· All-new car, exclusively designed, developed and built in Europe
· All three bodystyles (saloon, liftback and estate) available from launch on 1 March 2003
· Toyota first manufacturer in Europe to offer SRS knee airbag for driver as standard
· Launched with 1.8-litre VVT-i and 2.0-litre direct injection petrol engines
· 2.0-litre D-4D common rail diesel available from May 2003
· All three engines comply with EURO IV emissions
· First application of Toyota Diesel Clean Advanced Technologies (Toyota D-CAT) to follow in last quarter of 2003
· Eight speaker audio system fitted as standard equipment
· Dual air conditioning for driver and passenger fitted as standard
· ISO-FIX child seat preparation with top tether fixing gives additional safety
· Eight-way electrically operated front seats standard equipment

The new Toyota Avensis will go on sale in the UK on March 1. It is an all-new car and will set new standards for the upper-medium (D segment) family car class, one of the most competitive in the market - with one of the most sophisticated and demanding customer groups.

From the precision fit of its body panels to the excellence of its ride and handling, the new Toyota Avensis has superior quality. Stylish, innovative and offering great driving pleasure, the new Toyota Avensis sets out to reward its owners with a superior motoring experience.

THE IMPORTANCE OF AVENSIS
The Toyota Avensis is a benchmark car for Toyota in Europe. First launched in 1997, the original Avensis replaced the Carina E, the first Toyota to be built in Europe, and all three versions of the new Toyota Avensis will continue to be built in the UK - at the Burnaston plant in Derbyshire.

The original Toyota Avensis was the first Toyota to be heavily influenced by the company's European research and development department, with the majority of the development work and intensive testing done in Europe. Avensis has always been an innovator, offering high performance and lean fuel economy - the 1.8-litre lean burn engine; the first Japanese common-rail diesel D-4D in a passenger car in 1999; and the early introduction of direct injection petrol engines in 2000.

Toyota Avensis has built a strong reputation and a loyal following among UK customers, with more than 111,000 cars sold since launch at the end of 1997 and a total of 450,000 units sold in Europe over the same period. In 2001, Toyota Avensis took a 5.6 per cent share of the D segment market in Europe.

The new Toyota Avensis aims to build on that success. Toyota plans to sell around 27,000 units in the UK in a full year, (130,000 in Europe) making it an important contributor to the medium term goal of 800,000 units, or five per cent market share in Europe by 2005.

The Concept of Superior Quality
The new Toyota Avensis is the product of a global Toyota team working in Europe and Japan, each individual highly skilled in design, development, manufacturing and marketing. But the influence of chief engineer Suguya Fukusato has been paramount.

"There is a great deal of myself invested in this car," says Fukusato. "I was greatly influenced by the time I spent in Europe from 1987 to 1991. Most of my free time I used to travel throughout Europe, absorbing the fascinating cultures and visiting the sites with my family. It is a time I will never forget and which heavily influenced the development of new Avensis."

"All my interests have three things in common," he explains. "They are things of beauty, they create a feeling of movement and they are fun to engage in. In one word, all these three things strongly call for emotion."

Emotion in the new Toyota Avensis is expressed through the concept of Superior Quality. Quality is present in every detail and new Toyota Avensis delivers the emotional pleasure that comes from depth of quality and reliability in every respect.

Avensis Completes The Core Product Line-Up
The launch of the new Toyota Avensis completes the current renewal cycle of the core Toyota products. Toyota Yaris, Corolla and new Avensis have been developed under the same philosophy and guiding principles to be leading products in their markets.

They clearly reflect Toyota's unique position to deliver great cars based on excellence of design and manufacturing. All three models have a strong foundation in the Toyota DNA:

· Superior quality in every detail
· Design: a premium styling from ED2, our European design centre
· Driving pleasure: thanks to a good combination of engine technology, suspension design and refined ride and handling
· Innovation: focusing on the areas of safety, environment and occupant convenience

DESIGNED IN EUROPE
The initial concept for the new Toyota Avensis was designed in Europe at ED2, Toyota's design centre on the Cote d'Azur, Southern France. The new Avensis is clearly a progression over the previous model without being too futuristic and the design conveys a sophisticated and timeless appeal of superior quality.

The new Toyota Avensis will be available in three bodystyles: saloon, liftback and estate, all of which will be launched in the UK from March 1. All three bodystyles will be built at Burnaston, Derbyshire.

The new Toyota Avensis is aimed at the heart of the volume D segment. It has an extremely spacious interior within a 4,630mm overall length, an increase of 110mm over the previous model. The estate is slightly longer at 4,700mm (+100mm), thanks to a long wheelbase of 2,700cm (+70mm) and clever packaging. The overall width is 1,760mm (+50mm) and height 1,480mm (+55mm). The estate is 1,525mm high and will be equipped with standard roof rails.

However, the concept of superior quality through premium interior trim and equipment is likely to lift the appeal of the new Toyota Avensis above other D segment rivals.

Manufacturing in Design
The new Toyota Avensis has been designed and developed in record time - ensuring the product is fresh and relevant for the market today.

A lead time of 25 months for the Saloon and 21 months for the Liftback and Estate, which were developed from the Saloon, is clear evidence of the efficiency and expertise of Toyota as a global car manufacturer.

From the outset the manufacturing team and, equally important, the manufacturing suppliers have an input into the design processes. Thus, Toyota creates a situation where, rather than just building a car to a specific design, the people building the car improve the design during its conception.

More than 180 working weeks have been spent in this process with face to face talks between the pre-production and design teams working on issues highlighted by manufacturing. By the time pre-production prototypes were being built, around 27,000 checks had been completed and 95 per cent of all parts had been tested and approved under the Complete Vehicle Acceptance Ratio programme (CVAR).

Improvements specific to the new Avensis include increased paint thickness by 30 per cent over the current generation car and greatly reduced panel gaps due to the installation of new welding processes.

FULL DURABILITY TESTING
TMUK in Burnaston runs its own vehicle durability testing programme, in parallel with endurance testing in Japan and the conformity processes in Europe, to find any possible warranty concerns early - before cars are delivered to customers.

This programme ensures the new Toyota Avensis not only meets and exceeds customer expectations but also upholds Toyota's world-leading reputation for reliability and durability.

More than 40,000 miles will have been driven in pre-production vehicles and over one million static checks completed before the new Avensis is considered ready for production.

Toyota is recognised as a global leader in quality and customer satisfaction through its consistent status in JD Power and ADAC reliability and satisfaction surveys.

In this year's ADAC reliability survey, Toyota Corolla, which is manufactured at TMUK, achieved the premier position. Most recently, the J.D. Power & Associates customer satisfaction survey, made on 15,000 car owners in Germany, confirmed Toyota Avensis as the second most reliable car of its segment.

With the launch of the new Avensis, Toyota is ready to go a step further, turning customer satisfaction into customer delight, reinforcing our commitment to superior quality.

Low noise and vibration (NV)
A clear example of superior quality is the outstanding ride and comfort of the new Toyota Avensis with market-leading low noise and vibration - indeed the new Toyota Avensis is targeted to be quieter than many prestige cars.

Sound absorption in the new Toyota Avensis uses a new concept and material - Ultra Light, which is manufactured by Rieter Automotive. This material is particularly effective with lowering intrusive high frequency noise. At the same time, it is considerably lighter than current noise absorption materials, allowing an almost 50 per cent weight saving on new Avensis with more effective high frequency reduction.

Market leading passive safety
The new Toyota Avensis will be fitted with a total of nine airbags as standard. It will be the first car in the UK to be launched with a knee airbag as standard equipment. This 18-litre airbag is located under the steering column and is designed to protect the driver's knees and lower legs from injury on hard surfaces and contact with items such as the steering column and key cylinder barrel.

The knee airbag is part of an SRS safety package, which includes dual-stage driver and front passenger airbags, front side and Curtain Shield roof airbags. Seatbelts with force limiters and pretensioners, and a driver's seat position sensor are also included in the standard safety equipment list. This seat position sensor works in conjunction with the frontal impact sensor to control inflation pressure depending on the severity of the crash impact.

Internal simulation and testing suggests the new Toyota Avensis will receive an excellent rating in future NCAP European crash tests.

Innovative Seat Belt Reminder
For the first time, Toyota is fitting a dual stage seat belt reminder system that warns the driver or front seat passenger to fasten their seat belt. An initial warning light switches to a buzzer once road speed reaches 10mph and, if the belts have still not been fastened after 30 seconds, the volume and frequency of the buzzer increases for a further 90 seconds.

ISO-FIX child seat fittings for the rear seat are standard equipment and the Child Restraint System (CRS) is also equipped with a top tether to help prevent the child seat from tipping forward in the event of an impact. This is mounted on the parcel shelf of the saloon and on the rear boot floor of the liftback and estate models.

POWERFUL, CLEAN ENGINES
Driving pleasure is greatly enhanced on the new Toyota Avensis by its technically advanced engine line-up, offering a unique combination of powerful performance, low fuel consumption and low emissions.

All engines available with the new Toyota Avensis, including the diesel option, comply with the new EURO IV emissions standards, not officially required until early 2005.

The 1.8-litre engine uses Toyota's VVT-i (Variable Valve Timing - intelligent) technology to deliver increased mid-range acceleration and torque with reduced fuel consumption. These are the latest developments of existing engines in the Toyota range.

This engine is amongst the most powerful in it's class and offers impressive driving performance and outstanding fuel economy. EURO IV emissions standards have been achieved by the addition of a catalytic converter directly behind the exhaust manifold to improve cold-start cleansing.

The 1.8-litre VVT-i petrol develops 129bhp at 6,000rpm and has a maximum torque of 170Nm at 4,200rpm. It gives the new Avensis a maximum speed of 123mph (120mph estate) and acceleration to 62mph from rest in 10.3 seconds (10.5 seconds estate).

Fuel consumption on the European combined cycle is 39.2 mpg with CO2 emissions of 171 g/km (172 for estate) with manual gearbox.

Direct Injection Petrol
The 2.0-litre direct injection petrol engine option for the new Toyota Avensis is the latest derivative of the advanced direct-injection petrol unit available in the current model range.

This compact, lightweight engine was one of the first petrol engines in Europe to offer direct injection technology with its benefits of greater fuel efficiency, lower emissions and improved performance. Now a modified Engine Control Unit (ECU) offers even better emissions levels (with reduced NOx) and improved performance and better acceleration.

Further improvements to the 2.0-litre direct injection engine to EURO IV emissions levels include an under floor catalyst and retiming of the engine on cold start.

The 2.0-litre direct injection engine in the new Avensis develops 147bhp at 5,700rpm and has a maximum torque of 196Nm at 4,000rpm. It takes the new Avensis with a manual gearbox to a maximum speed of 126mph (123mph: estate) and accelerates to 62mph in 9.4 seconds (9.6s: estate).

Thanks to its advanced technology, the 2.0-litre direct injection Avensis is remarkably economical at 34.9mpg on the European combined cycle with 191 g/km CO2 emissions (193 for estate) with manual transmission.

EURO IV Compliant 2.0-litre Diesel
The diesel engine for the new Toyota Avensis complies with EURO IV emissions standards as of start of production.

This engine relies on second-generation high-pressure common-rail diesel technology. This technology has the ability to produce an injection pressure of 160MPa in the regular 2.0 D-4D engine (without Toyota D-CAT), irrespective of engine speed.

The addition of a Variable Nozzle Turbocharger helps boost power and torque while contributing to low fuel consumption and low emissions. The refined injection system includes optimised combustion chamber shape, swirl characteristics and fuel injector spray characteristics. All result in the quiet combustion, excellent fuel efficiency and low emissions.

Double pilot injection at engine speeds below 1,200rpm reduces idle noise. A motor-driven Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR) valve controls EGR volume more precisely and an EGR cooler helps reduce NOx emissions. A large catalytic converter located just behind the turbocharger helps reduce HC and CO emissions.

The 2.0-litre D-4D engine is expected to deliver 116bhp at 3,600rpm (target) and a flat torque curve peaking at 280Nm between 2,000 and 2,200rpm (target).

First Application of Toyota D-CAT
The introduction of Toyota D-CAT in the new Avensis marks the first commercial application of Toyota's new integrated group of technologies that greatly reduces harmful emissions from modern diesel engines. By using common-rail direct injection and the Toyota D-CAT, the all-new Avensis achieves emission levels well below EURO IV standards.

Development data indicates that NOx emissions are reduced by 50 per cent and particulate emissions reduced by 80 per cent when compared to EURO IV specification levels.

Toyota D-CAT will be on the market in the UK from the last quarter of 2003 and also in selected European countries, depending on the availability of low-sulphur diesel fuel.

All Engines Comply with EURO IV
The new Toyota Avensis will be launched in the UK on March 1 2003 with a choice of two petrol engines; the diesel follows close behind in May. All engines comply with the forthcoming EURO IV emissions standards.

The new Toyota Avensis engine line-up for the UK is:
· 1.8-litre VVT-i petrol (129bhp)
· 2.0-litre direct injection petrol (147bhp)
· 2.0-litre D-4D Common Rail diesel (target 116bhp) - May 2003 introduction

The 2.0 D-4D engine from the current generation Toyota Avensis is now fitted with a Variable Nozzle Turbocharger, allowing an appreciable gain in power and torque.

In addition to this, the new Toyota Avensis will feature a 2.0 D-4D engine equipped with the Toyota D-CAT system from last quarter of 2003.

In the petrol-engined versions, the new Toyota Avensis will offer a second-generation 2.0-litre direct injection petrol engine, an evolution over the first engine of this kind that Toyota launched in early 1996.

Selected models in the range will be offered with the option of a multi-mode four-speed automatic transmission, offering drivers the choice of automatic or sequential shift operation.

DRIVING PLEASURE HIGHLIGHTS OF THE NEW TOYOTA AVENSIS
· Rear suspension based on Celica, exclusively developed with additional toe-control link
· Intensive tuning work done throughout Europe
· Automatic transmission with sequential shifting
· Generous-size disc brakes with ABS and EBD (Electronic Brake force Distribution) for top performance under every condition
· VSC (Vehicle Stability Control) and TRC (Traction Control) extend safety limits
· Targeted top class insurance classification

Handling Tuned for European Roads
The new Toyota Avensis is the best example yet of collaboration between Toyota Motor Marketing Europe technical centre and Toyota Motor Corporation engineers.

Throughout its development the new Toyota Avensis was extensively tested on the widest variety of roads to see how it would perform and to adapt various aspects of its performance to deal with problems particular to these road conditions.

The concept is to bring excellent handling, superior ride comfort and sharp body control to a higher level. In order to meet this objective, the engineers decided to adopt a rear double wishbone suspension. This module is derived from the Toyota Celica sports coupe, widely recognised as one of the best handling cars in its class.

Suspension settings have, of course, been modified to give a more compliant ride suited to a family saloon but without compromising handling or stability.

The front suspension uses an independent MacPherson strut, already used in the current model. However, the whole architecture was totally redesigned and major modifications have been introduced to its geometry. New bushings have been added in the link between the suspension sub-frame and chassis in order to isolate the car from road vibration.
The use of double wishbone rear suspension offers great design and tuning freedom for stability and comfort while also achieving compact dimensions and a flat luggage compartment floor.

An additional link has been added to give optimised toe alignment control, which improves rear stability under hard cornering and better response. The rear track is 50mm wider than the previous Avensis model and this too contributes to greater stability.

The large wheel arches are more than just design features on the new Avensis. Several tyre sizes, including the optional larger diameter alloy wheels, allow further fine-tuning of ride and comfort to suit individual drivers.

Tuned Across Europe
The new Toyota Avensis is the best example yet of collaboration between Toyota Motor Marketing Europe technical centre and Toyota Motor Corporation engineers.

Even in this era of virtual reality, the only truly successful way to develop a car for a specific market is to test it on the roads where it will be sold. In Toyota, this process is called 'Conformity Testing'.

Throughout its development, the new Toyota Avensis was extensively tested on the widest variety of European roads to see how it would perform and to adapt various aspects of its performance to deal with problems particular to these road conditions.

Jos de Boes, General Manager supervising the European tuning team, explains: "We set ourselves an ambitious target because we knew from the beginning of the process that we could count on a state-of-the-art platform with totally redesigned front and rear suspensions, advanced steering and highly rigid body.

We also knew that chief engineer Fukusato would allow our organisation, the European R&D division, to play a primary role throughout the development process."

Conformity testing for the new Avensis started in the second half of 1999 when an advanced engineering platform was built to start the pre-development testing of the new front and rear suspensions.

During 2000 and 2001 the development continued using pre-prototype units. In this crucial timeframe extensive testing was completed to evaluate total vehicle performance including engines, NV (noise and vibration), comfort, handling and braking.

During this phase, 'Driving Meetings' were held at constant intervals to evaluate progress toward final targets. Different specialists from key European divisions were involved, including Product Management, Vehicle Engineering and the Technical Division.

The next tuning phase, when final prototypes were available, began in February 2002 and continued until the third quarter when pre-production units became available. Work will continue, right up until the start of production to allow the team to ensure the full achievement of its targets with final fine-tuning.

LOW OWNERSHIP COSTS
For any car owner the cost of ownership is a major factor in the enjoyment of the vehicle. Toyota continues to use intelligent engineering solutions to reduce ownership costs through extended service intervals and low insurance group ratings.

The front bumper mountings incorporate a new bolt-on crushable box structure. If needed, this section can easily be replaced without any cutting or welding operations. This new structure will help greatly to achieve excellent results in both the United Kingdom and Germany insurance ratings by reducing repair costs for low speed frontal and rear accidents.

The new Avensis will follow Toyota's extended service intervals schedule with a major service required only every 20,000 miles. A short Health & Safety check (with an oil change) is also required every 10,000 miles or once a year.

The new Avensis will also have a three year / 60,000 miles mechanical warranty, three year paint warranty and 12 year anti-perforation warranty, in line with all other new Toyota models.