Overview & Reviews

Toyota is a Japanese brand whose refined, well-designed vehicles have earned it a great deal of popularity. Toyotas also have a superb record for reliability and durability, which goes a long way toward justifying their typically high purchase prices. For buyers who plan on owning their new vehicles for a long time, the Toyota marque is a very compelling choice.

The automaker's name is a variation of the surname of its founder, Kiichiro Toyoda. After years of research, Toyoda unveiled his first prototype, the A1, in 1935, marking the birth of the Toyota Motor Corporation. The '40s witnessed the launch of additional passenger cars and even a pickup. By the end of the decade, the automaker had produced more than 100,000 vehicles.

Toyota grew bigger in the '50s and expanded its roster with a slew of new small cars. The company also unveiled the utilitarian BJ truck; this vehicle was the precursor to the Land Cruiser. By the end of the decade, Toyota had commenced exports to the U.S. with the establishment of Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A., Inc. The first Toyota to be sold on American shores was the Crown; it held the distinction of being the first Japanese car to be sold Stateside.

The '60s witnessed even more growth for the emerging juggernaut. Toyota introduced the Corolla, an immensely popular model that is still in production today. Vehicles like the home-market Publica, the 2000GT, Hiace and Miniace were also launched. The decade closed with Toyota reporting annual domestic sales of 1 million units; cumulative exports also reached 1 million.

Japanese-market cars like the Carina, Light Ace and Publica Starlet were launched during the 1970s. In the States, the Corolla grew in popularity and the Corona and Mk II models debuted as well. The successful Celica sports coupe was also rolled out and would remain in production for more than 30 years. Toyota's shadow had spread far beyond Japan by this point. The decade's oil crisis had made the manufacturer's compact, fuel-efficient models more popular than ever in the United States. By the time the '70s drew to a close, the automaker had exported more than 10 million vehicles.

Toyota expanded its presence in the U.S. market during the '80s, with the introduction of popular models like the 4Runner SUV and the MR2 sports car. The true high point of these years, though, was the birth of the Toyota Camry sedan. Originally known as the Celica Camry in Japan, the car went on to be a hit of phenomenal proportions, earning kudos as America's best-selling car of the year time and time again.

During the '90s, Toyota rolled out the Avalon full-size sedan and expanded its selection of SUVs with the compact RAV4. By the end of the decade, more than 100 million Toyota vehicles had been produced in Japan. The company also proved itself on the cutting edge of new technology with the rollout of the Prius, the world's first mass-produced hybrid. The car debuted in Japan in 1997; by 2001, the fuel-sipping sedan had made its way to American highways. Despite the presence of a growing number of competitors in its segment, the Prius continues to boast class-leading sales.

Toyota's current lineup is relatively extensive, including minivans, cars, trucks and SUVs. The brand remains extremely popular among savvy consumers who place a high value on quality and dependability.

User Reviews:

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  Not bad - 2010 Toyota RAV4
  By Earl - August 27 - 10:30 pm

  Just purchased so I cannot comment on reliability but only initial observations. Car feels more solid than other cars in class. Doors have a definite "thunk". Drives easily like a smaller car but has lots of room in both front and back seats. Standard features cover most of the important items like AC, power windows/locks, window tint. Really nice suspension that absorbs most bumps and breaks in the road. 4 cylinder feels torquey but definitely does not have wow factor. Test drove 6 cylinder and it had really good power but hesitated to downshift at highway speeds. I am hearing some rattling from the rear of the car which is troubling for a new car.

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  F-150 and Tundra ride much better - 2013 Toyota Avalon
  By nomotoy - August 19 - 5:14 am

  My chiropractor suggests a different car. At 8K miles the rattles are popping up all over. Empty car seat, controls, my flesh and my clothes shake and vibrate (sometimes violently) if the road isnt perfectly smooth. The "fuel mgmt system" allows one to drive less than 350 mi before refueling even tho there is still >100 miles fuel on board. e.g. all four displays reporting the need for fuel must be ignored and I have to go by the odometer. Dealer & Toyota say that cant be changed. "Dist to empty" = 0 really means >100 miles to empty. Brake Assist feature is truly dangerous in heavy traffic. I happen to be strong enough to press my own brakes but Toyota knows better than I!

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  Fails to start after sitting - 2013 Toyota Highlander
  By kathyd4 - August 8 - 11:13 am

  I only have 8000 miles and I got the car in Feb 2013. Every time I go away and leave the car for a week, it wont start when I return. Every time the temperature drops below 25F and it sits even 4 days, it wont start. Toyota has replaced the battery twice although the second time they said there was nothing wrong with it. They have run diagnostics and say there is nothing wrong. Every car in my neighborhood starts. Our Honda starts, our old Blazer starts, but not the Highlander. I am soooo disappointed with this vehicle. Toyota is supposed to be reliable, but mine isnt.

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  Should have kept my 2006 Toyota Camry - 2015 Toyota Camry
  By Fran S. - August 8 - 3:59 am

  It has a hard, noisy ride. I actually took it back inside of 30 days and only was told "let some air out of the tires". Car is "windy" you hear too much road noise and highway fumes easily penetrate. Features I find unacceptable, hard ride, poor seat adjustment, navigation panel cannot be seen with any amount of sunlight due to its position, front side posts block some of view-bad safety issue, rear window poor design-it is sloped to where any amount of dust or build up rain does not drain off-it must be car washed or hand washed, rear camera at times occluded by rain. It does not have the pep as my 2006 4 cly. And yes, I am writing to complain about the design features and my dissatisfaction, to me this car has design impairments that become safety hazards. I got a good price on the car as it was an XLE loaner, but I am now stuck with it. I am seriously considering selling it to CarMax and getting an older car. Very sad state of affair, the old toyotas were made much better.

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  Overrated vehicle - 2002 Toyota Camry
  By nomorecamrys - August 2 - 10:00 am

  After three years and 57k miles with this car I will be trading in this Camry for an 05 Grand Prix. Since I travel up to 400 miles in a day, I need a car that fits my 511", 200lb frame. The Camry seats are in a word terrible! Seat cushion is too short and lacks ANY support. Tires WORE OUT at 25k mi, but no loss, as they were poor performers dry or wet. Even with better tires the Camry NEVER FEELS CONNECTED to the road. Too much body roll. The car is BORING to drive. The interior plastic parts BUZZ on a bumpy road. The car is skittish in crosswinds; keep gas full and ballast in trunk. JBL radio mumbles. Steering wheel hums when turned. Rotten-egg exhaust smell.

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  Needs work - 2005 Toyota Matrix
  By meg - August 2 - 6:36 am

  Has been very reliable, gas mileage could def. be better for such a small vehicle. Family of four is comfortable on short travel, bit cramped in long travel. Does have good capacity in hatch to carry things. Many issues with interior, but none mechanically. Very loud street noise and is very rough ride as all Toyotas are in my opinion. Overall have 80,000 miles on it and going strong! No mechanical issues what so ever. Tires were replaced within 1st year. All cars should be standard equipped with back window wiper as it is a huge danger to not have one like me! It stays filthy because of design and mix filth with fog or rain and no wiper and you got problems! Dependability you cant beat!

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  Thought I did my homework part 2 - 2005 Toyota Camry
  By bella car - July 30 - 11:23 am

  Updating my first review. Paid the dealer to flush and clean out the fuel injectors which immediately improved gas mileage and sluggish tranny. Was advised to run 91 octane to keep clean. At same visit told that rocker arms were cracked and coming out of sleeves. $900.00 repair job and car had 34,000 miles. Filed complaint with Toyota and I had to pay 1/3 of cost. Dealer tried very hard to make it right, so kudos to them, Still disappointed with my purchase. I am looking to trade this car in. Im going back to Nissan or Honda.

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  WELL, ITS NOT A VETTE! - 2000 Toyota Camry
  By JAMES G - July 29 - 2:00 am

  Hey, I didnt buy this car for blowing away other cars on the freeway, after all, I live in Phoenix and because of rush hour, dont drive over 4 mph. I bought this car used with 53,000 miles on it. The car was a leased vehicle and well taken care of. We just had our first baby, so I wanted a car with quality, not so much style and class. So far so good, the car now has 60000 miles on it, and besides changing the oil a couple times, no other maintenance required. Good car for a family, not Evil Keneval.

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  Toyota Needs to be more customer oriented - 2016 Toyota Tacoma
  By Jassoa - July 28 - 2:50 am

  The biggest problem with this vehicle is the lack of power seats. The manual seats do not adjust up or down so many will have to buy a cushion to see over the elevated hood. Acceleration is mediocre and needs performance enhancers. Not real agile on the road compared to the 2010 Nissan Frontier that I regretfully traded in.

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  BEWARE Rear Hatch auto open/close issue - 2011 Toyota Highlander
  By JMcC - July 25 - 6:55 pm

  Beware of the rear hatch automatic open/close issue. Quick online search will bring up more details about it and Toyota service bulleting issued to dealerships. We purchased ours new and always have had it serviced at the dealership. After owning for just over 3 years, the arm of the mechanism which auto. opens/closes the rear hatch broke loose while it was closing. Had to fight with dealership for several days because they stated it was not covered under factory NOR extended warranty. Only after a lot of time & effort back & forth with them did they agree to fix it as "goodwill". Just over a year later, the same issue happened again. This is when we found online info about service bulletin and apparent class action suit in CA over rear hatch issues. Dealership is refusing to make repairs and we are stuck. Before you purchase, check to make sure you are comfortable closing the rear hatch manually as the issue we have dealt with now multiple times is common.