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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  4 cylinder is so-so - 2007 Toyota Camry
  By Lizli - January 5 - 8:13 am

  I agree with some previous posts about the engine lagging. It is not a smooth ride, at least not what I expected. The 2002 Honda Civic I traded for it was (gasp) a tiny bit smoother and thats saying something. Its gotten to the point that I hate driving it (but love staring at it when I close my garage). Im seriously thinking of getting something else PRONTO, even though I just paid the sales tax and registered it. VERY disappointed, so please dont get mesmerized by its looks.

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  lowest cost of ownership vehicle for me - 2011 Toyota Prius
  By greencar2 - January 4 - 11:32 pm

  Purchase was purely a economic decision for me without much emotion. Extensive economic analysis with detailed spreadsheets yielded the Prius II as the most economic choice for my 70 mile daily commute consisting of 60% city 40% highway. Factored in were resale values which indicate lower depreciation than reported for Gen 3, significant improvements in reliability over 2010 model and long term increase in gasoline price at 10% / year. Also in consideration was the 10 year battery performance check done by Consumer Reports which indicated the NiMH battery showed no measurable degradation in 10 years and 200K. I think newer Li battery technology will take several years to mature and match

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  The most reliable car Ive ever owned - 1993 Toyota Camry
  By bdevilla - January 4 - 1:50 pm

  When I bought my Camry, it had 90,000 miles on it. The only thing I ever had to do to this car was routine maintenance that you would expect for a car of this age. When I sold it, it had 174,000 miles and still ran like a dream!! I highly recommend a Camry. I was even rear ended in this car and all it did was chip paint off of the bumper. The Olds that hit me had his hood smashed and the grille laying in the street. Amazing. Im a Toyota owner for life.

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  Wonderful car desperate for console re-design - 2014 Toyota Prius v
  By DN Word - January 4 - 7:25 am

  If you want a sporty and responsive car that uses less gas than a lot of others and is great fun to drive, this is a car to consider seriously. I am very glad I bought this car, even though I can never exceed 46 mpg regardless of where I happen to be driving (mountains, freeway, city). I would happily give it five stars if it werent for the climate controls, digital displays and virtually useless navigation (for which I paid well over a grand.) I dont even mind that rear window visibility is a little awkward because the backup camera is so wonderful. And the storage area is larger than it appears, even though you will have to move anything you have in there to change a tire, but how often, really, does that happen? And what car, these days, is any different in that respect? That fifth star is missing because of the center console and digital displays. Want to see your odometer reading? You must toggle through mind-boggling displays hunting for it. And I have yet to figure out how to get the front window defogger to adequately function. Maybe its not functioning at all? The heating and cooling are stupidly hard to operate (dangerous even, if you consider you are usually driving when you want to adjust them), and not very effective, but maybe thats because I havent yet learned to operate them after more than a year of reading the monster manual. For years, Toyota made a simple three-dial control that was so intuitive and really gave you what you wanted in the way of heating or cooling. Guess that went away with the speedometer dial that could be seen in peripheral vision, rather than the despised digital speedometer, which must be read, and more frequently, since the engine makes so little sound to indicate variations in acceleration. Too bad Toyota made a five-star car and equipped it with a 2-star interior console.

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  Looking forward to a long relationship - 2011 Toyota Corolla
  By gascostsalot - January 4 - 12:46 am

  I looked over many cars and narrowed em down to the Ford Focus and Toyota Corolla. The 2012 Focus is all new styling for body and auto transmission. The front of this Focus looks cheesy and isnt functional, being nothing more than mostly a bug catcher. A new, double clutch auto transmission, worried me also - no track record regarding functionality and durability. The Focus gas cover was cheap plastic with matching body paint. The Corolla I chose was an S model. Ive owned for 1 month. This had the 16" wheels I liked. The steering is TOO responsive, but im used to it now. Terrific gas mileage at 31mpg driving 75-80mph. Comfortable. Too much static creating vinyl and plastic inside tho.

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  All is well except the paint! - 2005 Toyota Highlander
  By roset1 - January 2 - 6:55 pm

  We own a 2005 Highlander Limited which has become the family pony. Overall, we have been very happy with it except: Since day one, there was a pencil eraser size bubble spot on both side mirrors. The bubble grew like a blister and eventually it popped. Come to find out, the mirrors were NEVER primed prior to painting. I brought it up to the dealers attention while still a dime size blister and still under warranty, they did nothing about it. Now, 6 years later, my mirrors have peeled. Toyota assumes no responsibility. Word of caution: inspect your vehicle and look for even the smallest flaw in the paint. Point it out and have them fix it prior to buying. It will save you $$ and grief.

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  Back & Leg Pains after Driving for 2 days - 2009 Toyota Camry
  By HLH - January 2 - 12:23 am

  My wife just bought a 2009 Camry LE with lumbar support - but after 2 days of driving to and from work she is experiencing back and leg pains. She never had this problem with the lumbar support in the 2008 Sienna LE.

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  2010 Camry SE V6 - 2010 Toyota Camry
  By AVA - December 31 - 12:13 pm

  Picked up my new 2010 Camry SE V6 last week. Got one with Sports Leather package. Very smooth ride. Quiet engine, pull like a freight train.

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  Better value than CR-V LX - 2004 Toyota RAV4
  By hemoyt - December 31 - 2:00 am

  This year should be big for RAV4 though toyota doesnt put more effort to advertise the fact that by using a 2.4 vvt-i engine with VSC, trac ctrl and disc brakes for 4 wheels, ABS on standard list, RAV4 packs a better value comparing the once class-leader CR-V, esp., at the entery-level trims. Except for the sometimes buzzy engine and high-rev transmission under harder accelerations, I dont have any thing to complain on my mid-january cross country driving from Massachusetts to San Franscisco. If you dont care extra several cubic feets cargo or backseat room, RAV4 offers much better safety features over CR-V LX.

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  Great all Around Truck - 2004 Toyota Tacoma
  By Derick - December 31 - 2:00 am

  I must say that I love the 2004 Toyota Tacoma Prerunner SR5. It is a great all around truck. It is a very tightly built truck. Great ground clearance, good power but could use a touch more horsepower and I have done a few things to mine to bring it from its 190 stock hp to just over hundred. Torque would be comparable. I love the stock rubber. I have went every where my friends have gone in there 4wheel drive trucks and some places that they couldnt. Dont ask me how, I dont know, it justs goes. I do have the posi-trac rear-end. I have found nothing I couldnt haul pulling or in the bed. I love my truck!!