What are these pics? Is this it?

Next generation Avalon could be the only V6 choice from Toyota - - By BRUCE NEWTON 29 October 2003 - - SOurce: carsales.com.au


TOYOTA Australia is seriously considering a strategy to make the next generation Avalon the only mainstream V6 choice, restricting Camry to four-cylinder power.

Currently Avalon and Camry share the same 3.0-litre V6 engine. Camry is also the dominant player in the medium segment in 2.4-litre four-cylinder form, as well as being a vital export revenue earner.

The strategy is a way Toyota believes it can finally ignite the sales of its under-performing locally-built large car and present true competition to the Holden Commodore and Ford Falcon.

"We haven’t decided that fully, but that’s a direction – a very strong direction – we are pursuing," Toyota Australia senior executive vice-president John Conomos told GoAuto at last week’s Tokyo motor show.

Mr Conomos believes 30,000-40,000 Avalons could be sold per annum domestically post-2006.

That sort of result would make it a true third leg of its local large car strategy alongside Camry and Kluger, which will eventually be built locally.

This year Avalon will sell around 6000 examples. But it is being outsold by V6 Camry and their combined total for 2003 will probably be a couple of thousand units under the 21,280 the 660T Camry managed on its own in 1999.

"There is a risk taking V6 out of Camry," admitted Mr Conomos. "But while it is a very successful four-cylinder car, it frankly didn’t sell well up against the big cars, so accordingly with the new generation cars coming that’s an option we are considering."

The above even for Australia does not make sense! What are they thinking over there?

Damnnn... Sick, is this the JDM version of the '05 Avalon? If so, great find. I like the front. Looks like a more aggressive LS. The rear looks like a cross between the new RL and the 745iL's trunk, so it's just so so. Still, it's a good looking car. It would do very well here... the article Gav posted said it would come very close to Lexus levels of luxury, with LS like rear legroom, but damn. If this is the next Avalon, I hope the LS moves in a completely different direction, because this car can easily canabalize Lexus's sales. Since Lexus will debut in Japan, maybe this car and our LS (Celsior) will be very different in appearance. :bandito:

thats hot. looks like a japanese maybach

Looks good for a Toyota.

Alright overall. I like the front, but the back is actually pretty ugly. Looks to me like a more angular/refreshed version of a Hyundai XG350.

http://www.hyundaiusa.com/Vehicles/X...le396_1855.jpg
http://tinypic.com/acvvd

Sad day when the Japs take their styling cues from the Koreans.

looks like it should be a lexus badged vehicle

That's what I was thinking... Looks like it could be the Next LS...

If this is the next Avalon, watch out 300 and 300C.

Hehehe... True.

So the next thought is, imagine what the next gen. Lexus vehicles will look like, right? :)

Thats the Toyota Crown, it was unveiled at last years auto show.
http://autozine.kyul.net/Car_Photo/Toyota/Crown_in.jpg http://autozine.kyul.net/Car_Photo/T...wn_version.jpg http://autozine.kyul.net/Car_Photo/T...Crown_dash.jpg

Those pictures have nothing to with the Avalon. Thats the Toyota Crown Majesta, a RWD car with a 4.3L V8 which costs north of $50k, essentially Toyota's top model once the Celsior (Lexus LS) disappears into a Lexus in Japan in a yr or two. The fuzzy black and white picture is probably the real thing. If you look closely the camo pics and the fuzzy black and white appear to be the same car. Exterior is supposedly influenced by the European Avensis. As the carconnection article says, it will remain Camry based but this time on a considerably lengthened version. Part of this is a collection of internet rumors, part a description of the next Avalon by a guy who works in Georgetown.

As for Toyota's choice of engines, while there appears to be a clear effort on Toyota's part to differentiate Lexus from the mother brand as they had stated a few months earlier, it will be mostly visual and in terms of driving feel, Lexus will continue to share engines, transmissions and platform parts with RWD top of the line Toyotas in Japan. Lexus will get the Direct Ignition V6 series on all of its RWD cars. The only Toyota to share the DI V6 till now is the Toyota Crown (Royal and Athlete, the Majesta is a V8 only). The Crown also shares the next GS's platform. But in the rest of the world, Lexus's RWD entries gets the DI V6 while the Toyota's get the simpler vvti versions. Camry based Lexi should continue to get the regular Toyota FWD V6s but will be visually differentiated even further than current efforts.

The Avalons supposed 3.5L V6 is a complete mystery. Speculation ranges from a version of Toyotas truck 4.0L to the DI version destined for the IS to being an all-new engine set to replace Toyotas FWD V6's in the next few years.

It is also speculated than Toyota/Lexus is interested in moving people towards its V8 versions of the GS, hence offering a highly refined but smallish displacement V6 - a 3.0L with 245-252HP and a very broad power band thanks to DI. The GS is expected to have 2 V8 versions with the second appearing within 2 yrs of introduction, the second V8 will show up after its introduced as an option on the next LS. The current V8 will also be retuned at the time of the next LS's intro roughly 2 yrs from now. Toyota intends to have a clear severance from Lexus in the eyes of its customers. It wants people to start thinking of Lexus as a seperate brand. The Avalon will have nothing in common with the Lexus GS, not in terms of looks and specially not in terms of driving feel. The Avalon will be a true large car but with a clear Toyota driving feel. The engine choices for Lexus will be determined by the choices available compared to the European competition, BMW/Audi/MB etc. The GS 3.0 will be a sub ~7 second alternate (thanks to an excellent 6AT, and an engine with a much wider powerband compared to the outgoing I6) to the BMW 525/530, Audi A6 3.2, MB E class V6, Cadillac STS V6 with class leading fuel economy. While the RL and M will be faster, they wont be faster by much, as they have one less cog in their transmissions (and will have for at least 2 maybe 3 more years), the difference will be no more than 0.5 seconds, if that, in 0-60. The thing thats far more important is whether or not Lexus will deliver on its recent promise to completely revamp the driving feel of its cars beginning with the GS and continuing even further with the IS. Thats what will make or break Lexus's chances in the middle end of the car business.

vs. the new Toyota Mark X
http://www.dannyp.us/vansman/Auto%20...kX%20-%201.jpg
http://www.dannyp.us/vansman/Auto%20...kX%20-%202.jpg
http://www.dannyp.us/vansman/Auto%20...kX%20-%203.jpg
http://www.dannyp.us/vansman/Auto%20...kX%20-%204.jpg
http://www.dannyp.us/vansman/Auto%20...kX%20-%205.jpg

RL anyone? :shrug:

Avolon is best selling Buick in America. The problem with sales, camery is too expensive (V-6), should no more than 28k with GPS, and Avalon should not be no more than 34-35K, because, Avlaon is between CAmery V-6 and ES330. Alanon need to find balance in its pricing then they can sell more

The Mark X isn't bad looking... is that supposed to be a sports sedan? Looking at the five spoke wheels and dual exhuast gives me that impression. Damn, the rear decklid looks alot like the RL.

New Avalon news
 

Some more info...

http://carspyshots.proboards2.com/in...isplay&start=0

That interior looks teh sweet.

Junkster, who wants real shots of the interior

Nice interior, but no Nav :dunno:

Wow...the interior looks pretty good...:nod:

But that exterior is rather blah

Did you miss that gigantic screen in the car ;) Has the temp info on it. I am sure that can also be used for navigation. The camry has nav so don't think it is an issue.


Little too much gray plastic (sort of G35 esk). looks ripe for the scratching

I read in another forum that there'll be 4 trim levels including one even higher priced than the ES.

Biker, who thinks that the Avalon buyer will still be the mainly Buick type crowd that wants an alternative.

Interior looks good, but the exterior still looks boring and bland.

Eh, not a fan of the interior or the exterior. But overall it looks alright. The specs are quite amazing though :)

I just think tan+wood don't mix well with silver plastic trims..

I'd love to see the blond wood with a black interior :thumbsup:

SPUDMTN, who thinks Audi knows how to do interiors best.

"Poor man's Lexus" to me!

Very nice. The view screen is larger now then in the current car. Better for the intended audience's eys.

Either that, or it's hidden under the dash door.

They should display it proudly in their shots I think....

It's a nice car but it's still too boring! They gotta do something with the image!

:boring:

For the people they're trying to sell the car to, I think it does the job.. It's not like Avalons are for young people in their 20's.

Toyota has done quite well using the Avalon to take over the market from American automakers. It was designed specifically back then to compete with the Crown Victoria, LeSabre, etc. Again, don't get me wrong. It is a nice car but something is missing.

exterior looks like the new upcoming GS..

excitement :dunno:

true that!

WHAT A BORING LOOKING CAR!!!!! :lame:

Not feeling the wood/silver plastic combo. And definitely not feeling the foot brake. :hurl: I hate foot brake in a car. Foot brake in a truck or van is fine, but not in a car.

How many Buick Park Avenues have anyone seen with a hand parking brake??

I wonder if the pics of the body are early drawings for the final look.

I hope it is an early drawing. If not then Toyota is following the updated trend they have with Lexus.

It's supposed to appeal to older folks (conservative, sedate, etc)... Don't know why everyone's bashing about its looks.

I am sure I missed some threads about this Avalon earlier, is it FWD, RWD or AWD? 280hp on the front doesn't sound right to me. And its a world-wide model right?

it's in the RL... :shrug:

fwd

Those door panels on the center console look AWEFULLY FAMILLAR.

And the car itself just looks aweful

"dual vvt-i", where vvt-i is used on both the intake and exaust cams. anything special? I mean Honda and Nissan can get more HP and Torque out of their 3.5L engines.

That's probably why I hate foot brake......because most of the American cars have foot brake. Hmm.....did I mention I don't like 99.9% of American cars?


I never said I like the new RL. :shrug:

I was just saying that I don't like foot brake in cars. That's my preference.

ah ha... :ponder:

not as easy to pull it to induce a slide :D

... because we do that every day to get away from evil henchmen...:rofl:
picky lads, aren't we...

I think the look is plain Jane, but since it's marketed to the Buick crowd, why wouldn't you go conservative?

Junkster, who likes the interior very much

Hmm.. I like it more than I thought I would (I saw some AWFUL sketches of the supposed next gen Avalon)

The interior is nice EXCEPT for that godawful cheap plastic middle. Just like the Solara.. :uzi:

Think Toyotas use of this grey plastic here, in the camry solara, and in the new tacoma is so cheap looking.

I guess its better than the current avalon but its not impressive at all. That silver plastic is no doubt going to be cheap ass hell in person.

https://forums.autoweek.com/servlet/...7-1395/av1.jpg

https://forums.autoweek.com/servlet/...7-1396/av2.jpg

https://forums.autoweek.com/servlet/...7-1397/av3.jpg

Source: www.Autoweek.com

It looks real nice from the side pics. It reminds me of the new GS's profile, though the C-pillar is as pulled back.

Wow that rear SCREAMS new Lexus GS........