Motor Head takes lead of Toyota's sports car dept.
08-29-2007, 02:25 AM
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Motor Head takes lead of Toyota's sports car dept.
from AutoBlog...
Akio Toyoda is the grandson of Toyota founder Kiichiro Toyoda. He is also the current executive vice president in charge of domestic market Toyota sales. He also piloted a rally class Celica up the hill at Goodwood and a Team Gazoo Toyota Altezza (Lexus IS300) in the Nürburgring 24 Hours. Although he couldn't quite match Aston Martin's Dr. Bez for top executive racer at the 'Ring, he takes his racing just as seriously. And why should we care about some Toyota exec who likes to race on weekends? Because Akio is one of the guys behind the new "interesting cars" department inside Toyota. In fact, he's the head of that unit, which bodes well for enthusiasts who have lamented the lack of passion in the Japanese automaker's products. He is also rumored to be next in line to take over presidency of the whole company. Good news for all.
Interesting Cars Committee
Toyota's MegaWeb showcase in the center of Tokyo proudly displays 13 sedans, 11 minivans, nine hatchbacks, six 4x4s, four station wagons and zero sports cars. Since production of the MR2 went the way of the Supra and the Celica and Soarer fell under the Lexus banner, Toyota has had precious little for car enthusiasts to get excited about.
The situation is so dire that even Toyota's top brass have noticed. According to the August 26th edition of "Best Car" magazine (Japan is no longer just 16 hours ahead of the US it would seem), the board of directors has created a "Committee to create interesting cars" in response to grass roots criticism that recent Toyotas are uninteresting. Let's hope that by admitting to having a problem, the company has taken the first step to recovery.
No word about what the committee's recommendations have been to date, but we'll let you know as soon as we hear.
Akio Toyoda is the grandson of Toyota founder Kiichiro Toyoda. He is also the current executive vice president in charge of domestic market Toyota sales. He also piloted a rally class Celica up the hill at Goodwood and a Team Gazoo Toyota Altezza (Lexus IS300) in the Nürburgring 24 Hours. Although he couldn't quite match Aston Martin's Dr. Bez for top executive racer at the 'Ring, he takes his racing just as seriously. And why should we care about some Toyota exec who likes to race on weekends? Because Akio is one of the guys behind the new "interesting cars" department inside Toyota. In fact, he's the head of that unit, which bodes well for enthusiasts who have lamented the lack of passion in the Japanese automaker's products. He is also rumored to be next in line to take over presidency of the whole company. Good news for all.
Interesting Cars Committee
Toyota's MegaWeb showcase in the center of Tokyo proudly displays 13 sedans, 11 minivans, nine hatchbacks, six 4x4s, four station wagons and zero sports cars. Since production of the MR2 went the way of the Supra and the Celica and Soarer fell under the Lexus banner, Toyota has had precious little for car enthusiasts to get excited about.
The situation is so dire that even Toyota's top brass have noticed. According to the August 26th edition of "Best Car" magazine (Japan is no longer just 16 hours ahead of the US it would seem), the board of directors has created a "Committee to create interesting cars" in response to grass roots criticism that recent Toyotas are uninteresting. Let's hope that by admitting to having a problem, the company has taken the first step to recovery.
No word about what the committee's recommendations have been to date, but we'll let you know as soon as we hear.
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