Toyota Takes the Wraps Off The All New Aurion at 2006 Melbourne Motor Show

Melbourne - March 1, 2006: Toyota unveiled its new generation six cylinder, the Aurion, at the Melbourne Motor Show.

The new car is powered by a 3.5-liter V6 which Toyota says will deliver more than 190Kw and 330NM. There will even be a supercharged performance version of the new engine, installed into an appropriately beefed up hotshoe version of the four-door sedan. The Aurion FPC (Future Performance Concept), which was also on display at Melbourne, points to the look and feel of the production version of this variant.

According to Toyota, the Aurion nameplate comes from the ancient Greek word for "tomorrow".

Although based on the new Camry (launched at Detroit in January), the Aurion has been restyled and re-engineered to suit Australian buyers. The new car features exterior styling themes penned by Toyota Styling Australia's (TSA) lead designer, Nick Hogios.

The Aurion ensures that Toyota Australia has significant separation between our locally manufactured four-cylinder medium [Camry] and six-cylinder large cars, TSA Chief Designer Paul Beranger said.

"This vehicle will allow us to grow our share of the large car market. Australian retail customers and fleets alike are looking for an alternative to the big two in this segment.

"Aurion has what the large car buyer demands: muscular proportions and a performance package that will be very competitive with local rivals," Beranger said.