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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  My Prius - 2005 Toyota Prius
  By Carol Waldman - September 9 - 12:40 am

  The only complant I have is that the cars interior lighting at night was better. I find it hard to find some of the controls. Also, I wish it had the automatic door locks at say eight mph. and day running head lights. Other than that, I am very happy with the car and glad I bought it.

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  Luv the car and the MPG - 2003 Toyota Corolla
  By Votsy - September 8 - 9:40 pm

  I run my corolla 90+ miles daily to and from work. During basketball season it gets me to all my games very reliably. Great car, Great MPG.

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  Love our Highlander Limited - 2008 Toyota Highlander
  By bev - September 8 - 3:56 pm

  traded a 2003 Toyota Camry with 85000 miles on it. The new Highlander is one of the best cars ive owned and love all the features. Toyota is number 1 to me.

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  Switch from GM - 2010 Toyota Tundra
  By Bernie - September 8 - 1:36 pm

  I just picked up my 2010 Tundra, reg cab, 4x4, LB, SR5, 5.7 truck. After only one small road trip, I am impressed at the Toyota quality. Coming from a Silverado the past 2 trucks (11 years), I can say I am glad I made the switch. The 5.7 seems to have awesome power (yet to tow anything). The space behind the the seats is massive and will fit most anything I could want back there except a person (comfortably). The ride is acceptable for a truck. My only concerns/complaints so far is the storage. There is no map pocket in the back of the seat. The center storage is also a little slim. With that said, I didnt buy the truck for storage...I bought a truck to use it as a truck.

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  2014 Avalon Limited - 2014 Toyota Avalon
  By Bruce Colman - September 8 - 11:46 am

  Bought it new last fall, should have been an amazing product. This winter the battery died, discovered it was a known problem with the Canadian dealer, lots of cars coming in on tow trucks with a battery with a bad cell. GPS system is useless, a five year old $150 Garmin has more features and is easier to use. I actually use a Gamin window mount GPS on road trips. The most discouraging part is the rattles in the roof, dealer has tried to fix them, several times over a year, turns out the problem was common to many Camry/Avalons with a sunroof, the inner support binds with the outer roof at times, poorly engineered. Toyota has a maintenance bulletin, which required stripping the interior to add a kit, took over a year to sort it out. The rain sensing wipers would start normally, it heavy rain of wet sow, go on high and lock on high. Spoke to other owners, same problem, required turning the wipers on and off to reset. My year 2000 BMW 528 never had these problems. Ended up trading the car in, definitely not recommended. Side mirrors do not always return to normal after backing up and going forward.

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  could be super - 2005 Toyota Tacoma
  By leaknclunck - September 8 - 1:50 am

  I have had my Tacoma for about 2 months now and Im now having mixed feelings. The truck is bigger and more comfortable than before and a lot more powerful. This thing will scream, bottom end, top end, mid range. Not awesome but very, very good. Roomy well laid out interior, the ride still a little stiff in the rear. Great handling. Ive had to take it back for rear seat replacement because of loose material. I also had an extreme water leak from fire wall area into drivers front floor. Complained about clunking from rt. front when hitting a bump. Still not fixed. Now at 45 to 50 mph in top gear rpms will shoot up a 1000 going down hill!at times. No I didnt press the gas anymore. Very annoying.

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  New odd car - 2007 Toyota Yaris
  By Dale - September 7 - 11:30 pm

  Well, I just bought the odd car 2 days ago so the above evaluation is probably premature but accurate for as long as I had the car! I traded my Tacoma in, and Ive always had a truck, and at age 56, this is a new experience! I wanted the smallest, ugliest great gas mileage vehicle I could afford... and bingo... heres the Yaris! Roomy inside, plenty of pep, and fun, yes, fun to drive. I have the 5 speed, and its a riot to drive! Only drove it approximately 125 miles so far, but it looks like that will cost me around 10 bucks to fill up. Whew! I was getting tired of always looking at the gas gauge. And the Tacoma was a 4 cylinder getting around 20 mpg! Dont like the daytime driving lights, though.

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  A Great Three Years - 2003 Toyota Avalon
  By TOM - September 7 - 10:30 pm

  Three years and 42,000 trouble free miles after buying our first Avalon, we are Avalon fans. Our XLS was ordered with the "wing" to liven up its bland appearance at least a little bit. We are even starting to think it is a nice looking vehicle! Really! We tried out a 2006 Avalon Limited recently and found the driver visibility of our 2003 to be far better so we are hanging on to our present Avalon. Highway mileage is routinely 30 mpg + and seems to be gradually improving with age.

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  Great SUV - 2002 Toyota 4Runner
  By Michelle - September 7 - 9:53 pm

  Love this SUV! Bought new. Im still driving 8 yrs later and 120K miles. Only problem was the tail light bulb seems to go every other year which got me a ticket :( Mechanically very sound, well built, still runs like the day I purchased. Ive replaced the water pump/timing belt only due to miles. I get 17-19 mpg in city and 23+ on open highway. I do agree with the others though that the ride can be a bit bumpy, slightly larger tires seems help with that a bit. Cost to own very good at 25K new in 2002, retail today in mint condition is $8-9K. Not bad at all! Debating whether to trade in only due to mileage and mpg.

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  2003 Toyota - 2003 Toyota Camry
  By A - September 7 - 8:20 pm

  Vehicle has been extremely reliable, at 107,000 runs stronger than when new, only maintenance other than fluid changes, have to install front brakes at 80,000 miles. Very, very reliable especially considering it has been driven by two adults and two youth operators.