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Van tastic voyage: Toyota Sienna engineers crisscrossed the country to create a minivan that is designed for, built in and exclusive to the American market.

Article Excerpt
There's a rumor going around the auto industry that when General Motors' product guru Bob Lutz saw the new Toyota Sienna at the North American International Auto Show in January he declared it the "vehicle of the show." And it's a fact that during that same week, the minivan's versatility, quality and performance drew strong praise from analysts.

But with the show finished and upon closer inspection and a first drive, Sienna is proving to be more than just a showstopper. Its flexible interior, flawless engine, reasonable price and quality construction is a shot across the bow for segment leaders like DaimlerChrysler and Honda.

And for those who say it takes an American company to build a truly American minivan, they should know Toyota's Newport Beach, Calif., styling studio helped design Sienna, Toyota Technical Center, Ann Arbor, Mich., helped engineer and develop it and Toyota Motor Manufacturing in Indiana is building it exclusively for the North American market.

Sienna is arguably the best minivan ever to grace the segment, which is weaker than it once was but still substantial and stable.

"The popularity of SUVs in recent years has come at the expense of nearly every segment in the industry, minivan included," says Don Esmond, senior vice president and general manager, Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A. "Yet minivans hold a special place in the market That has helped them hold their own against the higher image SUVs. Like no other vehicle, the minivan is all about family values."

Minivans: The Real Family Car

Before Toyota began development work on Sienna's all new platform, engine and body panels (only a few suspension parts are shared with the Camry), Chief Engineer, Yuji Yokoya wanted to understand everything there was to know about how the vehicle would be used. He went into his boss' office and told him he needed to drive the entire North American continent and experience what U.S. drivers would be dealing with in their Sienna.

"My goal was to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the current Sienna," says Yokoya, "and to evaluate early prototypes of the next generation Sienna."

In driving those 53,000 miles, Yokoya had a laundry list of things that needed to be changed on the new vehicle; some were mere refinements, while others deserved immediate attention. For example, crosswind stability clearly needed to be improved, turning radius reduced and handling needed to be crisper and more confident. And on the image side, Yokoya...