk for a discount rate, and Ward sometimes has trouble getting suppliers to provide him materials in low quantities at an affordable price.
He also still wrestles with production issues: It typically takes five months for Icon to produce each vehicle from the time the customer orders it. Ward said he’s sought out ways to cut down on the time without sacrificing quality.
Production issues are common for small car manufacturers, said Michael Robinet, vice president of global vehicle forecasts at automotive industry research firm CSM Worldwide Inc. in Northville, Mich. And consumers expect their vehicles to give the best and safest ride possible, and the parts and engineering to do that are expensive.
“It’s a lot more difficult to be a car manufacturer these days,” Robinet said.
Icon is a spin-off of TLC, the company that Ward founded in 1999 for his Land Cruisers refurbishing work.
Ward had enjoyed a successful career in Hollywood and television as an actor – he was a regular as a young boy on “Charles in Charge” and voiced the main character in the animated film “FernGully: The Last Rain Forest.” But he decided to pursue his love of cars by launching TLC.
He quickly developed a reputation for being the go-to guy in Land Cruiser refurbishment. His work even caught the eye of Toyota: The Japanese automaker sometimes contracts with Ward to do consulting work or produce mock-ups of concept vehicles.
“In terms of quality of work and thoroughness, I’d say Ward is probably No. 1,” said Jeff Zepp, president of the Toyota Land Cruiser Association, an enthusiast group with 4,000 members worldwide.
Ward still runs TLC alongside Icon – the two companies have the same employees and work out of the same facility. He set up Icon as a separate company to establish its brand identity. TLC brings in more revenue than Icon – typically around $3 million to $3.5 million annually – but Icon allows Ward to indulge his creative side.
While the current Icon line is inspired by the aesthetics of the Land Cruiser, Ward said in the future he’d like to design other vehicles influenced by the Ford Bronco and the Land Rover. But for now, he’s stuck to Land Cruisers.
On a recent Friday, the skeleton of what will become an Icon FJ45 – which looks like a cross between a Jeep Wrangler and a pickup truck – sat on the floor of Ward’s warehouse. A pair of employees stood over the vehicle’s chassis, screwing in bolts and attaching hoses.
“Before the car body goes on, it looks a lot like a sculpture,” said Ward, who then launched into a description of all the fine points of the vehicle, from suspension to shocks to weight distribution.
Then he caught himself. “I’m such a car geek, aren’t I?”
Icon
HEADQUARTERS: Van Nuys
FOUNDED: 2005
CORE BUSINESS: Building high-performance off-road vehicles inspired by the Toyota Land Cruiser
EMPLOYEES: 14
GOAL: To create additional lines of vehicles based on Ford and Land Rover models
THE NUMBERS: Annual revenue of about $2.2 million
