Toyota's North American growth expected to exceed forecast By Kae Inoue Bloomberg News
TOKYO: Toyota, wary of trumpeting its success while U.S. automakers shut plants and cut jobs, is playing down its sales outlook in North America, analysts and investors said.
The company's sales in the region will grow as much as five times faster than what the carmaker is predicting for the year ending next March 31, according to analysts' estimates. North America accounts for about 60 percent of Toyota's operating profit.
from Car and Driver.com On the trip from the airport to the hotel at Scion’s recent press event, we spotted an old Scion xB with the bumper sticker that said, “You just got beat by a toaster.” Of course, there aren’t many cars that the xB could beat in 103-hp stock trim, but that’s beside the point. What’s important is that Scion owners are so enamored with the boxy shape of the xB that they affectionately compare it to an appliance. So it’s no surprise that the 2008 Scion xB is still boxy, but everything else has changed.
Youth-brand Scion itself hasn’t changed. Potential buyers still visit the Scion showroom section of a Toyota dealership to order a base car with no options. All the accessories, including stereo and performance upgrades, are done at the dealership. The customization is a big part of Scion’s marketing image, to the point where the brand is selling a lifestyle as much as a car.
TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's Toyota Motor Corp. outsold General Motors Corp. by around 90,000 vehicles in the first quarter, moving a step closer to unseating its U.S. rival as the world's biggest automaker.
Toyota has been widely expected to challenge 99-year-old GM this year for the top spot in global sales -- a position the Detroit behemoth has held for 76 years -- but the milestone came surprisingly early, industry watchers said. Visit (Reuters) for the full article.
Test Drive: Bigger xB means there's more to love
Toyota has overhauled its Scion xB squarish sedan, leaving little but the name intact.
The 2008 xB is a foot longer, 3 inches wider, 600-plus pounds heavier, 14% thirstier and some two grand more expensive than the original xB. It also has 12% more passenger space, 53% more horsepower and 60% more torque.
Toyota Motor Sales' Scion division will reach the coveted young male demographic by sponsoring the new U.S. TV series "Assy McGee," a sales official said.
John O'Hara, general sales manager for ad sales and marketing for the Adult Swim network, said "Assy" will allow the Toyota youth brand a chance to speak directly to young men through a media they enjoy, TVWeek.com reported Saturday. ...
The new 2008 Scion xD doesn't have much of a legacy to overcome. The Scion xA, its predecessor, has always been the other car in the three-car Scion lineup, not as shocking as the iconic xB box and not as smoothly successful as the tC coupe.
Unlike the xA, the 2008 xD will be tough to overlook. Particularly if, as expected, Scion keeps the car's base price down near $14,000 when it goes on sale this August. Read the full article at: Edmunds.com
Scion is searching for The Prospect -- is it you?
Scion has the kind of fan base and lifestyle integration that a lot of other automakers are still trying to figure out how to create (Ford Edge clothing, anyone?). Scion appears to have a lock on who their fans are and what they want, and then constantly works on new ways to give it to them. Now they're doing it again with The Prospect: Rise of an Unsigned Emcee.
Now in its third year, the just-launched Prospect is Scion's latest search for an unsigned rapper. Submit your lyrics to the Prospect site, and if you're the fairest one of them all, you'll get $5,000, a track made with producer Hi-Tek, a video shoot, and inclusion on a Scion-sponsored mini-tour. You'll also get to talk a lot about Scion.
The contest website is: http://www.scionprospect.com , complete with all the rules and requirements. You have until August. Now what rhymes with "Rollin' in my xB. . . .
2008 Scion xB Road Test
My, how you’ve grown! Creeping big-ism by Marty Padgett
When Toyota's Scion dropped its mini-bomb on this year's Chicago auto show in the form of the '08 xB wagonlet, you could hear the crests fall around Detroit, particularly in the Auburn Hills and downtown Detroit corridors of GM and Chrysler.
What used to be a teensy, cutesy JDM (Japanese domestic market) take on the station wagon had grown up, grown out, and had become more "sinister," in the words of hip 'n groovy Scion execs who, ironically, have risen to their current levels of employment by thinking out of the box.
This is an opportunity to get your car cast in an upcoming Scion ad campaign. Sign up and send the hottest photos of your xA, xD, tC or xB.
If you're selected, they will fill you in on the where and the when. Then, you and a guest can join other Scion owners for two complimentary nights at a secret desert location in Nevada on May 16 & May 17.
If the camera likes what it sees, your car could be featured on billboards, posters or TV. Crazy, right?
Additionally, they've got a stacked line-up of entertainment planned for the day, including a surprise you won't believe. It'll be unreal.
Hurry and sign up while there's still room! Sign Up
For 2008, Scion introduces a new-generation xB, along with the all-new xD, which replaces
the xA. Although the xD is a four-door hatchback like the xA, it is larger and more powerful. Read the full article at: The Washington Times
Toyota Recalls Scion tC to Fix Wind Deflector
June 21, 2005
Toyota Motor Corp. is recalling several models of the Scion tC because of consumer complaints that the glass wind deflector, located near the moonroof, might shatter when struck by road debris.
According to ConsumerAffairs.Com, the Toyota recall involves about 71,000 Scion tC coupes in the U.S. from the 2005-06 model years.
The Scion wind deflector tilts up when the moonroof is opened and could shatter and separate from the frame at highway speeds. Pieces of the wind deflector could fall inside the vehicle, causing injuries or distractions.
The recall will begin later this month. Toyota says its customers can reduce the likelihood of the deflector shattering by not opening the moonroof until the vehicle is repaired.
Dealers will repair the vehicles at no charge to the owners
Scion said it had received three reports of consumers' complaints from NHTSA. The Toyota youth brand said it will contact customers by mail to notify them of the problem, or customers can call Scion at (866) 707-2466.
Toyota Says Scion Generating New Sales Ideas, Profit
By Alan Ohnsman April 26 (Bloomberg) -- Toyota Motor Corp. says its Scion brand, designed to attract young buyers and serve as a laboratory for marketing ideas, is making a profit three years after its U.S. debut.
``We're learning so much by experimenting with a lot of different things,'' Mark Templin, the U.S. brand's chief, said in an interview this week. ``If we didn't make a dime, it would be worth a lot of money to us, but we are making money. We're making good money.''
Toyota Scion Fuse: Toyota takes the battle forward
"A splurge of technology and design, it's sad the Toyota Scion Fuse will never go into production." as reported on April 22, 2006, at the DanceWithShadows.Com website.
Toyota Scion Fuse, the latest concept car in the Toyota Scion series is out. Toyota displayed the Fuse at the New York Auto Show last week. The chunky-blocky concept car Toyota Scion Fuse takes off from where its predecessors left off, and takes the battle forward.
CHECK IT OUT:
Keeping up with the maintenance of your Scion? You can
go to Edmunds.com
to see the recommended maintenance schedule for your
car... The site also lists recalls and technical bulletins (there aren't
any yet for the Scion).
