The Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) show in Las Vegas was once just a week when we learned about the latest aftermarket parts. Ten years ago, press conferences were about new suspension kits and exhaust systems—not brand-new vehicles. Today,
SEMA is so huge that manufacturers are holding world introductions as if it was
the Detroit Auto Show.
Toyota is the official vehicle manufacturer of SEMA 2007 this November. So what exactly will Toyota be bringing to the show? Recently, we caught an earful from someone deep inside the Japanese automaker about its plans for the show. Here’s what we know.
—Ben Stewart
2009 Corolla and Corolla Sport Hatch
Toyota will unveil the all-new 2009 Corolla sedan at SEMA.
The Corolla sedan was never the most exciting model in Toyota’s lineup, but the Corolla range will expand to include a sportier Corolla coupe/hatchback of some sort that will be featured at SEMA as well. So you can bet there will be modified Toyota Racing Development (TRD) versions of that Corolla coupe model on display in Toyota’s booth.
Tundra Heavy-Duty Dually Concept
The new Tundra pickup (pictured above) has capability that almost puts it in the 3/4-ton pickup truck class—it
can tow 10,000 pounds, after all. But Toyota wants consumers to know that it could do more. So the special vehicle’s operations group is building a serious tow monster for the show. This as-yet-unnamed concept will essentially be a burly Tundra diesel dual rear-wheel pickup. The goal? Test the waters to see how consumers take to a dedicated heavy-duty version of the Tundra. The diesel engine will come from Toyota’s heavy-duty truck division, Hino. Most of Hino’s current powerplants are simply too large for the Tundra, so Toyota may choose to debut a new, smaller V8 diesel at around 4.5 liters. Or they will simply install Hino’s smallest engine—a “little” 5.0-liter, inline 4-cylinder that makes 175 hp and 376 lb.-ft. of torque.
In either case, the Tundra dually concept will probably be one of the coolest vehicles at SEMA this year.
FJ Cruiser Convertible
Everyone seems to dig the retro-inspired FJ Cruiser (we gave the vehicle
an Automotive Excellence Award last year for design). Toyota will take a page out of Jeep’s playbook at SEMA this year and show a removable hardtop version of the FJ Cruiser. The top system is said to work easily. The insiders we spoke with hinted that “the expense of creating a one-off show truck with a removable hard top wouldn’t make much sense.” Translated, that means the vehicle shown is probably a prototype of a production version. E
xpect to see one on dealer lots within a year or two.
http://www.popularmechanics.com/blog...s/4219414.html
Tundra diesel dually should be awesome to see!
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