Toyota Family Cars

Toyota is bringing an armada of trucks and SUVs at the 2020 Chicago Auto Show, including the Highlander XSE that’s infused with enough sporty characteristics that make us wonder if Toyota’s deliberately trying to jolt some life into what otherwise is a family-oriented three-row crossover. To be clear, the Highlander XSE is not a special edition Highlander; it’s a new trim level that comes with significant visual and performance upgrades that you normally don’t see in a Highlander. If this is Toyota’s attempt to catch our attention with the 2021 Highlander, consider our attention’s caught. The Toyota Highlander XSE will go on sale in the fall of this year as a 2021 model. No pricing details have been revealed, but Toyota did say that the Highlander XSE will slot between the XLE and Limited trims. With the Highlander XLE starting at around $40,000 and the Highlander Limited starting at $44,000, expect the Highlander XSE to start at $42,000.

Toyota created a buzz before the 2020 Chicago Auto Show kicked off by announcing it’ll bring “sporty and outdoorsy, with a touch of nocturnal mischief.” to the show. Toyota teased the Tacoma’s front passenger side lower fascia in a teaser image leading to the auto show, but now we have all the scoop. The company has brought along Trail and Nightshade editions for a handful of its vehicles.

The Trail Editions are introduced on the 2021 models of the Tacoma, Tundra, and the 4Runner. They are aimed at folks who prefer rugged vehicles for a “sporty and outdoorsy” lifestyle. The Trail Edition will be based on the SR5 trims on all three vehicles. They will be offered in special exterior colors that include Army Green, Cement, Midnight Black, and Super White, and also receive black badging to distinguish from the regular SR5 trims. On the inside, Toyota has upholstered the vehicles in black seats with tan contrast stitching. All-weather floor mats also come as part of the package. The Tacoma Trail will come with stuff like:

Dark Gray 18-inch TRD Off-Road wheels Kevlar All-Terrain tires Front fascia grille borrowed from Tacoma Limited A 115-volt power outlet in the bed Lockable bed storage that doubles up as a cooler as well Limited to 7,000 Tacomas

As for the Tundra Trail, you receive:

Chrome grille from the 1794 trim Special Edition exclusive wheels Lockable bed storage-cum-cooler like on the Tacoma Trail Limited to 5,000 Tundras

The 4Runner Trail will be equipped with:

Dark Gray TRD Off-Road wheels Yakima LoadWarrior Rooftop Cargo Basket Custom 40-quart Cooler Sliding Cargo Tray Limited to 4,000 4Runners

Toyota has also blacked out a few more models in its portfolio. Currently, the company offers the Nightshade package on five of its products – 4Runner, Camry, Corolla, Corolla hatch, and Sienna – on the SE trims. Now, Toyota has added the Tacoma, Tundra, and Sequoia to the range as well. The Limited trims of these three vehicles will be treated to the Nightshade package. Customers can have the Nightshade package on these new vehicles in Midnight Black Metallic or Magnetic Gray Metallic exterior shade. Toyota offers this package on the Tacoma in Super White shade, too. The common package details across the three models include:

Black Leather Seats Blacked-Out Front Grille Black Mirror Caps Black Door Handles

Apart from this, the Tacoma Nightshade also receives:

Dark Smoke 18-inch Wheels A Black Exhaust Tip Black Fog Light Bezels New Grille Insert Design Offered in Windchill Pearl shade as well Limited to 5,000 Tacomas

On the Tundra, the company offers black wheels and black exhaust tip. Other than the two standard exterior shades, you can order it in Windchill Pearl, or Super White as well. Toyota will only make 5,000 examples of this one. As for the Sequoia, it receives darkened chrome "Sequoia" badging, body moldings, lower grille, and fog light surrounds. The SUV with the Nightshade package can be had in Blizzard Pearl shade as well. The company has limited the production to 2,500 examples for the Sequoia Nightshade.

Toyota hasn’t revealed the pricing for any of the Special Edition vehicles, but we don’t expect a major increase in any of them. The company also hasn’t announced when these vehicles will be available.

The Chicago Auto Show is all set to kick off on February 6, and Toyota has already created some buzz about it. The Japanese automaker teased an image of a front passenger-side lower fascia that appears to be the Tacoma’s. Toyota coupled this pic with a statement that read, “sporty and outdoorsy, with a touch of nocturnal mischief.”

At the 2019 Chicago Auto Show, Toyota unveiled the 2020 Tacoma. In all likelihood, Toyota will use this year’s show to focus primarily on off-road stuff. All this indicates a new off-road trim for the Tacoma. Wait, just one off-road trim, or many more?

The previous third-generation Toyota Highlander debuted back in 2013, with a facelift performed in 2016 that added an eight-speed automatic transmission, an updated spec for the V-6 engine, and a few aesthetic upgrades as well. Since then, the Highlander has proven to be one of the brand’s most-popular nameplates, selling some 245,000 units in 2018. That means it’s time for Toyota to give the Highlander a full-fledged generation update for 2020. Making its big debut at the 2019 New York Auto Show, the latest fourth-generation Toyota Highlander brings new styling inside and out, a raft of fresh technology for infotainment and safety, and a number of powertrain updates as well. However, can it still stay at the top of the segment?

Toyota is going rampant with the RAV4 lately. After launching the fifth-gen of the beloved crossover last year, the company launched the TRD Off-Road model, and now, it is being offered with a plug-in hybrid system. We’re talking about the RAV4 Prime, a fuel-efficient version of the crossover that can deliver a combined fuel economy of 90 MPGe. Surprisingly, it also happens to be the most powerful version of the RAV4 yet. Toyota sure knows how to keep a 25-year-old nameplate fresh and running.

Toyota is super proud of the fact that it was able to pair the 2019 RAV 4’s AWD system with the 2020 Camry and 2021 Avalon. It’s also proud of the fact that AWD can be specified on most trim levels without adding too much weight (just 165 pounds for the Camry,) but what I’m more interested in are the pictures that Toyota released along with this news.

The new Toyota Yaris is here and it means business. The new Yaris will embrace the carmaker’s TNGA (Toyota New Global Architecture) platform derivative known as GA-B. The TNGA is also found underneath the likes of Prius and Corolla, but it’s the first time that Toyota has used it to underpin a sub-compact vehicle. The new platform is also tweaked to support Toyota’s new fourth-generation, three-cylinder hybrid setup. Here’s every detail you want to know on the new Toyota Yaris.

The 2020 Toyota Mirai Sedan Concept is a show car that previews the second-generation Mirai. Introduced in 2015, the Toyota Mirai was the first hydrogen production model offered in North America. The 2020 Mirai Sedan Concept shows a completely redesigned model on the outside, now featuring a sportier body with a four-door sedan layout. The production model will arrive in late 2020.

Although it’s labeled as a concept car, this vehicle gives us serious hints as to what to expect from the production-ready second-gen Mirai. That’s because the car you’ll find in dealerships will be almost identical. The big news besides the new exterior design and the more refined interior is the Premium RWD Platform that replaces the old architecture. And yes, this means that the second-gen Mirai will drop the FWD layout in favor of a sportier RWD setup. Toyota also promises a 30 percent increase in driving range and increased hydrogen capacity.

Originally arriving in 1994, the Toyota RAV4 is one of the Japanese brand’s older nameplates, especially within the crossover segment. In the quarter century since the debut of the original RAV4, demand for crossovers has grown substantially, and sales of the compact Toyota have grown with it, eventually becoming the Japanese brand’s number-one seller in the U.S. However, the RAV4 last got a redesign in 2013, so to keep it fresh, Toyota just pulled the sheets on a new fifth-generation at the 2018 New York International Auto Show, bringing updated exterior styling, a redesigned interior, the latest safety tech, and a new architecture under the skin.

Update 10/11/2019: Toyota has announced the all-new RAV4 PHEV that will debut at the 2019 Los Angeles Auto Show. Check out our new section below to learn more about it.

With a manufacturing facility sitting deep in the heart of the state, Toyota is always a lock to be in attendance at the Texas State Fair. Past years have shown the automaker debut models like the Toyota 4Runner Nightshade Edition to go with SX versions of the Toyota Tundra and Toyota Tacoma.

This year, Toyota is returning the to the fair with a more functionally inclined special edition model called the 4Runner Venture Edition. The exclusive touches are mostly of the cosmetic variety, but there’s enough of them in the 4Runner Venture Edition to go around to pique the interests of prospective owners of the special edition SUV. The Toyota 4Runner Venture Edition is already available for order so if you’ve got an eye for a new roof rack, among other things, you can buy Toyota’s latest special edition SUV for a tidy sum of $45,405.

Every morning when I get to work, I wind my way up to the roof of a six-story parking garage. And every evening, I wind my way back down. It’s a good half-mile round trip at plodding speeds. In a normal car, I watch the trip computer’s fuel economy readout tick down as I circle round and round through the garage. But in the 2019 Toyota Prius, I can go all of the way down and even most of the way up using purely electric power — burning no gas at all.

That’s the beauty of a well-executed hybrid: It often uses the least gas in circumstances where normal cars would use the most: Bumper-to-bumper traffic, neighborhoods with a four-way stop at every corner, or crowded parking lots. As long as you keep a gentle touch on the throttle — and in these conditions, there’s no reason not to — you can watch your mileage rise rather than fall. And this isn’t a plug-in hybrid that costs more and requires charging infrastructure; the Prius’s battery recharges as you drive normally, capturing energy from the gasoline engine and braking friction.

To be sure, the Prius hatchback is hardly the only hybrid on the market on which such technology achieves similar results. The Hyundai Ioniq hatchback, Kia Niro wagon/crossover, and the Honda Insight sedan are all newer designs than the current Prius, which dates back to 2016. There’s even an all-new 2020 Toyota Corolla Hybrid, which puts the Prius mechanicals in the body of a brand-new sedan. All these models rival or even beat the Prius’s EPA fuel economy ratings, and they all cost a little less; the 2019 Prius starts at $24,725. But the Prius still has the best blend of real-world utility and efficiency. It’s impressively spacious, and it’s more willing to putter around with its gasoline engine shut off than the Honda, Hyundai or Kia are.

Toyota has added another unique strength for 2019: a class-exclusive all-wheel-drive system, which is optional equipment on certain Prius trim levels. The car’s controversial exterior design also got a makeover this year, though its equally contentious interior design (and aging infotainment system) did not. Nor did it get a horsepower boost to address complaints about leisurely acceleration. Let’s go through the full rundown on how the iconic hybrid fares in today’s marketplace.

The Toyota Corolla is one of the last cars you’d think of as being special. But something about the new Corolla TREK variant qualifies as “special.” It’s the latest addition to the Corolla Touring Sports estate lineup, and it’s a promising showcase of the Corolla Touring Sports’ understated versatility as a personal ride and a family hauler for those weekend adventures away from the city.

The Corolla TREK comes as a result of a collaboration between Toyota and bicycle manufacturer Trek. It’s a partnership that stems from a recent partnership between the two companies at this year’s Vuelta a Espana cycling race where 16 Corolla TREK models were used as support vehicles.

Well, they’re not support vehicles anymore. The Toyota Corolla TREK is now available for public consumption. Pricing details will be announced in the coming weeks — it’s estimated to cost around £29,000 ($36,00) — but order books are now open with the initial batch of deliveries scheduled to begin sometime before the year ends. Unfortunately, the Corolla TREK isn’t headed to the U.S. market.

Driving nannies are already starting to get a little ridiculous. If you try to take a turn too quickly, your car’s advanced stability control system may automatically apply the brakes and keep you in check. Perhaps the car doesn’t think you brake soon enough, so it brakes for you – hell, there are even situations where autonomous braking systems have been accused of braking for no reason. What if your car could evaluate your driving skills and determine what you’re able to do? What if your car can determine whether or not you drive on the freeway, in snow, or in the rain. What if your car determines how close to the imposed speed limit you can get? Sounds ridiculous, right? Well, Toyota thinks that’s the answer to driving safety.

When you are the market leader and basically run the show, you can do whatever you want. Well, at least that’s what Toyota is doing with the Tacoma. The Tacoma has been the segment leader for 14 years in a row now and the sales are only growing every year. Although the base Tacoma received a moderate price hike, the Tacoma TRD Pro is what caught our attention. According to CarsDirect.com, the 2020 Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro will get a $1,000 price tag hike, whereas the base 2020 Tacoma will be dearer by only $200.

Have you heard of the Patriot Campers? Well, these guys are magicians. If you haven’t heard about them, here’s a little brief. The company was born in 2013, but it has already taken over the world by storm. Patriot Campers is an Australian company that has diversified itself into many branches. The company’s trailers are quite famous amongst camping enthusiasts. Patriot Campers even works on creating off-road beasts. The PCOR – Patriot Campers Off RoadRoad – division handles the mods on SUVs and trucks. A staple within this is called the Supertourer, wherein the company works on the Ford Ranger, the Landcruiser 200, and the Ram truck, apart from the LC79. The company recently posted a video on YouTube where they show us a custom-built LC79 right before its handover. Will this particular LC79 be any different from the other Supertourers?

The Toyota Avalon TRD proves that just because a model gets tagged as a luxury sedan, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have a brooding, aggressive side. TRD’s inclusion in the model’s name should be your first hint that there’s something sinister hiding underneath that body. Your next hint, as far as this specific model is concerned, is the custom handbrake sitting where two cup holders are supposed to be found. This isn’t your typical Toyota Avalon, folks. This is a custom-built Avalon that’s in this world to drift. And drift it did with Toyota team member and Paralympic track and field athlete Jarryd Wallace getting to ride shotgun in the car with his father, Jeff Wallace, sitting in the back as drift specialist Ken Gushi took the Avalon TRD out for a few spills and thrills on a race track. Needless to say, the Wallace boys got more than what they bargained for. A lot more.

The Toyota Camry is available in Europe for the first time in decades, sold as a luxury sedan that undercuts the usual luxury sedan suspects on price. The model is a firm favorite not only in America, but also in Russia, yet it has not been available for European buyers who where offered the Avensis sedan instead.

Now that the Avensis was phased out in mid-2018, there is space in Toyota’s Euro range for a large-ish sedan and the global Camry seems like a perfect fit. It is bigger and more expensive than the Avensis, though, and it will not really face off against the Ford Mondeos and VW Passats, but instead a different car that’s very similar to it in terms of formula: the very talented and much loved Skoda Superb, a car that offers the space of a limousine and almost limo-like levels of luxury for a fraction of what an equivalent premium car of the same size would cost.

The Superb is definitely the Camry’s biggest European rival, and once buyers do get accustomed to the Camry being available, these two models will undeniably be cross-shopped. The only problem is the Camry is only sold as a hybrid in Europe and it can’t really compete with the strong powertrain lineup of the Superb - the big Czech sedan even gained a plug-in hybrid version along with the recent mid lifecycle refresh.