Nonsense. This is not true....Sales have increased since the 1990s and 2000s...so more people are buying them as well as existing owners.. Your theory is wrong!

 

I for one considered the Avalon before I decided on my Lexus. Though it looks like a nice car I don't think I would have chosen this version of the Avalon either. My reasons for not choosing the Avalon was because I felt it was a little boring and no wow factor. This has a little bit of a wow factor but not enough to change my opinion. I am not a fan of the front end and the interior doesn't look as good as last years model.
Age 54 for anyone keeping stats.

 

Which Lexus did you buy?

 

Getting kicked in the crotch is not boring either. Come on Toyota can you please make some classy looking cars instead of "bold" and exciting"?

 

not to speak on his behalf but i'd assume ES since it's just a nicer avalon and basically costs the same. every time i lose an avalon sale it's usually for that reason, but i could be wrong...

 

Here's my idea of a "classy" looking Toyota. In fact, I once owned one myself.....same color and
body style.

 

The ES 350 ended up giving me the wow! I was looking for.
Matador Red Mica.
Always turning heads.

Stooock639 you are correct lol.

 

I would not call this car classy at all. Front end looks goofy. I like the looks however, an easy going car from Toyota. An MR2 was very cool and rare in the day. What color of Celica did you get?

 

The Lexus rendering looks good to my eyes at least.

I will say Toyota has made strange design designs over the last few years. Almost like they are trying too hard to be "edgy".

 

Excellent cars as well. Too bad Toyota didn't fit them with their best engines of the day. Toyota used to make cars with class, reserved styling not hey look at me I'm trendy. They aged well because of this.

1987 Cressida


1989 Celica All-Trac


1973 (ish) Corolla TE27


1990 Camry wagon (mine)

 

Same color as that. Iris (Blue) Pearl...though it had a slight blue/purple effect in some light-angles. In fact, my car was identical to that (spoiler and all) except for the wheel-covers. I kept it for six years...then sold it and got my yellow Lexus IS300....which is when I joined CL.

We'll just disagree, then, on the classiness. No problem. I was struck with looks of this-vintage Celica the first time I saw it....especially the front end and the four big round headlights. I also liked the fact that the 1.8L engine, though somewhat underpowered, was quite easy to work on..especially for oil/filter changes (I did more of my own maintenance back then, and on my late Mom's Corolla wagon)

Since we're on the thread-topic Avalon...I also liked the 1Gen Avalon far more than any of the subsequent versions. Though it was somewhat generic-looking and, IMO, resembled a Camry too much inside and out, it was the most comfortable-riding, had a bench-seat option with column-shift if desired, and had the most solid interior materials...which grew more plush-looking with later versions (fake wood, chrome), but were actually less-solid.

Agreed the MR2 was interesting (my old Flight Instructor, who I've stayed friends with) bought a brand new Turbo in 1994...Ferrari-red with black leather interior. A blast to drive on a winding road....but it had dirty steering on the interstate, tended to slightly drift left and right like many mid-engined cars because of the center of gravity, ran rather hot in the engine compartment because of the limited air-flow (also like many mid-engined cars), and was very low to the ground for a big tall guy like me to get in and out of.

 

I agree that the Avalon grille is horrendous. The previous model was not much better but I took a pass in 2014 ( and bought the Lexus ES300h) because I didn't like the Avalon dash and instrumentation design. I do like the update for the new generation Avalon but the new grille would be a deal breaker.

 

It's going to be interesting to see if this so-called "polarizing" styling is going to have an effect. Just because you style something and it has some pickup due to trends and fashions doesn't mean it will last. The 1st through 3rd generation Avalons were Japanese Buicks and they sold quite well for people who valued reliability, cushy ride and innocuous style. You could even get a bench seat and a column shift on some of the earlier models.

The 4th generation (2012 - 2018) is a nicely styled car and it packs all the tech you could want for those years. Toyota did a great job on that car's looks, even if it wasn't over the top.

Here's the conundrum - one of the most inoffensively styled cars from Germany regularly outsells the Avalon, and it's called the Passat. Year in, year out, the Passat outscores the Avalon in sales. Only when Toyota redid Avalon with the 4th generation, did sales really pick up for two years and then declined again, and that car does not have polarizing looks at all.

VW sold 96K Passats in 2014, even 60+K in 2017, while Avalon did 67K in 2014 and declined to 32K in 2017. How does a bland looking Passat outsell a restyled Avalon through all these years? Where is this particular styling experiment going to end?

Sometimes bland sells for these buyers, so gambling with edgy styling is a big risk.

 

For some reason Toyota is more successful in the exterior design of SUVs and trucks than cars. I like the look of the RAV 4, Highlander and 4 runner. Even the trucks look good. But for some reason they struggle with car designs. Not just the new Avalon. Look at the new prius, horrible. Or Maybe Toyota cars are designed more for reliability, function , and space and not so much for looks. If Toyota cars looked sexy less people would buy Lexus.