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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  Was good for the first while..... - 2010 Toyota Venza
  By mountainhiker - May 3 - 10:07 am

  Such an easy vehicle to fall in love with at first, but the longer i own it the more problems its having. This car is a rattlebox..plain and simple, after 40k miles ive just learned to accept it...Toyota cant fix this, last time they removed the dashboard and windshield to replace the dash support, i think i just hear more rattles now. Its on its third battery, ive had more jumpstarts owning this for 2yrs than in my 22yrs of driving. Had a problem with the A/C pump this WINTER! It siezed up apperently for no reason. Now im starting to feel the transmission starting to do some strange things....Oh my

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  Tundra, not what I expected - 2003 Toyota Tundra
  By wsptally - May 2 - 2:00 am

  The cons that Edmounds refer to are true, about the chintzy interiour trimmings, the front seat is uncomfortableand meager rear cab room.

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  Very Overrated - 2002 Toyota Highlander
  By ggilliom - May 2 - 2:00 am

  Weve owned a Highlander for about a year and a half, and overall, Im disappointed. I hate the soft steering - its hard to drive straight at highway speeds. And its not very quiet at high speeds. If you put down *any* window, you get the vibration/roar people talk about. The seats are unsupportive, and the seat bottoms are very short. Im 6-feet tall, and my back aches after driving for more than an hour. Nearly as bad as my wifes old RAV-4. The stock stereo is TERRIBLE. The back tonneau cover is heavy and badly designed -- must be handled *very* carefully to avoid bumping/scratching the interior or cargo. Lousy dealer, too.

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  Hesitation from start - 2009 Toyota Camry
  By ist. toyota - April 30 - 11:03 pm

  I purchased my first Toyota on reputation of build quality. I have had six trips to dealer for transmission leaks power steering leaks parts coming loose on front under carriage and hesitation on take off. The service rep. Said this was normal for this model and there was nothing they could do about the hesitation. Makes for a jerky take off. Not safe. I have 5 months and 10,000 miles left on warranty. Time to get something different

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  Disappointed Owner - 2007 Toyota Camry
  By Disappointed Owner - April 25 - 4:53 am

  I bought my Camry because I liked the styling and I had owned 2 others. The first thing that I noticed was the awful paint job after just 3 months. The paint was flaking off of the front bumper. To top things off, the car gets terrible mileage. My 2002 got better. Even the interior has not held up along with the awful wind noise at highway speeds. This will probably be my last Toyota.

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  Not for passengers - 2008 Toyota FJ Cruiser
  By Mike - April 24 - 10:50 am

  I think I need to buy extra medical coverage for my vehicle insurance. Everyone hits their heads when entering/exiting the back seat. The interior panels are below Chevy in build quality and fit. The front windshield wipers chatter, and do not lay flat in cold weather. The exterior paint has scratched very easily.

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  ECM Died at 105M - 2002 Toyota RAV4
  By saddened customer - April 23 - 6:56 pm

  I originally posted at Edmunds how I loved, loved, LOVED my Rav4 at time of purchase back in 2002. However, car started jerking last week, couldnt accelerate, so towed it to dealer, went online, and discovered the brain/transmission problem! Paid over $1300 to replace the brain, and have no faith in my car anymore. Dealer couldnt guarantee it wont start lurching again, so its time to switch from Toyota, sadly. A company that doesnt stand behind a problem that it knows exists at least when I trade it in, I can show I paid to fix the ECM, but I pray the car just gets retired rather than potentially hurting another soul!

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  I WISH I COULD JUST TAKE IT BACK - 2018 Toyota Camry
  By SAD CAMRY DAD - April 20 - 10:09 pm

  I purchased this really sporty looking XSE three weeks ago and love everything about it from the outside, but that quickly changes once I get in it , I absolutely HATE the navigation and apps programs that requires me to plug my phone into the car to use the Pandora/Spottily music or its horrible Scout navigation system. I did test drive it, but it took me several days to get around to programming the horrible so called infotainment system. so for now I have a small Garmin Nuvi stuck to the windshield of my brand new car with a useless seven inch display that I cant use for anything but the radio. As a comparison one of my other vehicles is a five year old Ford FX4 crew cab pickup that has a ford factory navigation system that blows this Toyota afterthought away.

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  Think Twice 2010 Prius - 2010 Toyota Prius
  By margieprius - April 20 - 9:26 am

  I have 4 Toyotas all purchased from Westbury Toyota. All was good until I began to experience brake issues on my brand new 2010 Prius. The dealers service was horrible, and they denied there was a problem. Eventually a recall for the non existent problem, and after the recall the braking on the car is less reliable then before, they say thats the way all the 2010 Prius are.

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  Bad Tires - 2009 Toyota Highlander
  By JMW - April 17 - 1:10 am

  Found the Dueler OEM tires dangerous in the snow. Tried to find the only good alternative made which is a Toyo HT, but these are on long backorder. Vehicle also developed rattles which I could have lived with despite the tire situation. Traded it out already with only 3800 miles on it. Poor engineering by Toyota to put a poor traction tire on an SUV sold in the upper midwest with no alternatives.