Toyota Creating a "New" Performance orientated sub brand.

I don't know if this is news or not but for the ROW it will be called "Gazoo".  Here in the US they are making TRD the actual brand name.

Click here for more info.

Can't let AMG, M, SVT, SRT, etc. have all the fun, eh?

Considering how much they are trying to hype the Camry as an exciting vehicle to drive shows how little their marketing team really understands about their products (Note: Toyota, the fun car is the GT-86, the Camry is only racing because that's what NASCAR requires, there's a difference and the customers you're trying to reach know this already).

^Or maybe they completely understand?  The Camry is viewed as the most vanilla appliance ever and they are trying to change that image.

Will it last longer than Scion?

ProDarwin said:

^Or maybe they completely understand?  The Camry is viewed as the most vanilla appliance ever and they are trying to change that image.

I was just reading that motortrend (maybe, I saw it through Reddit) says the new Camry is the most entertaining Camry ever. It is not a badass drivers car and the base engine is over 200hp now.

ProDarwin said:

^Or maybe they completely understand?  The Camry is viewed as the most vanilla appliance ever and they are trying to change that image.

Uh-huh, if you've seen the ad, you'd know.  Its at least better than the "Grounded to the ground" ad.  Even my non-car lover wife thought the ads were silly and contrived.

I suspect Toyota marketing has a handle on things. Camry continues as the top selling car in the us. T(u)RD seems like a bad letter combo for a performance group but hasn't stopped them so far. 

In reply to Stefan :

Some basic marketing, just remember the more and louder they try to tell you something is X, the less likely it is X. 

This is only relevant to enthusiasts if they make cars that are relevant to enthusiasts. Other that the 86, there isn't anything worth talking about. Now, they could make a 220 hp turbo Yaris hatch, and that would be cool. Or a Camry with a 6sp and an LSD. Or finally build the lowered big brake version of the Sienna that they drove on track a couple years ago. They could do all this, but unless they do, it doesn't really matter. 

John Welsh said:

In reply to Stefan :

Some basic marketing, just remember the more and louder they try to tell you something is X, the less likely it is X. 

Funny how many aspects of life that applies to...

My first thought at the headline was why'd they even kill scion just to try again though?

Scion tried to sell boxy cars as sporty cars to a youth audience. The more common reality was that senior citizens and adults with kids bought them as basic transportation. 

dean1484 said:

"Gazoo"

Bless you.

I was thinking “kazoo”. 

In reply to dean1484 :

You rang? 

" featuring high-performance accessories and styling modifications"

So, basically they're just going to give everything the Corolla S treatment with a bunch of teenager-friendly gadgets inside and lots of civic-like vents an scoops?

Everything in the photo of the "GR"/Gazoo lineup basically just looks like.....Scion. Bunch of riced-out econoboxes.

Memo to Toyota: the name Toyota was once associated with affordable performance cars.....Supra, Celica, MR2..... Toyota is now not thought of as sporty not because of the name Toyota, but because you don't make anything particularly sporty...............

kazoospec said:

In reply to dean1484 :

You rang? 

 

The only reason people normally make the facial expressions displayed by the drivers in the latest Camry ad is because they have a serious cognitive defect or were recently struck in the head with a blunt object. I'm not sure which of those target audiences Toyota is trying to attract, or if they're trying to encourage one or the other as a lifestyle choice for which the Camry would be an appropriate accessory.

Until recently, Toyota still had good performance options.  Want better suspension?  TRD sells it (and admittedly, the 5th gen V6 Camry on TRD springs I drove at one point was surprisingly entertaining to chuck around).  Want a blower for your Tacoma?  TRD sells one. 

However, in the last couple of years, they've gone down the tubes.  No more TRD superchargers, no more option to get a V6 in a base model Camry (now you have to get a higher trim level like Honda typically forces).  And they didn't re-create the x-runner for the new Tacoma...

Gazoo is closer to say.....saleen or Roush than trd.  They've been around a good long time overseas,  and Toyotas just using them to try and capture the youth market they didn't with scion. Trd is svt,  as it were. 

I'm kind of hoping it means a couple neat rwd car pairings like 510/240z, Corolla GTS/MR2, etc... 

A beechen small, boxy (or sort of) 2-door sport sedan (a real one,  not faux scoops and suspension) would be a nice compliment to the FRS (86, or 99, or whatever it is now...).

Me thinks my hopes are too high....

I always thought TRD was too close to another word, without vowels.  Not sure if "Gazoo" is moving up the food chain or not . . . 

I hope they follow through with something. Hell an alacart ordering service for there cars. Kind of a COP ordering service type thing with the shiney fast looking cars on the lots gussied up for those that just want the show with no go. 

I'm interested as long as it's grounded to the ground.

Can someone explain to me the difference between oriented and orientated? They seem to mean the same, but the first one sounds like the product of a couple of extra years of college.