PhilipMSPT

iTrader: (5)

So I thought I could answer all the questions my co-worker asked about Toyota, until he asked "What does Camry mean?"

Does anyone know? Perhaps someone should describe/define each one of these names:

(Definitions added after a few replies)

Yaris
Corolla = a word for crown, or halo (language?)
Camry = Americanized word for "kanmuri", which is Japanese for "crown"
Celica = word play on "celestial"?
Solara = 'sunlike" in Spanish
Prius = "to come before" in Latin?
Tercel = a hawk (language?)
FJ
Toyota = changed from Toyoda, the founder
Lexus


Thanks for the help guys!

Trexus

The founder of Toyota is Sakichi Toyoda. He was born in 1867 in Yamaguchi, Japan. In 1895 he founded Toyoda Co. His son Kiichiro Toyoda was born in 1894. In 1933 Kiichiro established an automobile department in his father's loom factory. In 1947 Toyota's first small passerger car was produced; it was called the Toyopet Model SA. As you can see they changed one letter in their last name because the Japansese character used eight stokes, which eight is a lucky number in Japan and it was aesthetically more pleasing to the eye.

mmarshall

I don't know what all the names mean literally but I can give you some of them. Tercel is a hawk, a bird of prey. Corolla is one of the pieces of a flower. Solara is Spanish for "sunlike". The others I'm not sure of.

xravexboix

FJ is to show the link to the Landcruiser/LX chassis code FJxx

Prius means 'to come before' or something to the effect. First main stream hybrid, right?

Camry had something relating to being the king or something to the sort

Toyoda to Toyota because it was easier to write Toyota than Toyoda in Japanese lol... hilarious huh?

jrock65

Camry is the purposeful English bastardization of the Japanese word "kanmuri", which means crown.

jaydunn

Fumio Toyoda founded the company. The rest of the names were just made up by the marketing dept. because they sounded good to focus groups. Seriously.

Trexus may be correct, not sure why I came up with Fumio?

xravexboix

I'm sure I have the Toyoda/ta thing right tho =P It's in our Lexus tests ^_^

PhilipMSPT

iTrader: (5)

ADDENDUM: How about Lexus? Where does that name come from?

Gojirra99

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...=meaning+Lexus

flipside909

It was a name selected by consulting firm and a corporate executive.

"Lippincott & Marguiles, an image consulting firm in New York, presented the company with a list of 219 names,including Vectre, Verone, Chaparel, Calibre and Alexis. Alexis quickly became the front-runner. At a marketing meeting, however, George Borst, then corporate marketing manager, pointed out that Alexis was the name of the coniving Joan Collins character on Dynasty. Doodling on a notepad in the same meeting, Lexus project manager John French dropped the "A" to create "Lexis." From there it was a short trip to "Lexus," wchich the group thought had a more luxurious high-tech feel. A luxury brand was born." - The Lexus Story p.57.

flipside909

More accurate Toyota history:

http://www.toyota.co.jp/en/about_toyota/history/

Koma

iTrader: (3)

Celica is taken from celestial. Supposedly a heavenly car.

mmarshall

The name " Toyopet " was also used in the 1950's on Toyota-designed cars before the later name " Toyota " was used...and accepted.....here in the American marketplace.
http://www.toyota.co.jp/Museum/data_e/a03_08_5.html

It is interesting how times change. In 1958 the Chairman of General Motors sampled a new Toyopet and roundly proclaimed the car to be a " piece of junk ".....and indeed it WAS a piece of junk, like many Japanese cars produced before the mid-1960's or so.
Now the shoe is on the other foot. Toyota, today, builds some of the best cars on the market, and is in a position to look down.....( correctly ).......on many GM-designed cars as junk.

Och

iTrader: (3)

What do Lexus vehicle names stand for?

IS = ? sedan
SC = super coupe?
ES = economy sedan?
GS = ? sedan?
LS = luxury sedan?

RX = ? x-over?
LX = luxury x-over?
GX = luxury x-over?

PhilipMSPT

iTrader: (5)

IS = Intelligent Sedan/Sport
SC = Sports Convertible/Coupe
ES = Executive Sedan
GS = Grand Sedan
LS = Luxury Sedan

RX = Rally AWD (sort of...)
LX = Luxury AWD
GS = Grand AWD