Prius Converted to Star Trek Shuttle. Really!

Cruising at warp speed though the space-time continuum might not be the Prius’s main claim to fame, but obtaining enviable fuel economy from a drive system almost as advanced as one that uses dilithium crystals is one of the car’s hallmarks. Maybe that’s why New York psychiatrist Willie Yee has merged his enthusiasm for his Prius  with another one of his passions.

That passion would be Star Trek. To indulge that passion, he’s converted his 2007 Prius into a Federation shuttlecraft.

Right: A white ’07 Prius is now a Federation shuttle. We wouldn’t kid you about this.

The conversion, which is ongoing, hasn’t been all that difficult, Yee told Open Road. It started simply, with a visit to a graphic designer who came up with the design essentials. Next came a set of spun-alloy Moon hubcaps, a set of blue undercar LED lights that flash in what Yee describes as "a cool pattern," and some aftermarket seat covers. Yee has also ginned up a special MP3 compact disc so that the Prius’s screen displays the car’s phasers and its warp-drive system, and provides all the appropriate sound effects.

Off-Road Racing Icon Helps Toyota Compete

There’s an old adage in the car business that says, "Win on Sunday, Sell on Monday." What it means is that manufacturers that win on the racetrack on Sunday sell more vehicles on the dealership lot on Monday. It sounds plausible but, in practice, it rarely materializes. The return on an automaker’s investment in racing is typically much less clear than that.

A new partnership between a Toyota racing icon and a Toyota dealership, however, promises to bring the connection into sharper focus. The icon is none other than Ivan "Ironman" Stewart, who established his credentials in the 1970s while taming the wilds of Baja with long, solo stints in an off-road race buggy. His career - and Toyota’s racing reputation - shifted to a much higher level when the two joined forces in 1983. Over the years, Stewart has accumulated 84 career victories and 10 driver's championships. The wins include 17 Baja 500s, eight Mint 400s, four Parker 400s, three Baja 1000s and four SCORE World Championships.

Toyota's Environmental Commitment. . . Let's All Do What We Can

Toyota is known for building vehicles that have a reputation for efficiency and greenness.

Sure, we build those vehicles because building them is good business. We also build them because building them is the right thing to do.

Our vehicles continue to exceed the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards for both passenger cars and light-duty trucks. At the same time, our drive toward reduced vehicle emissions is such that in 2007, 90% of all Toyota, Lexus and Scion vehicles were certified Ultra Low Emissions Vehicles (ULEV) or better.

We're committed to Hybrid Synergy Drive in our march toward improved economy and reduced emissions, and we're equally committed to continuing research of other forms of power, including clean diesel and hydrogen fuel cells, as we continue our drive toward sustainable mobility.

But we thought that you should know that building vehicles that have a greenish tinge to them is not the only evidence of our drive to be environmentally responsible. Those efforts to be responsible take other forms.

No More "Pretty, Pretty Princess?"Sorry, Girls; I’ve got a Scion to Build

If you’ve spent any time at all in your local mall recently, you’ve probably noticed a shop there called Build-A-Bear Workshop. It’s a place where children, working their ways through a series of assembly stations and with help from store employees, can build their own stuffed animals.

As it happens, this isn’t a place into which I’ve been dragged – yet - by my granddaughters Bridget and Sophie. Hey, I’ve played "Pretty, Pretty Princess" with them, but venturing into a Build-A-Bear Workshop isn’t something that’s come up. Which is probably just as well, as this seems an activity uniquely suited to children of less than 10 years or so.

Ah, but Ridemakerz – that, now, is another matter entirely. It’s a place where children – including big kids like me – can custom-build model cars.

Waxing Nostalgic: Anniversary Triggers Memories of a ’68 Toyota Corona

As I write this, it’s Day 1 in Toyota’s second 50 years in America. All of the golden anniversary celebrations have come and gone. The birthday cake has been consumed. And even an on-campus appearance by the Village People is a fading memory.

But for some reason, I’m still waxing a bit nostalgic, back to a muggy Saturday afternoon in August many, many years ago when my dad took me out on Ohio’s country roads for my first attempt behind the wheel of a car.

And what car was that? So glad you asked. It was none other than a 1968 Toyota Corona sedan with a sprightly 4-cylinder engine and an intimidating 4-on-the-floor manual shifter lever. My dad had always been a GM man until, faced with a long daily commute and rising oil embargo-induced gas prices, he shocked our household and traded in his spacious Olds Delta 88 in favor of the frugal Corona.

Looking back on it now, I’m certainly grateful that he did. Not only did I get to cut my driving teeth on a small, nimble and easy-to-sling vehicle, but I also was introduced to the wonders of a manual transmission from the get-go. They were formative experiences that shaped my views on cars, driving and the romantic appeal of the import.

Perhaps that’s why, with the exception of my first car—a very clean 1967 Olds that I was able to claim for $850 in 1979—I’ve owned nothing but non-domestic brand vehicles ever since. My dad zigged while most everyone else in the suburbs zagged, and the course of my life was forever changed.

Odds are, you have a similar "first drive" and/or "first car" story to share on Open Road. We’d like to hear them. After all, friends don’t let friends wax alone.

~ Contributed by Dan Miller, TMS Corporate Communications

Fade to Black: Early Toyota Exec’s Persistence Is Rewarded

It might not register on the outside world’s radar screen, but those of us at Toyota Motor Sales (TMS) are getting ready to celebrate a rather significant birthday later this month: Toyota’s first 50 years in America. As such, Open Road has been looking back at the past—and gaining a new perspective on Toyota’s presence in the U.S. automotive landscape in the process. One revelation: this company has come a very long way in its understanding of and responsiveness to the needs and wants of American car buyers.

The story behind the first black Toyota illustrates the point.

In 1969, Norm Lean left behind a 12-year career at Ford Motor Company to join the fledgling TMS. He grew up in the days when a black Porsche 356  was the quintessential sports car and he once owned a black 1932 Ford Roadster. So when he became national sales manager in 1972, he started asking the powers that be at Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) in Japan to add a black Celica to Toyota’s U.S. product line. Each time he made the request, the response was, "Yes, but…" which Lean soon figured out was their polite way of saying, "No."

It wasn’t until 1975, when he got the chance to share a ride with then TMS President Isao Makino from San Diego to TMS’ headquarters in Los Angeles, that he managed to break through. Makino explained that in Japan, black is reserved for limousines and hearses. Lean countered that in America, black is the preferred color for sports cars. Late that same afternoon, Makino got on the phone with Japan (they were just starting their work day) and relayed Lean’s message—bridging the cultural divide. A few days later, TMC agreed to build Lean’s black Celica and it proved to be a big hit.

Now, flash forward to the present. More than half of the vehicles Toyota sells in North America are built here. And it invested more than $1 billion in a plant in San Antonio, Texas to assemble the full-size Tundra pickup—a uniquely American beast that will only be sold here.

To borrow the old Virginia Slims ad slogan, "You’ve come a long way, Toyota!" If it remains true to these roots, you can’t help but wonder what the next 50 years will bring.

~ Contributed by Dan Miller, TMS Corporate Communications

Highway to the Future: The Mobile Hybrid Experience

Knowledge is good, so with that in mind, we wanted to call your attention to a program called "Highway to the Future: Mobile Hybrid Experience." Quite simply, the program, which has been under way for a while now, is an interactive mobile museum designed to provide consumers with a first-hand, hands-on opportunity to learn about, and experience, Hybrid Synergy Drive - Toyota’s hybrid technology.

The program consists of an 18-month odyssey undertaken by sophisticated traveling displays built into a pair of expandable tractor-trailer combinations. The trucks will tour all 48 contiguous states, stopping at more than 150 events such as fairs, home shows and the like, to set up shop and demonstrate just what Toyota’s Hybrid Synergy Drive is all about. Where space permits, there will even be the opportunity for participants to test-drive our hybrid vehicles.

Bizarro World: LA Transplant Pays a Visit to his Midwestern Roots

I made a weekend trip to Kentucky recently to attend a family wedding. I should quickly point out that I was born and raised in Ohio but have spent the last 24 years in Southern California. As such, journeys back to the homeland (or the general vicinity) are as much about a shift in time as in space. My adopted home has given me a very different perspective on reality. Not necessarily better or more valid. But it’s sure as heck different.

Case in point: the collection of cars that the wedding guests arrived in. Virtually all of them were domestic-made, or at least sold by U.S.-based car companies. One of the few exceptions was a silver Toyota Camry driven by my aunt and uncle—my favorite aunt and uncle, I should add! What makes their choice of vehicle even more significant is that they live in Columbus, Ohio, just 30 miles or so southeast of Marysville, home to American Honda’s first U.S. manufacturing plant—the one that churns out Accords, the Camry’s prime competitor. These two are clearly free thinkers who aren’t afraid to zig while the vast majority is zagging.

I’d like to think that if I had lived the last 24 years in the Midwest rather than on the West Coast, I’d be a zigger rather than a zagger, too. But I really can’t say for sure. In Los Angeles, non-Detroit vehicles are the rule rather than the exception. Compared with the Midwest, it’s like Bizarro World in the Superman comics. Habits, and preferences, are deeply entrenched. It’s the challenge Toyota faces with its new Tundra and lifelong owners of domestic full-size pickups—only in reverse. So, for me, it seems perfectly normal to work at Toyota and drive a Lexus. Most of my relatives likely think otherwise but, thankfully, are too well-mannered to raise the issue.

Are we forever locked in our parallel realities? A Toyota dealer reminded me that, while the Camry is the best-selling car in America today, the late-lamented Olds Cutlass wore that crown 20 years ago. So there are no guarantees—even if, based on my weekend in Kentucky, it sure seems that way.

~ Contributed by Dan Miller, Corporate Communications

Epilogue: A Journey Well Done - The Toyota Way

We thought it appropriate to update you on the progress of the father/son team making the journey of a lifetime, or as they refer to it on their blog, the Last Great Road Trip--which, by the way, is the name of their blog.

Jim and Paul Thompson (father, Jim, standing and son, Paul, resting above) left their homes in Poulsbo, Washington on August 24 in a bright blue Toyota FJ Cruiser for an incredible trip to the top of the world and back. 

They blogged about their great adventure to the Arctic Circle and gained the attention of interested readers all over the world.  Toyota Open Road Blog went to Poulsbo to see the guys off and videotape the start of a remarkable journey celebrating diversity and the spirit of human adventure.

Jim and Paul navigated their now bright brown FJ back into Poulsbo on 9/11, capping a road trip comprised of 5816 miles driven, 8 ferry rides, buffaloes and bears, and the creation of new and diverse friendships with all sort of folks spanning the route from Poulsbo to Deadhorse, AK and back. And, of course, we suspect memories that will transcend their own lives to generations of Thompsons yet to come.

We met Jim and Paul through this blog and their response to a post we had done earlier in the summer on Toyota and our own efforts to celebrate the diversity of our Toyota family in everything we do.  It's an important part of our commitment to the Toyota Way, and we felt that the Last Great Road Trip adventure undertaken by these gentlemen was quite symbolic of that guiding principle.

Congratulations on a great adventure well done.  Welcome home guys.

~ Contributed by Bruce C. Ertmann, Corporate Communications

Thoughts on a Thoroughbred: Driving the Toyota 2000GT

Here on Toyota’s U.S. headquarters campus, we’re surrounded by a never-ending stream of the new cars and trucks of the present and future, so it’s sometimes easy to forget some of the landmark vehicles from Toyota’s past. As we prepare for our celebration of Toyota’s 50th anniversary in the U.S., it seems worth remembering some of these cars and trucks.

I was reminded of all this when I bumped into Susan Sanborn, who runs the Toyota Museum just down the street from us, at the coffee machine the other day. And thinking of the museum reminded me of one of my favorite Toyotas ever, the 2000GT.

 

It occurred to me that I’m one of the few people here on the Toyota campus who has actually driven this magnificent sports car - the very car, in fact, that’s in the museum that Susan looks after so carefully. The occasion was a photo shoot and a brief retro road test during a previous incarnation as a car-magazine scribe. It was an experience I’ll never forget.

Toyota's Golden Anniversary

As some of you loyal blogophiles probably know, 2007 is an important year for Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Inc., as Toyota Motor Corporation's American arm is known.  It's important because it marks our 50th anniversary here in the U.S.

Toyota Motor Sales, or TMS, got its informal start when, in August of 1957, a pair of Toyopet Crown sedans were unloaded at the port of Los Angeles. They were the first Japanese cars to be exported to the U.S. mainland.  Their arrival was followed by the founding, on October 31, of TMS in rented space in Beverly Hills, California.  The company had a staff of 13.

Journey of a Lifetime: Last Great Road Trip

Earlier this week, we introduced to Open Road readers a couple of Toyota's more adventuresome customers, Paul Thompson, and his dad, Jim Thompson.  We chose to feature this duo not necessarily because they were about to embark upon a 5,000 mile road trip from Washington state through the Yukon and to the Arctic Circle in a bright blue Toyota FJ Cruiser, but really because this father/son tag team embodies the spirit of Toyota and our Open Road blog quite nicely

Whether it is Toyota's associates, its dealers or its customers, there is an unrivaled passion for the product and for the experience often facilitated by that Toyota car or truck.  The physical and emotional components of the Toyota experience, unlike any other in our industry.

So when we heard about Paul and Jim and their Last Great Road Trip, we couldn't help but think how well this journey of a lifetime symbolized the very character of our blog, as they, too, veered from the beaten path and  took to the long, open road.  Last we heard,
the guys had spotted a coyote in Fox.  Fox, Alaska, with a population of about 400.
We were there when Paul and Jim departed from Poulsbo, WA this past Friday, got some great video shots, and now serve them up to you in recognition of this great open road adventure.

Congratulations Paul and Jim!  Safe travels .  .  .

(Thanks to Greg for the great camera work)

~ Contributed by Bruce C. Ertmann, Corporate Communications

Last Great Road Trip

Those of you with sharp eyes will recognize that there’s a new link here on Open Road. It’s there, way at the bottom of the left sidebar.

Click on it and it will take you to Last Great Road Trip, the sub-title for which is "1 truck, 2 generations, 14 days and 5,000 miles."

We hooked up with this for several reasons. First of all, it sounds like a blast, and we all wish we were out there doing it instead of sitting here in front of our monitors reading about it. But also because that "1 great truck" is one awesome-looking Toyota FJ Cruiser.  

The two generations are – and here’s where it gets interesting – Jim and Paul Thompson, father and son. On August 24, they headed out from their homes in Poulsbo, Washington on a mission to reach the Arctic Circle – and also to celebrate diversity. Being proponents here at Toyota of pursuing the Open Road and diversity and inclusion in everything we do, we couldn’t help feeling just a bit of envy as these passionate Toyota customers embarked on a journey of a lifetime.

As they make their way north, the two road warriors will meet as many interesting people as they can, and they’ll cover more than 5,200 miles in 14 days, traveling on the Alaska Marine Hwy, Alaskan Canadian Hwy (ALCAN) and highways that can best be described as gravel paths.

Open Road was in the state of Washington as Paul and his dad began the first leg last Friday, and we’ll be sharing more about their adventures along the open road to the Arctic Circle  in the coming days--including some awesome video of the journey's start.  For now, we invite you to read the first few installments of the Last Great Road Trip in Paul’s own words.

~ Contributed by Bruce C. Ertmann, Corporate Communications

Say What? Scion Salespeople Collaborate, Rather than Compete

I was chatting on the phone the other day with Alex Millen, who heads up the Scion sales operation at Wilson Scion in Ames, Iowa.  My motivation for calling him was a rumor that he recently had a Scion logo, with custom flames, tattooed to his right forearm.

It turns out the rumor is true, a tangible sign—as Alex puts it—that his he is  true to the brand. (That massive arm in the photo to the right belongs to Alex, and he was kind enough to give Open Road readers a glimpse of his striking tattoo.)

But in the course of the conversation, he said something that I found to be even more radical than branding yourself with, well, the company brand. He said Scion sales consultants are actually encouraged to steal ideas from one another.

“We’re a close-knit group of friends,” says Alex of his colleagues at supposedly competing Toyota dealerships that carry Scion vehicles. “With the controlled volume, we’re never hurting to move cars. So we share our ideas and work to build the brand as a whole. We feed off of each other. It’s definitely a different way to think about the business.”

I’ll say. The car biz, or so the stereotype goes, is a zero-sum game. I win (make the sale) when you lose (don’t make the sale). I knew that Scion, with its “pure pricing” model that—in essence—eliminates price negotiation, lowered the stress level on customers. What I didn’t know is that the salespeople have also been set free. They’re responding by doing the right thing and collaborating rather than competing.

Bizarre…even more than that tattoo…but very encouraging.  By the way, showing off body art and inked appendages is a hot topic among online Scion aficionados as evidenced by recent discussion threads observed by Open Road on some of the more popular Scion enthusiast boards.

-Contributed by Dan Miller, TMS Corporate Communications

Why Do People Choose Prius?

From the Some Things Are Self-Evident Department:

We’ve recently noticed the piece that ran in the July 15 edition of the San Francisco Chronicle, penned by Vickie Haddock, titled, "Oh, So Pious, Prius Drivers."

The piece quotes an item from CNW Market Research that suggests that a primary reason people choose Prius is because of the statement the car makes.

PRIDE at Toyota: Business Partnering Groups foster Respect for People

We frequently talk here about our passion for doing things the "Toyota Way" but seldom get to showcase just how that’s done.

The Toyota Way is a management philosophy involving 14 principles that is the essence of the DNA of our organization and really all those who make up the company. In its basic form, the Toyota Way boils down to two fundamental practices:  Respect for People and Continuous Improvement.

And so today marks the culmination of Pride Month at Toyota and across the country as millions of people celebrate diversity and specifically sexual diversity as a gift. What does that have to do with the Toyota Way?  Plenty.

Toyota's Open Road

When I think of the open road, my thoughts turn to pleasant memories of weekend trips in my Toyota to destinations unknown, moving forward in a spirited manner with a sense of freedom, and the opportunity to meet new people and engage with them—listening to their stories and developing new friendships.

It was in this sense not long ago that I had the opportunity to commune in a most unusual way with a community group of some of Toyota's most loyal and passionate owners, members of the Prius enthusiast forum know as PriusChat. PriusChat is a great example of how Toyota is beginning to utilize nontraditional consumer-based and consumer generated media to reach out directly to owners and consumers and to shape and protect the Toyota brand image.

With over 13,000 active Prius members and who knows how many behind the discussion threads, it is the perfect spot to engage with our customers and those that we hope will become part of the Toyota family. A young man named Danny from Columbia, SC, founded the PriusChat internet forum nearly four years ago and has watched it grow dramatically as Toyota Prius and hybrid sales in general took off. But, Danny was missing one important ingredient, a Prius!

You see the guy was so frustrated with the very limited means for Toyota and Prius fans to get together and chat about their favorite cars, he built his own online community chat rooms and eventually established the Prius-specific enthusiast forum, PriusChat. Spent all his money on that and couldn't afford to buy a new car! But not any more!

With help from Grossinger Toyota/Scion North in the Chicago area, Danny and his fiancée and a small army of PriusChat members, including me, gathered at the dealership on a sweltering Chicago afternoon to launch Danny on his Prius ownership experience in PriusChat style, meaning plenty of Chicago dogs, burgers and Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream, members matching faces to screen names and an incredible display of Prius vehicles on site with visual displays, informative information and real live PriusChat members (owners of the cars!) handling questions from observers quite expertly.

So whatever we want to call this rapidly expanding consumer-generated media, it's all about the conversation along the open road, it's about listening to those who think your products rock as well as those who think they stink.  The venue isn't perfect, but it is instantaneous--and it does demand an uncompromised level of transparency and authenticity.  What a perfect place to unveil Toyota's newest corporate communications tool, the Toyota Open Road Blog.

And just like Danny and his PriusChat community, we hope that this blog will serve as our "Go and See" mechanism on the web as we open up the conversation to consumers, our customers, journalists, car aficionados and just about anyone else who longs for the exhilaration of traveling along the open road.

-Contributed by Bruce C. Ertmann, TMS Corporate Communications