Special Effects director John Frazier of Fxperts Inc. was awarded a Clio Award for Best Special Effects in a Television Advertisement, for "Ball Bearing", named one of its Best Spots of 1992 by industry publication Adweek. The National Institute of Standards and Technology in the United States, as part of its Advanced Technology Project (an awards program for the development of high-risk, early-stage technologies for the U.S. industry), worked with General Motors, Chrysler, two universities, and suppliers on the "2-millimeter project." The goal of this project was to develop a new standard for automotive body dimension control, with a goal being to be able to duplicate the Lexus ball bearing test on a U.S.-built car. The advertisement was credited with focusing attention on quality in the United States.
The advertisement showed the Lexus ES 300 on an articulating stand. A lab-suited technician places a silver ball bearing on the hood seam, and lets go. The ball bearing rolls smoothly down the seam as if on a track. As the stand rotates, moving the ES 300 slowly around several axes, the ball bearing travels across the roof, grille, tail lamps, in a continuous uninterrupted motion, without falling. The narration reads, "Every sports sedan is supposed to do well in the fast lane. But what about these lanes...? At Lexus, we achieved extremely tight tolerances between all major body panels. So not only does the ES 300 look like it's put together well, it actually is put together well."