PRESS RELEASE

Toyota Announces North American Debut of Concept Car

5 February 1997

    CHICAGO, Feb. 5 -- Toyota Motor Sales (TMS) U.S.A., Inc.,
today announced that an all-new coupe will be built at Toyota Motor
Manufacturing, Canada (TMMC) in Cambridge, Ontario.  The coupe will be based
on the Camry platform and is scheduled to roll into dealerships in the U.S and
Canada in the summer of 1998.
    "The new coupe is significant in that it will be the first vehicle to take
advantage of the combined talents of Toyota's North American styling,
engineering and manufacturing facilities," said Don Esmond, TMS vice president
of large car platforms.  "The coupe will combine elegant, sporty styling in an
upscale four-passenger package.  We plan to sell about fifty thousand coupes a
year -- exclusively in the North American market."
    The initial styling for the new coupe was given to Toyota's CALTY design
center in Newport Beach, California.  Engineering responsibilities were shared
between Toyota corporate engineering in Japan and the Toyota Technical Center
(TTC) in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
    In 1996, the TMMC production facility was expanded to 2.5 million square
feet, accommodating a second plant for the production of the new coupe.
Capital investment for the expansion was about $480 million.  The facility
will have a combined capacity of 200,000 units per year, employing 2,200
people.  The TMMC facility currently produces the four-door Corolla sedan and
the 1.6- and 1.8-liter Corolla engines.  The facility has won the coveted J.D.
Power Initial Quality Gold Plant Award for the past two years.
    Although the coupe will be Camry-based, and will share the Camry's front-
drive/three-liter V6 powertrain, it will share no common sheet metal with the
Camry, nor will it share its name.
    The announcement of the all-new coupe was made at a press conference at
the Chicago Auto Show, highlighted by the unveiling of the Toyota Solara.  The
Solara is a speedster concept vehicle designed to offer a hint to the
direction of the new coupe.  A joint styling exercise between CALTY and ASC of
Southgate, Michigan, the Solara features a low, wraparound windshield, hard
tonneau cover, Nippondenso Central Discharge Lamp (CDL) headlight system,
unique 17-inch alloy wheels and unique scribed Italian leather upholstery.
    "We've made no firm decisions regarding the ultimate name for the new
coupe, and we're still not sure if, or when, a convertible model will be
offered," said Esmond.  "However, we can say that the Solara speedster
captures the spirit of the new coupe, while conveying many of its design
queues and essential dimensions."

SOURCE  Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.