The consumer market has certainly changed in recent years and Toyota offers a strong example of that. For years, the Camry midsize sedan and Corolla compact sedan/hatchback were this company’s two top sellers. However, in recent years, the Toyota RAV4 is tops as buyers embrace crossover SUVs. Not only is … Read more
The figures are in for 2021 U.S. auto sales and the numbers are revealing. We learned that Toyota overtook GM in total sales, the first time a foreign manufacturer unseated a domestic leader. GM’s sales fell 13 percent over 2020, while Toyota’s rose by 10 percent. Both manufacturers were impacted … Read more
A Corolla Cross model for Toyota’s popular compact car range. The Corolla Cross is the latest model in the Corolla family, the first crossover utility vehicle to share the Corolla badge. The new model rolls out in October 2021 and will sit between the Toyota C-HR and the Toyota RAV4. … Read more
Toyota expands the Corolla line with a first-ever crossover model. The Toyota Corolla is one of the most recognized and enduring models in the entire world. For more than 50 years, this compact vehicle has represented an ideal blend of style, value, and affordability. There is little wondering why more … Read more
A plug-in hybrid that doesn’t require a cord. Is it possible to achieve optimum performance while enjoying excellent efficiency? Indeed, it is as electric vehicles do both as they use no fuel and possess outstanding and instantaneous torque. But you’re not limited to pure electric vehicles. For instance, there is … Read more
The most efficient compact crossover thanks to hybrid technology. Compact SUVs are the new family vehicle. With room for five, they’re ideal for small families. The Toyota RAV4 fits this category perfectly, by offering gas, hybrid, and plug-in hybrid variants of this popular model. Indeed, the RAV4 is so popular … Read more
The Venza nameplate returns. This time it’s a hybrid-only crossover. The Toyota Venza most certainly was not a popular model during its original 2009-2015 run, but it fulfilled its mission as the brand’s lone wagon-like crossover utility vehicle. Like the Chrysler Pacifica before it and the Honda Accord Crosstour that … Read more
Toyota brings the TRD Off-Road to the RAV4 line. Things have certainly changed for Toyota and we’re not talking about the current pandemic world we live in. Prior to 2020, we saw a shift in car-buying habits that remains current today: consumers are moving away from traditional car models such … Read more
Just as some manufacturers are embracing crossover utility vehicles at the expense of sedans, others are doubling down on the segment, seeking to carve a firm niche for consumers. Count Toyota in the latter category, a company whose Camry sedan has long been the best-selling car in America. All-Wheel-Drive Sedans … Read more
The 2019 Toyota RAV4 is a compact crossover utility vehicle with room for five. it comes with a four-cylinder engine, an 8-speed automatic transmission, and offers all-wheel drive. A hybrid variant is marketed separately. Launched stateside in 1996, the RAV4 has gradually grown in size and importance. Indeed, it is … Read more
The C-HR brings it to the small crossover segment, but in a different way. We like crossovers and are buying them in record numbers. That said, Toyota recognizes that there is some ambivalence amongst buyers, which is why we have a model such as the Toyota C-HR, a compact crossover … Read more
New vehicle sales dip slightly in 2017. US passenger vehicle sales fell by 1.8 percent in 2017, the first year-over-year loss in seven years. However, the drop was modest and certainly wasn’t a surprise. In 2017, 17,230,436 new sales were recorded, down from a record 17,550,394 in 2016. Light trucks, … Read more
A look at the year-to-date best-sellers through June 2017. The US auto market is slowing down and will most likely finish below 2016’s peak numbers. Still, somewhere between 16.8 and 17 million new passenger vehicles will likely sell as the books close in early January — that’s still an impressive … Read more
America’s best-selling car is now a crossover. For most of the past two decades, the Toyota Camry has been America’s best-selling car. Routinely, Toyota could count on selling more than 400,000 units most years, peaking at 473,108 units in 2007. Even following the latest recession where sales bottomed out at … Read more
Last week, I shared certain details surrounding the 2018 Toyota C-HR. Some of the information was under embargo and that meant me honoring Toyota’s request to keep three points under wrap until 4 a.m ET on March 8, 2017. Well, the time has come and those three points about the … Read more
Previewing Toyota’s latest model. As of this writing, I’m in Austin, Texas, putting on the finishing touches to your review of the 2018 Toyota C-HR. This all-new model rolls into US showrooms in April and will slot just below the RAV4 in Toyota’s SUV product line. But I can’t tell … Read more
A modest price premium makes hybrid ownership a solid value proposition. The Toyota RAV4 is a popular compact SUV in its own right and one of the first models in the segment, having launched in 1996. Now in its fourth generation, the RAV4 has long lacked a hybrid variant, until … Read more
Refreshed for 2017, the compact Ford Escape SUV remains a strong model in its segment. Mid-product cycle updates are supposed to provide a nip here and a tuck there. An engine or transmission change signals a more aggressive update, while tech changes seem to come yearly. As for the 2017 … Read more
With tens of millions of vehicles under recall for replacement airbags, other recalls may get buried. Millions of other models are also under recall for an assortment of mechanical and software problems. Takata is in the process of working with 11 car manufacturers to recall 33.8 million vehicles in the … Read more
No surprise: a hybrid joins the NX line too. An aggressive face marks the 2015 Lexus NX. Lexus made the most logical move in 2014 by introducing a new crossover utility vehicle to slot beneath its segment-leading RX line. Since the dawning of the new millennium, consumers have turned to … Read more
Invariably, when I am asked my opinion about a new passenger vehicle, the conversation includes one or more crossover utility vehicles (CUVs). These models are immensely popular and represent today’s version of the sport utility vehicle. SUVs are built on truck-based platforms while CUVs have “crossed over” to car-based platforms. … Read more
Small SUVs, better known as crossovers, are among the top selling models of our day. For 2013, the segment continued to grow with each of the top manufacturers fielding at least one model. The best selling small crossover was the Honda CR-V, one of three Honda models that topped 300,000 … Read more
My wife’s favorite vehicle is the Toyota RAV4, an important disclosure I want to get out of the way before touching on the salient points of this crossover utility vehicle. Fortuitously, a 2013 Toyota RAV4 Limited arrived in our driveway the very week her aged RAV4 was beginning to show … Read more
New base engine powers Hyundai’s compact SUV. Introduced in 2005, the Hyundai Tucson plunged the Korean automaker right into the middle of the very competitive small crossover utility vehicle segment. The Toyota RAV4, Honda’s CR-V and the Ford Escape were segment stalwarts, but the Tucson quickly found room by offering numerous convenience … Read more
Few models define the compact sport utility market as well as the Honda CR-V. Certainly, the Toyota RAV4 and Ford Escape have their place, but the CR-V may offer the best combination of fuel efficiency, value and safety of any model on the market. The 2014 Honda CR-V is priced … Read more
The Toyota Matrix is a five-door hatchback or what some might consider a “tall wagon” design. It is built on the Corolla’s platform and has been sold stateside since 2003. Its 11-year North American model run, however, is coming to an end as Toyota will no longer offer this vehicle … Read more
Small or compact crossover sport utility vehicles are popular models with vehicles such as the Honda CR-V, Toyota RAV-4 and the Ford Escape leading the US sales pack. Car manufacturers with a stake in the small car market offer compact crossovers here, vehicles that are often built on the same … Read more