PRESS RELEASE
Toyota Announces 1996 Sales: Record Year
8 January 1997
Toyota Closes Out Record 1996 with Seventh-Consecutive Million-Plus Year
TORRANCE, Calif., Jan. 3 -- Toyota Motor Sales (TMS), USA,
Inc., today reported best-ever year-end total sales of 1,159,718, up
6.4 percent over last year and 6.6 percent over the previous record of
1,088,082 set in 1994. The Toyota Division sold 1,078,189 cars and trucks, up
6.7 percent over last year and the third consecutive year it has topped one
million units.
"The biggest surprise of the year was the staying power of consumer
confidence over the long haul," said Yale Gieszl, TMS executive vice
president. "1996 will be remembered as the year that established the slow,
steady growth the industry will ride through to the end of the century."
Camry continued to lead Toyota sales with 359,433 units, up 8.7 percent
over last year, and the best-ever year in the model's history. Along the way,
Camry recorded five monthly sales records with May's best-ever 42,701 being
the high-water mark. November's sales represented the tenth consecutive month
that Camry sales had exceeded those of the previous year.
Other passenger cars finishing the year with strong sales were Avalon with
73,308 units, up 9.6 percent over 1995, and Paseo with 6,069 units, up
7.3 percent. On the way to its best-ever sales year, Avalon recorded seven
monthly sales records.
Corolla, in the final year of its current model cycle, held strong at
209,048 units, off only 2.8 percent from last year.
Toyota's trucks and sport-utility vehicles (SUVs) also set sales records
throughout the year. With sales totaling 176,684, total SUV sales were up
94.6 percent.
With 99,597 units representing an increase of 30.3 percent, 4Runner
recorded its best-ever sales year. December sales of 9,167, up 15.7 percent,
capped off a year that saw 11 of the 12 months represent sales records. May's
10,864 units was the model's best-ever single month.
After going on-sale in mid-February, the Toyota RAV4 exceeded early sales
goals of 35-40,000 units with year-end sales of 56,709.
Toyota's full-size pickup, T100, recorded its best-ever year in 1996 with
total sales of 37,926, up 0.6 percent over 1995's record year.
Lexus sales climbed to 81,529 and represented an increase of 2.1 percent
over 1995. Final 1996 Lexus Division sales highlights include the re-
engineered ES 300 which finished the year tallying an all-time record of
44,773, an increase of 7.2 percent over 1995 and its best year ever since its
debut in 1991. Launched in January, the LX 450 luxury sport utility surpassed
initial projections of 3,500 units, posting a year-end total of 7,528.
Toyota's North American-produced vehicles continued to play an increased
role in total sales, with 698,027 vehicles representing 60.2 percent of the
vehicles sold in 1996, an increase of 13.5 percent over 1995.
There were 308 selling days in 1996, versus 306 in 1995.
TOYOTA/LEXUS SALES
DECEMBER, 1996
CURRENT MONTH CALENDAR YEAR TO DATE
DSR % DSR %
1996 1995 CHG 1996 1995 CHG
TOTAL VEHICLE SALES 82,047 99,375 -17.4 1,159,718 1,083,351 6.4
TOYOTA DIV. IMPORT CAR9,956 19,055 -47.8 163,845 216,005 -24.6
LEXUS IMPORT CAR 6,744 8,091 -16.6 74,001 79,334 -7.3
TOYOTA DIV NA
BUILT CARS 36,956 46,117 -19.9 555,746 498,635 10.7
TOTAL TOYOTA CARS 53,656 73,263 -26.8 793,592 793,974 -0.7
SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES15,915 9,269 71.7 176,684 90,204 94.6
SMALL VANS 331 883 -62.5 8,520 18,234 -53.6
PICKUPS 12,145 15,960 -23.9 180,922 180,939 -0.7
* NORTH AMERICAN BUILT VEHICLES
COROLLA 14,448 18,236 -20.8 202,417 184,002 9.3
CAMRY 17,047 21,982 -22.5 280,021 248,188 12.1
AVALON 5,461 5,899 -7.4 73,308 66,445 9.6
PICKUP 9,661 12,623 -23.5 142,281 112,602 25.5
TOTAL 46,617 58,740 -20.6 698,027 611,237 13.5
N.A. VEHICLES
% OF TOTAL 56.8% 59.1% 60.2% 56.4%
SELLING DAYS 25 25 308 306
DSR = DAILY SELLING RATE
CONTACT: John Hanson or Jeremy Barnes, Toyota Product News, 310-618-4718, or 310-618-7728, or Mike Michels, Lexus Public Relations, 310-781-3282
