Archive for the ‘Toyota China’ category
Toyota China Sales Up 68%
Toyota has had a difficult time in getting its China plans into play, the Japanese company has multiple joint ventures in the China market but has an over reliance on larger vehicles such as the Camry, and SUV models such as the RAV4 and Highlander, Toyota has largely avoided compact models and mini cars in [...]
Chinese prefer AE-86 to FT86
In 2005 Hong Kong Directors Andrew Lau and Alan Mak made a movie adaptation of the Japanese Manga and Anime series, Initial D. My Japanese friends seem to be in disgust that the series was made into a movie, even worse that a non Japanese director made the movie. They claim some sort of cultural [...]
Toyota EZ to come in Crossover form for Beijing Auto Show
The Toyota EZ, a renamed Toyota Verso, has been on the market for just a few months, but in that few months its picking up sales fast. The EZ is based on the Toyota Corolla platform that is known and loved the world over for its frugal running and cheap buy in price, the Corolla [...]
Toyota opens R&D Center in China
The foundation laying ceremony of Toyota’s R&D center, or Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing Center (China), was held in Changshu, Jiangsu province recently. China’s authorities are not satisfied with Toyota’s development of new energy vehicles in China. Now Toyota has invested $689 million to open its fifth R&D center outside Japan, which is expected to [...]
The Chinese Camry Leaked Ahead of Time
The world went Camry crazy a few weeks back when Toyota unveiled the new Camry, most major world markets got a variation of the Camry with America, Japan and of course China each getting their own slightly tweaked version. The above image shows the minor front end changes that the Camry has gone through for [...]
Chinese Camry to look a little different to its American cousin
The American version of the Camry has been grabbing headlines all week long in the US of A, the latest incarnation of the world’s most popular mid size sedan was revealed to an excited American public earlier this week, but it seems that the Chinese Camry and the US Camry will have some minor differences [...]
One Market – Two Camry’s
China is big on its one country two systems to describe the relationship between Hong Kong and Mainland China, but the a similar ethos is played out in the car market with car companies, particularly foreign car companies, eager to sell multiple generations of cars alongside each other. The most famous must be VW as [...]
Toyota to launch Mark X ZiO in China
Toyota have already launched the latest generation of the Mark X into China, where it is more commonly known as the Toyota Reiz. The 2.5V6 RWD sedan is priced in the low 200,000rmb area which makes it very affordable and highly competitive against other sedans such as the Buick Regal and Skoda Octavia VRS. The [...]
Minor tuck and lift for RAV4 in China
The Toyota RAV4 has been in China for just over 18 months, but the compact SUV has not been as popular as its rivals in China. Toyota are hoping to jump start sales by giving the RAV4 a minor makeover for 2012: Engine power will bet the same 2.0L and 2.4L and much to many [...]
Toyota sales increase in March 2011
The Worlds biggest car company is still not China’s biggest car company, but Toyota are doing better in China albeit slower than expected. Toyota has two joint venture companies in China, one with First Automobile Works in Northern China and a second in Guangzhou with Guangzhou Autos, between the two of them they produce a [...]
Toyota rumored in talks on selling Prius III hybrid technology to China’s FAW
A source close to Toyota Motors reveals that Toyota has sold the technology of the third-generation Prius to China’s auto giant FAW Group, but the two companies would not expose the deal to the public now and say they are in talks about local production. It could be a new explanation to the delayed local [...]
Toyota Zelas launched in China, priced from 255,000rmb to 280,000rmb
The Toyota Zelas sports car is essentially the Scion tC in Toyota badges to take on the Chinese youth market and was first unveiled to the Chinese market at the Guangzhou Auto Show in late 2010. Toyota has so failed to make a strike against the youth market and also in the small car segment [...]
Facelift RAV4 to launch this year
The Toyota RAV4 is a major part of Toyota’s plans to boost its presence in the Chinese market place and it seems to be doing well so far, the RAV4 is produced by Toyota in partnership with First Automobile Works in Tianjin and has seen strong sales so far. For 2011/12 Toyota are planning to [...]
Toyota planning for its own sub-brand
As predicted on China Car Times earlier this year, 2011 is aiming to be the Year of the Sub-Brand, over the course of the past six months we have seen announcements from GM, Honda, and Nissan regarding sub-brands and now it seems that Toyota are planning to join the speculation along with Ford. Ford and [...]
New Toyota Vios to be produced in China
A slightly face lifted Toyota Yaris has only just launched in China but Toyota are eager to win hearts and minds in the compact car segment to boost their China sales, enter the 2012 Vios. The Vios is essentially a sedan version of the Yaris and is targeted mainly at South East Asian developing markets [...]
Toyota and FAW to work on self developed electric car
According to recent reports the partnership between FAW’s Tianjin subsidiary and Toyota is readying a self developed electric car for the Chinese market. The new EV will be pushed into yet another sub brand from FAW, development on the brand and the first model are currently in negotiation with Toyota regarding the vehicle, and it [...]
Toyota Zelas to be priced at 250,000rmb and rising
The Toyota Zelas was shown off at the Guangzhou Auto Show earlier this year, the Zelas is a renamed Scion tC from Toyota’s American youth brand, Scion. Toyota announced in early 2010 that they plan to introduce the Scion range into the Chinese market to resonate with the youth market that they have so far [...]
Toyota Zelas aka Scion tC shown in China, to launch in 2011
Somewhere in early 2010 Toyota realized that its China line up was going in the wrong direction, too many large cars and too many SUV’s and not enough small cars, Toyota’s has decided the way forward is to introduce some of the Scion range into China in a bid to introduce younger buyers to the [...]
Toyota Verso to launch on Dec 18th
Guangzhou-Toyota are set to launch the Toyota Versa on December 18th according to media reports from early this morning. The Verso is a 5 seater with the option of 2 seats in the trunk, the Verso will be a major competitor to the VW Tiguan and is expected to be priced from 110,000rmb to 150,000rmb [...]
FAW-Toyota in Tianjin to recall 130,000 cars
Toyota’s recall woes cannot get any worse in 2010, now news has emerged of Toyota planning to recall a further 130,000 cars in China that were built by the Tianjin FAW-Toyota joint venture. The models affected are the high end Toyota Crown and also Toyota Reiz sedans. Toyota Crowns produced between February 21st 2005 and [...]
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