Toyota Corolla: World’s Most Popular Car

 

Marking the milestone, Corolla Chief Engineer Shinichi Yasui said: “I feel this car has been nurtured by people all over the world and I am very proud to have contributed to its foundation and grateful to all those who have owned and loved their Corollas. The key to the Corolla’s success is the faithful passing down of its original development concept from Hasegawa: that the Corolla must bring happiness and well-being to people around the world.”

 

The Corolla was originally designed to meet the changing needs of Japanese commuters in the mid-1960s. Then-Chief Engineer Tatsuo Hasegawa recognized that with Japan’s industry expanding, most consumers’ daily commuting time was increasing. The need to get around in a personal vehicle was therefore growing and this insight led Hasegawa to conceptualize the first Corolla, with his guiding principles defining the vehicle ever since: always evolving and designed to meet consumer needs in each market.

 

When the first Corolla rolled off the production line, many basic safety features were still optional. Later, to meet the needs of families, Toyota decided to include many of these features as standard. Toyota’s commitment to pursue higher and higher levels of quality and continue adding new standard features to the affordably priced Corolla has helped ensure that families around the world continue to choose it more than any other nameplate. As a testament to the quality of the Corolla, in Canada, more than 80 per cent of Corollas sold in the last twenty years are still on the road today.

 

The history of the ever-evolving Corolla, filled with examples of technology and quality improvement, is emblematic of Toyota’s efforts to anticipate customer needs and provide ever-better cars.

 

The new 2014 Corolla launched in Canada on September 4, 2013.

 

More Corolla history: http://www.toyota-global.com/showroom/vehicle_heritage/corolla/

Reference 1: Current Corolla Production Bases