1995 Toyota Avalon | Retro Review

[@1995RangeRover]

Miss those days where large sedans were still in demand.

[@user-sk1eh3pg6j]

@@1995RangeRover It's not a large sedan It's smaller than a Taurus but I echo your sentiment.

[@gedaman]

@@user-sk1eh3pg6jBack in 1994 the Toyota Avalon was considered a large car just like the Nissan Maxima and Mitsubishi Diamanté. The current all new 2025 Toyota Camry is probably larger than the 1995 Toyota Avalon. Vehicle sizes have changed drastically over the last 30 years.

[@user-sk1eh3pg6j]

@@gedaman The Mitsubishi Diamante & Nissan Maxima were not considered large cars in 1994 idk where that came from. When the Maxima turned into a stretched Altima after 2003 they called it a large car but idc, a large car had to be roughly 200 inches long with atleast 38" of rear legroom and atleast 16cu.ft. of truck space.

[@user-sk1eh3pg6j]

@@gedaman Lumina, Taurus, Intrepid are large cars. Century & Dynasty are not because they're smaller. Make sense?

[@gedaman]

@@user-sk1eh3pg6j The Taurus wasn’t considered a large car until 2008. For the time, the Ford Taurus was classified as midsize just like the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord and Nissan Altima. The Toyota Avalon, Nissan Maxima, and Mitsubishi Diamanté were a size above the midsize sedans so they were considered large cars back then even though they would be considered smaller than midsize these days with the mammoth sized cars we have now.

[@jriley1992]

The Avalon was a good car, it sucks that Toyota discontinued it… but it makes sense because there’s a lack of demand for it 😢

[@johnnymason2460]

Really? That current Toyota Crown seems like an updated Avalon to me. Even though it's a hybrid only, the car is still a FWD-based car with a transverse mounted engine.

[@rummimg]

​@@johnnymason2460 A idiotic SUV is not a successor of traditional sedan

[@Noah_E]

​@rummimg the Crown isn't an SUV. Are you confusing the Crown Signia for the regular Crown? And they aren't selling well either. My local Toyota dealer has had a new 2023 on the lot for over a year and can't sell it with a $5k discount. The 0W8 oil it requires is enough to keep me from buying one. They will, without a doubt, burn oil, clogging catalytic converters in the future. Toyota should have learned with their last dance with ultra light piston rings that it doesn't end well and the customer ends up needing a $7-8k short block.

[@rummimg]

@Noah_E yes I was thinking the sigma one. Although the crown sedan doesn't look good to me either. The avalon selling in China looks more appealing.

[@floridaroadways]

It was discontinued in 2017? The Avalon?

[@larkt6693]

The Avalon drove like a Lexus .. this was definitely one of my favorite premium cars from the 90s.. that competed with the Nissan Maxima . & Diamante respectively..so sad it’s discontinued.. 😢❤

[@beb1527]

Bought a 1995 XLE with 57k and bench seat back in 1999. Kept it 3.5 years. Really a Lexus without the Lexus badge. Our growing family needed a minivan, otherwise we might still have it.

[@joemcdonough7509]

We had a 1998 XLE for our family of 5. Absolutely wonderful car and ended up getting passed down to another part of the family. I remember hitting the ECT button and surprised how much the torque increased off the line acceleration. It did indeed feel like a Lexus with a soft ride and high quality fit and finish interior.

[@beb1527]

@@joemcdonough7509my mother-in-law drove ours and within weeks she bought a 1999 XLE that she kept for 23 years

[@nwezetx1]

The 1995 Avalon launched in November 1994, was based on an extended wheelbase version of the 1992 ES 300 and Camry XV10, launched in late 1991. Those two being on a heavily modified platform derived from the smaller and narrower JDM Camry V30, released in July 1990. That's the basic facts, but I did notice this over the decades... *The Lexus LS 400* vs the Avalon. We can already tell that the 1992 Camry borrowed some design themes from the 1990 LS 400, notably the clear front headlight orientation and front turn signal placement, while the 1992 ES 300 had a more bespoke look upfront, but borrowed its rear end design from LS 400. The Avalon, specifically the 1995 Avalon front end, mimicked or previewed Lexus LS designs for generations. Grille shape, headlight orientation, and front bumper turn signals where a match for the '95 Lexus. Being revealed in February 1994 at the Chicago Auto Show, the 1995 Avalon looked quite similar to the upcoming 1995 LS 400 which hadn't been revealed yet, but was already designed over 2 years before Chicago '94. Essentially, the 1995 Avalon kind of hinted at where Lexus was going with the LS 400 design for Gen 2, via the tapered front end and more curved headlights+grille. The midlife updates in 1997 to both the Avalon and Lexus LS 400 for the 1998 model year, paralleled each other in both cars losing the bumper mounted turn signals and tinted integrated turn signals. The redesigned 2000 Avalon and 2001 LS 430 seemingly chased a similar body profile, that was less svelte and more bulky looking. As a kid who didn't know about FWD vs RWD 25-30 years ago, I used to think the Avalon was the Toyota version of the Lexus LS a la Camry vs ES 300. Anyway, I digress. The 2005 Avalon previewed some of the styling themes that would appear in the 2007 LS 460, released 1.5 years later. A leaner and longer looking horizontally oriented profile, with similarly shaped horizontally themed headlights. The 2008 Avalon and 2010 LS 460 went through similar, light facelift changes. Then both got mega facelifts for the 2011 and 2013 model years in a similar capacity. The 2013 Avalon (although carryover platform), previewed the sportier direction Lexus was going in for the 2018 Lexus LS 500. A fastback, coupe like style. My point is, I noticed some of these parallels over the years. I feel like Toyota designed the Avalon as a FWD Lexus LS originally and depending on which model was designed first, they would apply those themes on the other. If LS was designed first internally, then the next Avalon would recycle these design themes with a Toyota badge and some changes to differentiate them. Or vice versa.

[@stuffandjunkandthings364]

we were really spoiled for choice in the mid 90's. That same year you could also buy a Ford Crown Vic (Mercury Grand Marquis), Buick Park Ave, Oldsmobile 98 (88 too), and Pontiac Bonneville- and one of which would last for 200+ thousand miles. Juxtapose that with today, where not only does the large sedan market largely not exist (excluding luxury cars), but cars seem to be designed to fail as soon as the warranty is up.

[@beb1527]

Although we bought an Avalon in those days, we always rented the Grand Marquis from Hertz (through AAA with the double upgrade coupon) when we vacationed. I was amazed how refined the Grand Marquis was as well. I agree with your comments, well said!

[@6ec6YRFPTcC]

Many of these are still on the road

[@ahmadzahid266]

RIP the full size sedan segment

[@fernandorocha-dx1wv]

The end oe the era of full size sedan segment

[@4HBirtcher]

@@fernandorocha-dx1wvNo it’s not! They are still full size sedans today but either all electric or hybrid versions! Cadillac has ether an all electric or hybrid full sized sedan out there though I don’t know what model it is!

[@moeschizlac]

Not dead, there is the BMW 5 series, Mercedes E class, Audi A6, Acura TLX, VW Arteon, Porsche Taycan, Alfa Romeo Giulia, Jaguar XF and Volvo S90.

[@faheemabbas3965]

At least to the affordable segment. The luxury part of it is doing fine.

[@tescoshortage]

@@moeschizlacThose are all mid-size

[@dohc1067]

It's definitely a high point of Toyota quality of that time vs. now. It's interesting that there is a Crown Victoria pictured in the background. Probably, the best car Ford has made in North America.

[@johneli495]

Such a good car. Miss the old front bench seat

[@pmafterdark]

Can't believe this was almost 30 years ago now.

[@nwezetx1]

10-05-1994 It's already 30 years old...

[@texan903]

​@@nwezetx1October 5th will make 30 years.

[@nwezetx1]

@@texan903 Yes, of this episode! These went on sale in November 1994, although production started right when Motorweek taped this in September 1994.

[@pmafterdark]

@@nwezetx1 Okay, so basically I was already correct the first time? 🙄

[@nwezetx1]

@@pmafterdark A few months away vs 1 year away? Some of y'all here take MYs too literally.

[@KenanTurkiye]

Up to mid 90's cars were cars, most over engineered and worthy of te price asked for. In the 90's I used to say that Honda was the BMW, Toyota the MB and Mazda the Audi of Japan.

[@nwezetx1]

Kind of, as Mazda based their 1987 ('88) 626 on the C3 Audi 100/5000.

[@briq4409]

Camray Camry. John Davis so flawlessly goes between both Pronunciations. He’s the only person in my 47 years on this earth who has ever called a Toyota Camry a camRAY.

[@SataniaMcDowel]

Camree

[@mohammadshahin8758]

I remember the rear tire exploded at 200 km/h and it didn't flip over with us 👍👍 and the air conditioner was freezing cold at 50 degrees Celsius 💪💪 It's a car that will not be repeated

[@95blahblahhaha]

I've always loved all the Avalons, its like a Lexus with a Toyota badge and price.

[@mattmayo3539]

The geezer pleaser

[@gedaman]

Car and Driver used to call the Toyota Avalon the Japanese Buick 😅.

[@jacklo325]

I had a hand-me-down 99' as a daily driver for 5 years until its catalytic converter went out. It had plenty of power for daily driving, but the interior isn't that big. The trunk; however, much larger than expected. Great car, the motor just kept on going with little to no maintenance.

[@revmotor]

It’s aged well

[@GregoryGlessnerViolin]

Definitely. Even the '95-'97 models still look good and drive nice today.

[@mrtruthhurts2307]

The best Toyota ever made.

[@severinjohn]

I still see a surprising number of the first generation Avalons on the road.

[@glovedcop69]

An Almost Lexus Car without Lexus prices.

[@thewiseguy3529]

Exactly

[@jeffmarsico3528]

I had a 98 and a 2005 Avalon. Loved them both 3:42

[@Nick-qx1vf]

This was my first car and I miss it every day - nothing has ever been so easy to drive and so comfortable at the same time.

[@RaymondHaley-lv2mo]

My Japanese Buick ❤

[@GregoryGlessnerViolin]

Avalons are nice cars. I feel like Toyota really improved on this platform in the second generation with better steering feel, more power, and a nicer cockpit.

[@demonsaint1296]

I just sold one of these to a friend. 1995 Avalon with 113K on the clock. Garage kept most of its life. Not a bad deal for them for $3K.

[@jacobjordan7144]

Interesting fact once the second gen came out, this version tooling was shipped to Australia and made till 04.

[@glanzera]

I know a few things but I never knew you could get these with a 6th seat lol.

[@MarkMeadows90]

I miss the large family sedan days of the 90s.

[@mvnorsel6354]

We made this car in Australia when we had a motor industry, all gone.

[@nwezetx1]

Yeah, but a good 5 years after USA when the car was redesigned with an all new platform. Very outdated by that point, but it is very sad indeed that the Australian automotive industry is gone. However, it was necessary due to profitability. British Motor Industry is also suffering the same issue.

[@timothyhh]

The number of these that actually had the bench seat must've been miniscule.

[@attackb5349]

2:12 There John goes again with the CamRAY reference. I guess he is just sticking to his pronunciation of it!

[@SubieandFriends]

Leave my papa alone!

[@Pyjamarama11]

uploaded 17 hours ago and I'm in the market for an Avalon Fate, I have heard you

[@jflow08]

I wanted one of these so bad as a kid, especially after the mid-cycle refresh

[@timothyhh]

The car every Meemaw and Peepaw aspired to.

[@tbok75]

I almost had one back autumn's 2000. I passed it up in favor of a much older 88 accord lxi coupe. Either would have been fine but i sure did like how big and comfy the avalon was.

[@andrewholland9097]

At 2:14 - It’s the mid-90s, but he’s still saying Cam-ray!

[@UZForLife]

Really grinds my gears when they do a video on a car with no performance times.

[@VideoAmericanStyle]

Literally no buyer of an Avalon has ever needed to know or care what the 0-60mph or 1/4 mile times might be.

[@glovedcop69]

Same here. 👍

[@TwoentyFiver]

Perhaps bcs this was a preview test, since they didn’t test it in their own state 😅

[@nwezetx1]

@@TwoentyFiver Good point. Guess OP isn't paying attention to that.

[@nwezetx1]

A stretched Camry platform with origins in 1990 via the V30 JDM Camry and 1991 via the ES 300 (Gen 3 Camry), the 1995 Avalon almost didn't happen. Toyota was initially on board with redesigning the Cressida (MX93) for the 1993 model year (see X90 Toyota Cresta), but decided against that in 1989 upon releasing the LS 400 and while preparing road test prototypes of the Lexus GS 300/Aristo). It was redundant to bring another I6 Cressida, if the 3.0 I6 GS 300 and 4.0 V8 LS 400 would be affected, so it was put on ice last minute. Toyota Motor Sales USA realized that it would take at least 4-5 years to create a new FWD model, meaning 1994 release date at earliest... The 1992 Camry XLE V6 and SE V6 trim levels were rapidly created in 1989-1990 to supplant the absence of a model above the already planned 1992 Camry LE V6 in Toyota showrooms, against the Nissan Maxima. The upscale Camry XLE V6 was available by October 1991, while the SE V6 wasn't ready for release until March 1992, midway through the '92 model year. Having cancelled plans last minute for a 1993 Cressida (MX93), Toyota in early 1990 began developing a new large FWD sedan. It would be based on the new platform debuted by the ES 300 and had a final body design ready by the end of 1991, just as the Avalon concept was revealed in Tokyo (Motor Show). Mules in modified Camrys and X80 chassis cars were built in 1992 after the design was locked down in January 1992 , with the first prototype Avalons being built on February 5, 1993 and boarded up in disguise. Pilot pre-production builds started in different phases at the Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky plant during late 1993-early 1994. Reveal came of course in February 1994 at the Chicago Auto Show and series production started in September 1994, before reaching showrooms in November. Exports from Kentucky to Japan from began in 1995, as there was no Japanese production of the Avalon. Priced at $22,758 ($23,155 w/destination) for an XL and $26,688 ($29,798 loaded) at launch in November 1994, in today's money it would be about $47,900 to $62,600 in August 2024 money. A cheap car this was not and much more expensive than the outgoing Avalon.

[@jonathankleinow2073]

Makes me wonder if my grandma ever considered trading in her '89 Grand Marquis LS for one. She definitely wanted to have the six-passenger seating for roadtrips with the grandkids. Of course, she and my grandpa traded their '82 Grand Marquis for an '89 because they knew the Taurus-like styling trend was coming for the Panther platform and they wanted nothing to do with it, so this might not have been of any interest to her. She had that Grand Marquis until the mid-2000s, when my uncle, who was living with her at the time, somehow talked her into getting a used 2001 Audi A4 wagon.

[@davidaubin3902]

1:40 John: BUT TO TOYOTA, SIX PASSENGERS OBVIOUSLY MEANS SOME CHILDREN! LOL

[@ManChan-w5p]

6 Japanese people.

[@texan176]

They were brilliant to create a model above Camry for the buyer that did not want to get into Lexus buy wanted that kind of quality. People I personally knew who bought Avalons were always very high net worth to where they could buy an S class Mercedes Benz new with cash but they were smart with their money. Toyota seemed to understand the buyer of these cars very well. The replacement Crown model is hideous and seems to be a total failure in the US. You never see them on the roads. Maybe they tried to get older gen Y who are now hitting their early 40s to buy Crowns but they did not bite.

[@nogarage_ou812]

I would take the crown vic in the beginning over the avalon any day. The crown vic is dead nuts reliable and a better looking car.

[@danhummel84]

Now if you have to haul 6 people, only a 3 row suv will do...

[@JDMHaze]

I’m not sure you’re familiar with the station wagons of the 80s😂

[@Noah_E]

To be fair, modern safety regulations and airbags mean doors and pillars are thicker, and door sills are higher. Modern cars have less interior volume with the same exterior dimensions as 90s cars. So you need to go up a segment to get the same space. Those safety improvements also make modern cars harder to see out of, which is why we need backup cameras and blind spot monitoring now. The narrow pillars and tall windows of pre-side curtain airbag cars made visibility significantly better, but you'd die in what is now a crash you would walk away from with minor bruising.

[@texan903]

Average waistline sizes have grown exponentially since then.

[@jst7714]

Amazing how to think of a company wanting to enter the full size market. Big back big cars! Bring back bench seats!

[@NewDevanaYudityach8485]

The front grill of the Toyota Avalion car is similar to the Toyota Kijang Kapsul 2000-2004, 7k efi 1.8 engine and 1RZ fe 2.0 CC manual matic transmission, original TAMI (Toyota Astra Motor Indonesia) corporation

[@nwezetx1]

Why is that relevant, if the Avalon came first and is 1000x more familiar than that Kijang?

[@NewDevanaYudityach8485]

@@nwezetx1 Hmm, actually, the two cars that are equally familiar are the Toyota Avalon and the Kijang Kapsul, only the grill is similar to the LSX SSX SX and the Krista facelift with chrome color, the most expensive type in Indonesia in 2000-2004. And it is the best-selling Kijang car among the people

[@nwezetx1]

@@NewDevanaYudityach8485 Majority of people watching this video don't care about that vehicle whatsoever.

[@NewDevanaYudityach8485]

@@nwezetx1 Hmm, in fact, there are some children who own Toyota Avalon cars and they tell stories about their parents' experiences buying, using and maintaining them well, even old cars from dealers are kept by owners for a long time. Up to years without any problems with electricity and machinery as long as the garage area is clean from wild animals and insects such as snakes, mice, ants and cockroaches which cause bad smells in the interior area.And the engine room if the car is stored safely, while cars that are stored unsafely are at risk of being disturbed by wild animals and rodents as described above, can reduce the selling price. The car was abandoned by the previous owner while the car that Maintained by the owner, the selling price of the car is high

[@JohnReitz-ps2ct]

My 1966 Corona (really!) had both a bench seat and column shifted automatic. 3 speed manual was also available with column shift that year At one time I had a 1966 Volkswagen. The Corona was much more comfortable and civilized.

[@bikdav]

I remember the Avalon. I thought that it was almost the same size as the Ford Taurus.

[@ryankettary6369]

MITSUBISHI MIRAGE LS coupe 1999 please 🙏

[@T-Rex-nm1se]

Such a shame that the avalon isnt around anymore. Hopefully toyota brings it back but i doubt it at this point since no one wants full size sedans anymore. Everybody wants crossovers now

[@courtneypuzzo2502]

in most US states the first gen and first 2 years of the 2nd gen of Avalon are considered classic cars at this point due to age rules being either 20 yrs or 25 yrs. for classic. don't think I've ever personally known anybody that owned an Avalon though I've known several people who owned Corollas Camrys Highlanders or Priuses. frig I came home from the hospital as a newborn in a 1979 Toyota Corolla station wagon

[@oshawott2250]

I came to the conclusion that these are basically slightly larger Camry's. If they wanted a true American competitor they should have made a stripped down 25k LS400 with a bench seat to compete with the Crown Vic and similar.

[@nwezetx1]

Nope, wasn't viable. The goal was US production or at least North American production for this development program. These decisions were made in 1990-1991, so in order to avoid price sensitivity or breaking the US-Japan trade quota, it had to be built in USA. The idea was to compete against cars like GM's FWD fullsizers and Chrysler's New Yorker, so it did not give any consideration to the Crown Victoria, Grand Marquis, and Chevrolet Caprice, no matter what the media suggested. Those RWD cars were not the benchmarks during early development in 1990-91. Oldsmobile and Buick were. The original plan in 1988-89, was to continue the RWD Cressida line, where the planned 1993 car (MX93) due in November 1992, looked very similar to the X90 Cresta for JDM. 1993 Cressida plans were pulled very quickly toward late 1989 and the gap filled by the 1992 Camry XLE and SE V6 models. A 1993 Cressida would've been an issue for the ES 300, GS 300, and LS 400. A Crown Victoria competitor from Toyota USA wasn't possible, as the only vehicle design meeting that task, would be the soon to be discontinued body on frame Toyota Crown Royal S140. It was eventually replaced 10 months after the 1995 Avalon launch, by the newly unibody Crown S150 in August 1995. Toyota was moving away from body on frame sedans by 1992, when Avalon final design was finalized and were not going to invest resources in unibody Crown Royal or Majesta S150 assembly in USA. It's a non-starter, considering how expensive the Land Cruiser range of vehicles have been for years and other premium Toyotas below Lexus. These Crown vehicles did not suit US tastes and would have too limited a market compared to the Avalon, where US buyers were well acquainted with unibody, FWD Japanese cars vs downmarket large RWD cars that wouldn't even offer the luxury of the LS 400 and would be only 20 to 30% cheaper at best. Who was going to buy a $36k to $42k Toyota Avalon that was RWD and 3.0 V6, when the I6 GS 300 was the same price at $42k with a Lexus dealer experience and ES 300 just as nice, plus cheaper? Be realistic.

[@Rickandmorty_com]

i have this car. i am wondering if i should restore it or just sell it off...

[@davidbaron6647]

Nice😊

[@allmotorkp61]

He still says Camray😂

[@noriceformeplz]

90's Japanese cars are timeless reliability machines. Although I'd never be caught in a Toyota they are very reliable, maybe not as much as they used to be in the 90's as it seems everything made these days is planned obsolescent.

[@DarkMagician225]

3:13 Jay Leno fans, look familiar?

[@ManChan-w5p]

You can fit a Yaris into an Avalon.

[@tinhinnh]

werent these aimed at buick buyers att?

[@tobiaswillson5900]

bring back the bench

[@dimaslopez-dejesus2371]

Six for the Road

[@ecksray48]

...and the Avalon wound up being one of the last big sedans to exit the market

[@texan903]

Toyota marketed the Avalon as a Buick fighter or killer. Interestingly, the Buick Park Avenue and LeSabre models died after the 2005 model year to both be succeeded by the Lucerne in 2006, which survived until 2011. Next, was the LaCrosse, which saw its final iteration last until 2019. The Avalon saw life until 2022, years after Buick killed its large sedans.

[@josephbartolome9920]

Why don't we have 6 seater sedans anymore in today's era??

[@tylermacconnell217]

This did not compete with the Crown Vic, which was larger, had a separate frame, and a V8. Nice car though.

[@nwezetx1]

Excellent point. Never made sense why MW would compare this to that, when Toyota was targeting buyers of Buicks and Oldsmobiles, not Crown Victorias or Caprices.

[@LetsGoPats819]

They steered away from the Crown Vic style 6 passenger and column shifter quickly after this came out.

[@preciadoalex123]

man these were so behind imo. being an avalon i expected a bit more from that interior.

[@a.person7825]

If you throw cayenne pepper in your eyes and squint really hard, it almost looks like the original GS 300.

[@nwezetx1]

Hardly. Looks more like an LS 400 with a six-window treatment and ditto for later generations, including the 3rd gen which last that window treatment. Other than the red-on-white taillights, nothing says GS. Looks plenty similar to dozens of JDM premium Toyota models from that era anyway.

[@a.person7825]

@@nwezetx1 Yeah, that original GS was a neat-looking design. I shouldn’t have vanilla’d it down.

[@nwezetx1]

@@a.person7825 Vanilla'd it down? What did you do? We would've gotten an essentially reskinned GS 300 for another generation of Cressida, instead of this Avalon. See the X90 JDM Cresta.That was the early plan in the late 80s, before Toyota decided to target the Buick Park Avenue in the early 90s with the Avalon.

[@boss12]

When Toyota went to war with Buick.

[@rushbroussard5399]

When Replaced The Toyota Avalon With The Toyota Crown.

[@seanguy9720]

If you squint hard enough… you might just confuse it for an LS400! Rip full sized sedans

[@waynerogers6621]

The.people who bought the avalon in the 90s are buying highlanders today because of easy ingress egress .

[@alpha7ization]

seems like a shrunken 1st gen Lexus GS

[@nwezetx1]

Hardly. Borrowed a lot from the LS 400 upfront and paralleled the Lexus LS for years.

[@mumwifeteacher]

The only “tight” thing in the video was dem pants!

[@runoflife87]

Hmm...I'd rather choose MarkII or Crown Comfort as a big sedan.

[@nwezetx1]

Back in 1989, the plan was to bring a version of the x90 Cresta as the MX93 for the 1993 model year. It was supposed to debut ahead of the MKIV Supra and per internal notes, Toyota's (excl Lexus) first US offering with dual airbags in 1992 (big deal in 1989). Ended up being canceled by January 1990, in favor of developing the FWD Avalon for late 1994 introduction. Basically we would've had by June 1993: 1993 Lexus LS 400 V8 1993 SC 400 & 300 1993 GS 300 1993 ES 300 1993 Cressida (RWD 2JZ-GE) 1993 Supra 1993 Camry LE V6 (no XLE or SE V6) 1993 MR2 1993 Celica 1993 Corolla LE 1993 Paseo 1993 Tercel No Avalon.

[@denali6935]

These were also built in Japan and sold there as well with right hand steering . The column shifter is definitely something I haven’t seen in the Avalon in Japan

[@nwezetx1]

That's not true. They were built in Kentucky from September 1994, not Japan. They were also imported to Japan starting in 1995, following USA in *November 1994*

[@denali6935]

@@nwezetx1 how were they imported when they have right hand drive variants? Go do the research you can find various examples online Japanese avalons also had more safety features and tech

[@nwezetx1]

@@denali6935 You need to do the research yourself, being that I have internal Toyota corporate information on the development of the XX10 Avalon under the 299T Internal Program from February 1990 to 1994. I have all the design process photos, taken at multiple Toyota studios between 1990 and 1991, plus Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha patent filings for the production design from February 1992, prototype development insight. Do you have that information? I doubt it. TMMK in Georgetown, Kentucky built these cars from December 1993 pilot assembly to August 2022. Your claim is false, as all Japanese examples were export-models configured for RHD at TMMK until 2004. They were never built in Japan, only China and Australia (2000-2005).

[@denali6935]

@@nwezetx1 this sounds like a chat gpt response other countries exist outside of the USA as well as Japanese imports the Toyota Avalon is definitely a car sold in Japan up until 1997

[@denali6935]

@@nwezetx1 being from a Caribbean country where Japanese imports are the majority I can assure you there are RHD Toyota avalons on the roads

[@1114860]

Toyota builds a Buick

[@allentoyokawa9068]

Made in America... as if that is good thing with a Japanese car...

[@chriskrueger8225]

@@allentoyokawa9068 there's not much good about Japanese cars in general.

[@thewiseguy3529]

Ahhhh yes, the lexus LS300 lol 😂

[@waynerogers6621]

Too bad the Japanese didn't own a ruler or knew how wide americans were.

[@rabit818]

Avalon may be reliable, but lacks style and bland.

[@VideoAmericanStyle]

Ah yes, the Boca Del Vista special.

[@kimani34]

Check out what they're going for now.

[@Gmny701]

My mom used to own one back in the day, until she sold it in 2008 I think