How TRD came to be

It cost $5 million to bring their first car, a 241kW supercharged Aurion TRD, to market.

The most powerful front-wheel-drive production car in the world will be the first of many TRD special sports vehicles, followed by the Hi-Lux TRD late this year.

Toyota product management divisional manager Peter McGregor said they had been working on the TRD project since 2002.

“We wanted to gain market leadership back and asked for projects to strengthen the brand and increase sales and market share,” he said.

In the absence of sports vehicles such as the Supra, Celica or MR2 the company recognised it was under-represented by buyers aged under 30, so a special vehicles operation was suggested.

The first special vehicle operations meeting was held on February 27, 2003.

“We knew this would not be big volume but would be about emotion and inspiration,” McGregor said.

“The business case was built around the belief that TRD would generate more than just sales in the long term.”

He said TRD would trade on its motorsport heritage through Formula One and rallying and recognition of the brand through the Gran Turismo PlayStation game.

Toyota Australia sales and marketing senior executive director Dave Buttner described the move to launch TRD as “a leap of faith by the company."

TRD Australia corporate manager Greg Gardner said the project began as a part-time activity that brought together “a band of closet enthusiasts”.

The first task was to build a design team. Designer Lee Moran of Toyota Style Australia in Melbourne, was charged with the external design for the first TRD product.

“There was no DNA for TRD so we had to start from scratch and create one,” said Moran who has worked for Ford on WRC car design.

“We could steer the direction of the brand any way we wanted.

“We chose F1 for our DNA inspiration.”

The cars are developed by low-volume sports vehicle specialists Pro Drive with final assembly at Toyota's Altona plant.

While TRD has announced the next vehicle will be a supercharged Hi-Lux, there are no firm plans yet for follow-up vehicles or whether it will continue with superchargers.

Currently TRD is conducting a feasibility study for the third vehicle with an announcement expected early next year and the final production vehicle released within about two years.

TRD Australia has appointed 41 dealers with 25 metropolitan dealers on line for the launch of the Aurion TRD and 16 regional dealers added for the Hi-Lux launch.

The Aurion TRD release last week was aptly timed to coincide with the 50th anniversary of Toyota's first involvement in motorsport anywhere in the world.

That event was the first Mobil Gas Around Australia Rally in 1957 when a Toyopet finished a credible 47th out of 86 entries.

In Australia, Toyota has won four rally driver's championships and a manufacturer's trophy, 11 class victories at Bathurst, the inaugural 2-litre Touring Car title and the inaugural Bathurst 12-hour in 1991.