2010 Toyota Buying Guide

Changes to the 2010 Toyota car and truck lineup include styling updates for the 2010 Toyota Camry, an all-new 2010 Toyota Prius hybrid, a redesigned 2010 Toyota Sienna minivan, and a revamped 2010 Toyota 4Runner SUV.

These cars and trucks are some of Toyota’s signature products, making the 2010 model year a significant season for a brand that sailed into 2009 as the world’s largest automaker.

That’s right: Toyota outsold General Motors worldwide in calendar 2008, 8.97 million vehicles to GM’s 8.35 million, sliding the American giant into second place for the first time since the 1930s. Moreover, the Toyota division of the Japan-based company -- a company that also builds Lexus and Scion vehicles -- became the No. 1 seller in the U.S. Amercians in 2008 bought some 1.8 million Toyota cars and trucks, a total surpassing Chevrolet by 53,150 and Ford by 163,348.

Those numbers are evidence of the appeal of Toyota cars and trucks, and also of the brand’s sterling reputation for reliability and resale value. That’s not to say Toyota is infallible, however. It’s been off target with some products, and it’s certainly not immune from the effects of the unstable economy.

For example, Toyota waited years to field full-size trucks that could compete with the Americans and when it finally launched the 2008 Tundra pickup and Sequoia SUV, it was into a sales-killing storm of gas price uncertainty and economy crisis. And some industry observers wonder if Toyota has misplayed its hybrid card with the redesigned 2010 Prius, which is larger and more expensive than the previous Prius. Honda, by contrast, may be onto something by emphasizing low price and fewer frills with its all-new 2010 Insight hybrid.

Toyota has also had to follow the struggling domestic brands into the world of deep discounts, factory incentives, longer product cycles, even assembly-plant contractions. Indeed, Toyota’s sales did shrink in 2008 – but they didn’t fall like those of most other carmakers.

In an overall U.S. auto market that declined 18 percent, Toyota-brand sales were off 14.7 percent. By comparison, Chevrolet sales dropped 20.4 percent, Ford’s 19.5 percent. Still, Toyota could quietly claim its highest-ever market share in the U.S., and also point to its Camry as the best-selling car in America. The task of the 2010 Toyota-model lineup is to build on such success.  

Here’s an overview of the 2010 Toyota cars and trucks:

2010 Toyota Avalon
This stretched Camry feels like a baby Lexus. Next full redesign: model-year 2012.

2010 Toyota Camry
Unbeatable midsize-car refinement. Gets a facelift and fortified four-cylinder for 2010.

2010 Toyota Corolla
America’s most-popular compact car thanks to conservative design, value reputation.

2010 Toyota FJ Cruiser
Old-school two-door SUV looks like a flash-in-the-pan fashion statement. Fate unclear.

2010 Toyota Highlander
Crossover SUV is less carlike than new Venza, but still slick; four-cylinder now available.

2010 Toyota Land Cruiser
Odd duck: a luxury SUV adept at off-roading. At $65,000, it’s for a few wealthy loyalists. 

2010 Toyota Matrix
All-wheel-drive an asset, but this compact crossover wagon lacks typical Toyota polish.

2010 Toyota Prius
Hybrid star bigger and better than ever, but challenged by less costly new Honda Insight.

2010 Toyota RAV4
Minor facelift, more four-cylinder power for 2009 will carry it until a 2012-model redesign.

2010 Toyota Sequoia
Right truck, wrong era. Stronger but thriftier V-8 due for this Tundra-based full-size SUV.

2010 Toyota Sienna
Redesigned for 2010. Familiar looks, but more room for cargo and third-row passengers.

2010 Toyota Tacoma
Model-2009 safety, styling tweaks sustain this compact pickup until a 2013 redesign

2010 Toyota Tundra
Good pickup, bad timing. Due for new 4.6-liter V-8, just like Sequoia, but no diesel soon.

2010 Toyota Yaris
Look elsewhere for style, but a thrifty, solid subcompact. Next redesign slated for 2012.

2010 Toyota Venza
New-for-2009 Highlander cousin seats five instead of seven and looks suave doing it.

2010 Toyota 4Runner
Truck-based midsize SUV gets first major styling and engineering changes since 2003.