Toyota's BIG deal - Hard road

[RAV4EVR]

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/16817811.htm

Some suggest that the launch of the redesigned Tundra might be Toyota's most significant product introduction ever. Certainly, the Japanese automaker and its U.S. dealers have spent billions of dollars creating the new truck, building a new factory in Texas to make it, renovating showrooms and service bays to fit it in and setting up a publicity schedule that would exhaust a Hollywood star.
But it's the little things that show the importance of the truck -- and hurdles that even an incredibly successful company like Toyota faces with the launch of the full-size 2007 Tundra pickup that just went on sale in February.

Take a recent Detroit Red Wings hockey game. Someone decided to drive a new Tundra onto the ice between periods. The hometown fans showered the arena with boos. ``Did they forget what city they were in?'' one sportswriter asked.

Ok.. now fess up... which one of you were BOOING up there??
I know atleast one of you was in that crowd being a Michigan resident........


I wasn't invited and the whole toyotanation.com decided to go visit that game..............

`Tundra never blinked'
So far, critics agree.
On Inside Line, the online auto magazine of www.edmunds.com, editors tabbed the Tundra as the winner in a comparison with the 2007 Chevy Silverado and Nissan Titan. They wrote: ``No matter what we threw at it, the Tundra never blinked.''
In a comparison test of half-ton trucks, editors at www.cars.com picked the new Tundra over the Silverado and the Ford F-150. The F-150 is ``a bit out of date,'' they wrote, and ``the Silverado's quality can't overcome the Tundra's day-to-day usability.''
Toyota has set a target of 200,000 Tundra sales a year, up 60 percent from the 124,508 units its dealers sold in 2006.
``There's a lot riding on this truck,'' Lentz said. In a recent interview, he said there's still a stigma in the Midwest and South about parking a Toyota truck in the driveway.
``It's probably more important in that heartland that they buy the products that have a tie to the United States,'' Lentz said, which is probably why the Tundra is now being built in San Antonio, Texas.

Put "Never Quit" Toyota trucks to the test at the Edmonton Motor Show and the Calgary International Auto and Truck Show


http://www.cnw.ca/fr/releases/archiv.../28/c5411.html

The Toyota Truck 4X4 test track debuts this year

TORONTO, Feb. 28 /CNW/ - For the first time, drivers visiting the
Edmonton Motor Show and the Calgary International Auto and Truck Show will not
only get to look at Toyota's impressive line-up of pick ups and SUVs - they'll
actually be able to get behind the wheel and drive them on the Toyota Truck
"Never Quit" 4x4 Test Track.
"It's one thing to admire the design and style that Toyota has invested
in creating an emotionally-charged line of trucks. But at the end of the day,
performance is what truck ownership is all about," noted Tony Wearing,
Managing Director for Toyota in Canada. "We're pleased to provide Edmonton's
drivers with this opportunity to put our 'Never Quit' trucks to the test, by
driving them hard through typical off-road environments."
Toyota Canada has three exciting truck models for show attendees to
drive:

<<
- The star of the track will be the all-new, 2007 Toyota Tundra
full-size pick-up. Completely redesigned for this model year, the
Tundra is the serious work truck that is equally at home in a
recreational setting. Created and built in North America, the Tundra
is for the True Trucker in everyone.

- The other pick-up in Toyota's two-truck strategy, the 2007 Toyota
Tacoma compact pick-up combines performance, utility and comfort,
making it the perfect pick-up for fun-seekers and the DIY crowd.

- Based on Toyota's legendary FJ 40, but updated with modern design and
materials, the 2007 Toyota FJ Cruiser is the perfect choice for those
who live and breathe outdoor adventure.
>>

"Whether it's breaking through snow drifts, slogging across fields,
hauling gear to the oil patch, or negotiating the hazards of a road being
repaired during Construction Season, Toyota Canada has the trucks that make
things better for Canadian drivers," Mr. Wearing continued. "We've drawn on
more than 70 years of truck-building, gained through real-world experience in
some of the harshest conditions found anywhere on the globe, to create a suite
of truck models that Never Quit."
The best way to demonstrate that Toyota trucks are ready for work is by
providing the right equipment. So, Toyota will give the first 250 visitors who
test-drive the 2007 Toyota Tundra on the 4x4 Test Track each day at the
Edmonton Motor Show a free pair of Carhartt work gloves. For the Calgary
International Auto and Truck Show, the first 200 visitors to test-drive the
2007 Tundra will receive a free pair of Carhartt work gloves.
The Edmonton Motor Show runs March 1-4 at the Edmonton Northlands
Agricom. The Calgary International Auto and Truck Show runs March 14-18 at the
Roundup Centre in Stampede Park. Show visitors can sign up for the Toyota

Truck "Never Quit" 4x4 Test Track at the Toyota booth.

[HL2k]

if I could only get to alberta.....

[CLIFFJONES]

Reaguardless of well, the Tunda does in test the real test will be at your local stealership.

[ECHOKnight2000]

I saw the new Tundra on the road today for the first time. At first I was like what is that then I got closer and I was like sweet! The new Tundra. It was dark and snowy so that's why it was hard to see at first.

[TravisAe86]

god soo much toyota haters.y? it just makes me like toyota even more =P

[repinS]

[PhatRoyale]

It seems that Toyota must be doing something right if they are generating so much envy amongst North American auto manufacturers that they would have to resort to these lame tactics in attempts to "deface" or generate hate around the brand. I like it. I also like the fact that I drive a high-quality Toyota.