Today North America is home to over 1,500 Toyota dealerships, along with 11 manufacturing facilities and other areas of parts distribution. Through numerous struggles and successes, the company and its American dealers have worked hard to cultivate its presence in communities across the country for over 50 years.
From its beginnings as a small trickle of Japanese imports on the West Coast, Toyota has grown into a household name in America. This is mainly thanks to increased access to their products and services, dealerships and distribution centers have expanded across the country, pushing marketing and sales to increasingly ambitious levels.
Toyota's first attempt to break into the United States automotive market came in 1957, with the import of two of their Toyopet Crown models and the establishment of Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc. Sales began in 1958, with the first headquarters opening in Hollywood, California, and the first Toyota dealerships launched nearby in Van Nuys and San Diego. The location, so near the Port of Los Angeles, made shipping from their manufacturing plants in Japan much easier. When Toyota Motor Sales moved their headquarters to Torrance, California in 1982, the Hollywood location became home to a flagship dealer.
However, the early efforts to launch Toyota sales in the country were slow as the models sent over did not perform well on the American roads or American markets. The Toyopets, the small, inexpensive debut model that was so popular in its home country, was underpowered for the needs of American roads. Though the number of Toyota dealerships in the U.S. was growing, the dealers often found themselves unable to move inventory as quickly. The Land Cruiser, Toyota's other model initially shipped to American dealers, was a civilian take on the military Jeep. It sold moderately well and remained on the market for longer than the Toyopet, but dealers were still waiting for the breakthrough model that would really take off with American drivers.
That big break finally came with the debut of the Toyota Corona in 1965. While the previous Toyota models had been imported to America after their design was successful in Japan, the Corona was the first designed particularly for American consumers. It had extra horsepower designed to take advantage of stretches of interstate highway and featured luxuries like air-conditioning and automatic transmission that consumers were beginning to grow accustomed to.
This breakthrough paved the way for an explosion of Toyota's dealer network. This later paved the way for additional successes, such as the Corolla, which propelled Toyota to the top spot of America's import market in 1975. Toyota dealerships had no problem getting this new generation of cars off their lots and onto the roads.
Toyota now prides itself on having a vast and reliable network of dealerships owned by a diverse community that supports their products with high levels of service and quality. So, next time you pass one of their Toyota dealerships, you may want to consider the determination it took to get them to their place today.
From its beginnings as a small trickle of Japanese imports on the West Coast, Toyota has grown into a household name in America. This is mainly thanks to increased access to their products and services, dealerships and distribution centers have expanded across the country, pushing marketing and sales to increasingly ambitious levels.
Toyota's first attempt to break into the United States automotive market came in 1957, with the import of two of their Toyopet Crown models and the establishment of Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc. Sales began in 1958, with the first headquarters opening in Hollywood, California, and the first Toyota dealerships launched nearby in Van Nuys and San Diego. The location, so near the Port of Los Angeles, made shipping from their manufacturing plants in Japan much easier. When Toyota Motor Sales moved their headquarters to Torrance, California in 1982, the Hollywood location became home to a flagship dealer.
However, the early efforts to launch Toyota sales in the country were slow as the models sent over did not perform well on the American roads or American markets. The Toyopets, the small, inexpensive debut model that was so popular in its home country, was underpowered for the needs of American roads. Though the number of Toyota dealerships in the U.S. was growing, the dealers often found themselves unable to move inventory as quickly. The Land Cruiser, Toyota's other model initially shipped to American dealers, was a civilian take on the military Jeep. It sold moderately well and remained on the market for longer than the Toyopet, but dealers were still waiting for the breakthrough model that would really take off with American drivers.
That big break finally came with the debut of the Toyota Corona in 1965. While the previous Toyota models had been imported to America after their design was successful in Japan, the Corona was the first designed particularly for American consumers. It had extra horsepower designed to take advantage of stretches of interstate highway and featured luxuries like air-conditioning and automatic transmission that consumers were beginning to grow accustomed to.
This breakthrough paved the way for an explosion of Toyota's dealer network. This later paved the way for additional successes, such as the Corolla, which propelled Toyota to the top spot of America's import market in 1975. Toyota dealerships had no problem getting this new generation of cars off their lots and onto the roads.
Toyota now prides itself on having a vast and reliable network of dealerships owned by a diverse community that supports their products with high levels of service and quality. So, next time you pass one of their Toyota dealerships, you may want to consider the determination it took to get them to their place today.
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