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Toyota SEMA concepts promote active lifestyles, rallying [w/video]

Toyota has six vehicles that it's bringing to the Specialty
Equipment Market Association (SEMA) show next week, all of which were developed by and for people who live active lifstyles. Four of them are the result of the Toyota Dream Build Challenge, which tasked a team of athletes and vehicle customization shops to build Toyota sedans, pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles in seven weeks that would enhance performance in their respective sports.
We'll lead off with the CamRally Camry, developed by NASCAR driver Parker Kligerman, Kyle Busch Motorsports and Mooresville, NC shop Detroit Speed, Inc. for the Dream Build Challenge, because it appeals to us gearheads (sure, call us one-sided). It was totally transformed into a rally vehicle, and it has to be the most badass Camry we can remember seeing. The sedan is always a bit flaccid-looking in stock form, but the CamRally's wide body and other exterior upgrades and the turbocharger make us forget about that, as do its stripped, painted interior and Sparco race seat.

Toyota to kill Scion brand [w/video]

Toyota Motor Co. said Wednesday it will kill its youth-oriented Scion brand, ending a 13-year experiment that attracted new customers but ultimately drained resources from the parent company. The FR-S sports car, iA sedan, and iM five-door hatchback will be re-badged as Toyotas starting in August for the 2017 model year, and the tC coupe will end production then. The C-HR displayed at the Los Angeles Auto Show will become a Toyota vehicle when it launches. Scion's 22 dedicated team members will be given opportunities to join Toyota. Toyota says it made the decision in response to customers' needs, noting it finds younger buyers want practicality in addition to the individualistic styling and features that Scion offered. Meanwhile, Toyota's own vehicles have gotten sportier, which the company says appeals to younger buyers. Scion claimed some successes, pointing to its average customer age of 36 years old, with 70 percent of its buyers new to Toyota. Scion sold more than a million vehicles since it launched. Its best year was 2006, when it sold 173,034 vehicles. Sales declined steadily in 2007-08 and then crashed in 2009 during the recession to 57,961 units, before bottoming out in 2010 with only 45,678 sales. "This isn't a step backward for Scion; it's a leap forward for Toyota. Scion has allowed us to fast track ideas that would have been challenging to test through the Toyota network," said Jim Lentz, founding vice president of Scion and now CEO, Toyota Motor North America. "I was there when we established Scion and our goal was to make Toyota and our dealers stronger by learning how to better attract and engage young customers. I'm very proud because that's exactly what we have accomplished." While Scion never recovered from its drastic sales decline, it served as a test bed for marketing and dealer tactics that helped its parent company. Scion tried out no-haggle pricing, a streamlined option plan (some cars had only two choices: color and transmission) and a pre-paid maintenance plan. "We appreciate our 1,004 Scion dealers and the support they've given the brand," said Bob Carter, Toyota senior vice president of automotive operations. "We believe our dealers have gained valuable insights and have received a strong return on their investment.

Toyota bringing sextet of retro-liveried GT86s to Goodwood [w/poll]

Automakers and the teams that race their products switch liveries all the time. From time to time you might see them revive a classic color scheme from their history, like Lotus has with the JPS black and gold, or Nissan did most recently with one of the GT-R LM Nismo prototypes it's bringing to Le Mans this year. But Toyota is going a step further. At the upcoming Goodwood Festival of Speed later this month, the Japanese automaker isn't just showcasing one new car with a throwback livery – it's bringing six. They're all based on the GT86 (which we know as the Scion FR-S), and each pays tribute to an iconic racing car from Toyota's history. The yellow and green one pays tribute to the Yatabe Speed Trial 2000GT from 1966. There's another decked out in white and blue in tribute to the 2000GT that Carroll Shelby showcased in the US back in '68. The red one with the black hood pays homage to Ove Andersson's rally-spec '72 Celica. Another one in red with yellow stripes harks back to the IMSA-spec Celica from the mid-80s. There's the Castrol livery from the Group A rally-spec Celica GT-Four, and finally a tigerskin-effect livery derived from the Esso Ultron scheme from Japan's own touring car championship. In addition to the special vinyl wraps and decals, each of the sports cars features throwback wheels, a stainless steel exhaust and a lowered suspension. But of course it's the livery that makes them special, and you'll want to check them all out in the extensive high-resolution image gallery above and cast your vote in the poll below. GT86 PAYS TRIBUTE TO ITS HERITAGE WITH CLASSIC TOYOTA LIVERIES Visual celebration of decades of sporting design and engineering excellence at the Goodwood Festival of Speed - Fleet of six GT86 coupes finished in one-off classic liveries celebrating great Toyota race and rally cars of the past - Classic look captured in vinyl wraps and decals plus lowered springs, stainless steel exhaust and retro-styled wheels - Cars available for public drives in the Goodwood Festival of Speed's Moving Motor Show on 25 June, then on static display supporting the GT86 Drift Experience at Goodwood's race circuit Many of the qualities that make the GT86 an exceptional modern sports car are rooted in generations of classic performance Toyotas, from its great handling to its timeless, low-slung styling.