I test drove a 2017 Avalon a few weeks ago. I immediately ruled it out... not enough drivers leg room. With that extra car length you think they would give a little to the driver? Heck no, same leg room as a Camry.
Otherwise it was a nice car with lots of superflous toys. The ride in the rx450h I ended up buying is much nicer.

 

Looks promising. The body shape appears brawny, athletic, and substantial. The only things that could ruin it is an overly-obnoxious grille ontop of an already obnoxious grille, a dumpy butt/no trunk (appears to be okay here), or another out of place tabletop dashboard similar to the one today. Note only two of the exhaust tips are dirty, hinting fake pipes or flaps that haven't opened up d a whole lot.
Very much looking forward to this and the new ES. Toyota/Lexus is one of the last brands offering us sedans that look like sedans and not cheapened hatchbacks... I greatly want to support the company.

 

I'm sure it will be a nice car, does Toyota have any plans on targeting a younger buyer? Also, unless people don't know/don't care (BMW says this about the X1), imho there are serious limitations to FWD cars so there should be a cap on what someone would pay for one (I think maybe 31k, 35 tops). Having never owned a Toyota or a Honda, I would like to own one. That's why it's disappointing to finally have seen the new Camry and Accord come out.

 

You directly contradict yourself by stating, "This isn't the 1990s," followed by a post stating, "...the improvements actually started in the late 90s and early 2000s." We both know that Hyundai/Kia cars from that era were still largely considered junk by the American public as well as actually being junk prior to Hyundai/Kia's vitalizarían efforts which have worked in their favor since Schreyer turned things around.

 

They are doing to Toyota and Honda what Samsung did to Sony, Panasonic and Sharp.

 

Samsung and LG.

 

LG...not so much. Probably not the first brand anyone thinks about when buying any electronics.

 

My stove/oven, dishwasher, over-the-range microwave, refrigerator, washer, dryer, televisions, and sound speaker bars are all built by LG and all work fantastically well.

We we didn't intend to buy all LG everything, rather it just sort of turned out that way.

 

Not really. Toyota has done very well that the last 25 years. They are pretty much a "full line" manufacturer in the United States. I think they sell about 2.5 million vehicles. GM is around 3 million I believe. Hyundai/Kia are around 1.5 million but the prices are nowhere near the asking price of some Toyota, Lexus, or GM products.

 

The extra length went to rear legroom.

 

Yes, Sony, Panasonic & Sharp really have fallen.
Honda is falling somewhat.
It will be interesting what becomes of Toyota.
Presently, TMC is doing fine.

 

^ I don't think Honda is falling behind with their mainstream Honda products(except in styling IMO, but that hasn't effected sales) Acura is a different story though, they're way behind the times in terms of luxury cars IMO.

Anybody who has driven the new Civic loves the way it drives, the tight build quality, great handling. The real game changer for the new Civic though is all the extra room, the refinment/quietness, and its actually quick, something that could never be said of past Civics.



Getting back on topic, for the new Avalon, I'd like them to make it a bit more traditional, a bit boxier, don't go for that stupid sloping rear roof line that compromises rear headroom, makes the back glass/package tray way too huge, and makes the trunk opening tiny. Boxier, more upright doesn't have to be boring IMO, get creative here. Everybody else is doing swoopy fastback nonsense that compromises room, buck the trend here Toyota.

I still think the best Avalon was the 2000-2004 2nd generation. Staggering amounts of room in that car, front seat, back seat, trunk, great visibility, huge windows, plus it was whisper quiet and rode like whipped cream. Quality was great as well, interior was nicer than the crap 3rd gen car that replaced it, IMO the interior in that 2nd gen Avalon is still nicer than the current car in a lot of respects.

 

I think a comparison between the Avalon and the new Accord will be interesting. The new Accord has 2" more leg room than the current one so it should be close to the Avalon in space. They have similar fastback rooflines so headroom issues are likely to be similar. Honda says they have improved interior quality, and the Touring even has wood trim on the dash. No V-6 for the Accord, but it does have a 10 speed auto.
Steve

 

Sony is still a major player....at least in most of the stores I've been in.

 

Wow....Sharp, what a blast from the past, they were at one time on top of the game with Aquos. Panasonic? On top with VHS. No offense if it turns out nobody even knows what that acronym is for. Because if you asked around in an office today, I would say up to about 50% have never used a CD, although more than 50% of that group will say their parents have them.