Toyota Aurion ends production for good
After only two generations in 11 years, the Toyota Aurion has ended production in Australia, which likely means the death of the nameplate in the UAE and GCC too.
After only two generations in 11 years, the Toyota Aurion has ended production in Australia, which likely means the death of the nameplate in the UAE and GCC too.
Al Futtaim Motors just celebrated their 60th anniversary this week. That’s right, the UAE’s sole Toyota distributor has been at it for more than half a century, so it’s a bit of a surprise that they’re doing anything TRD-related only now. TRD is Toyota’s performance arm, and UAE dealerships now offer add-on TRD parts for various models. We picked the TRD Aurion to take for a spin, skipping more intriguing models such as the TRD FJ Cruiser and the TRD 86.
Al-Futtaim Motors, the UAE’s Toyota dealer, officially introduced Toyota Racing Development (TRD) packages for the 2015 Aurion, Corolla, Yaris sedan, Yaris hatchback and the 86.
The 2012 Toyota Aurion, essentially a redone version of the 2012 Toyota Camry, but fitted with a V6 engine and better interior appointments, is now available in the UAE. It has already been on sale in other GCC countries like Bahrain and Saudi Arabia since late last month.
We saw images of the facelifted 2010 Toyota Aurion when it debuted in Australia more than a year ago. Then we heard rumblings from readers that a body-kitted model was now available in the Dubai showroom, under the guise of a “Touring” trim. Toyota’s UAE dealer hasn’t advertised the “new” Aurion at all, so we’d never seen this mysterious kit although we did assume it could be the same as the Australian-spec one. But today, we were at the showroom and caught the damn thing.
I get asked a bit too many times which is the best midsize sedan out of the three Japanese stalwarts – the Honda Accord, the Nissan Altima and the Toyota Aurion. Very few even care for oddities such as the Galant, the Passat or the Lumina, but it is not my job to promote those market-losers. Even fewer care that only one member of the A-grade trio is actually built in Japan. I have never driven the three cars back-to-back, and do not intend to, as none of them are exciting enough to warrant a second round. However, I have driven the V6 versions of each of the three four-door cars back in 2008,