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U.S. Winners of Toyota Dream Car Art Contest Announced!

Toyota Financial Services (TFS) announced today the nine winners of the U.S. segment of the worldwide Toyota Dream Car Art Contest. The U.S. winners will receive a NOOK Tablet plus an award certificate. The nine U.S. winners are now eligible to advance as World Contest Semi-Finalists to compete among entrants from 70 countries for a chance to win an all-expenses-paid trip to Toyota City, Japan, to participate in the World Contest awards ceremony and tour a Toyota plant in August 2013.

The nine eligible World Contest Semi-Finalists from the U.S. are: Anthony Forsythe (age 15), Jung Min Lee (age 15), Stephen Curtiss (age 15), Alyssa Duhart (age 12), Kacey Kim (age 10), Sarah Kong (age 10), Lynette Kim (age 9), Leah Choi (age 6), and William Lee (age 6).

Judges of the competition, held at Toyota headquarters in Torrance, Calif., included:
Cheech Marin, Actor, Comedian, Director, and Art Collector
Frank Romero, Artist
Olga Garay-English, General Manager, City of Los Angeles Dept. of Cultural Affairs
Jasmine Marin, Artist, Student at Art Institute of Chicago
Tom Rudnai, President/General Manager, Longo Toyota/Scion/Lexus
George Borst, President & CEO, Toyota Financial Services
Ian Cartabiano,Toyota’s Studio Chief Designer, Calty Design Research
Karen Ideno, VP of Product and Marketing, Toyota Financial Services

“It was no easy task to choose just nine winners from the hundreds of submissions," said actor and avid art collector Cheech Marin. "To see the creativity, thoughtfulness, and sense of delight within each piece is truly inspirational. We had young artists share their vision of vehicles that would help their communities; others that would transition from land, to air, to sea; and others that would be simply exciting to drive!”

The Toyota Dream Car Art Contest is an annual contest designed to inspire creativity in youth and imagine the future of mobility.From Feb. 1 – Feb. 28, youth across the U.S., ages 4-15, were invited to create and submit a drawing of their idea of a “Dream Car.”

Winners of the worldwide Toyota Dream Car Art Contest are chosen from three age categories (4-9 years old; 10-12 years old; and 13-15 years old), and judging is based on three criteria: execution of concept; uniqueness; and artistry.

"As a designer, I'm always excited when Toyota fosters art and creativity in today's youth,” said Ian Cartabiano, Chief Designer at Toyota’s Calty Design Center in Newport Beach, Calif. “These young people are using their ideas through art to improve the world, and I feel privileged to witness our bright future coming up with the next big, new idea."

Courtesy of Toyota Newsroom

Tuesday Tip: Wash in winter, too!

If you rarely wash your car during messy winter weather, you are not alone. The cars you see on the road make it obvious that lots of folks figure, “Why bother? The car is going to look awful the next time I drive it.” The problem with this thinking is that washing is more important in the winter than other times of the year. All that sand, slush, and ice mixed with road salt is exactly what makes your car rust. The fastest corrosion occurs when the temperature repeatedly rises above and then falls below freezing. Especially during the messy months, be sure to rinse the undercarriage and hard-to-reach areas that are susceptible to rust, such as the bumpers and inside the wheel wells. If the temperature outside is going to stay above freezing long enough for your car and driveway to dry, fill a bucket with warm water and tackle the job at home. If not, pay a visit to your local car wash and be sure they dry the car thoroughly.

Courtesy of ReadersDigest.com

Toyota’s Prius and Highlander Hybrid Earn U.S. News and World Report’s Best Cars for Families Awards!

The Toyota Prius and Highlander Hybrid have garnered category honors as part of U.S. News and World Report’s Best Cars for Families awards. The 2013 Toyota Prius took top honors in the Best Hatchback for Families category, while the 2013 Highlander Hybrid won the Best Hybrid SUV for Families award for the third year in a row.

The Best Cars for Families awards combine quality, size and family-friendly features into a composite score. Quality is measured using a weighted average of scores from the U.S. News rankings at the time the awards are published. The rankings compare cars on the basis of safety, reliability and a consensus of automotive critics’ opinions. Size is based on a vehicle's seating capacity and interior space. For family-friendly features, the U.S. News editors factor in the availability of features deemed to be helpful to families.

Courtesy of Toyota Newsroom

A big thank you to all our lovely customers for showering us with countless positive reviews this week! We are proud to be your choice.

"I had an excellent service with setting up Bluetooth with my RAV4..." - Yuki C.

Click here to read the reviews!

Toyota Motor Sales Continues to See Steady Growth in February!

Toyota Motor Sales (TMS), U.S.A., Inc., today reported February 2013 sales results of 166,377 units, an increase of 8.7 percent on a daily selling rate (DSR) basis. Unadjusted for 24 selling days in February 2013 versus 25 in February 2012, TMS sales were up 4.3 percent over the year-ago month.  

Toyota Division posted February total sales of 149,038 units, up 8.7 percent year-over-year on a DSR basis.  Volume-wise, Toyota Division sales increased 4.4 percent over February 2012. 

“Despite rising gas prices, severe winter storms and concerns about the federal budget, February was a good indication of the overall strength of the market,” said Bill Fay, group vice president and general manager, Toyota Division. “With the most fuel efficient full line of vehicles, Toyota is well positioned, and we’re encouraged by very positive consumer reaction to our new Avalon and RAV4.

Courtesy of Toyota Newsroom