Scion Heritage
History
Scion was unveiled at the New York
Auto Show on March 27, 2002 with the more production-ready bbX
concept, based on the Toyota bB, and the more conceptual ccX 3-door
coupe.
The 2004 xA and xB were unveiled at the Greater Los Angeles Auto
Show on January 2, 2003. They were available only in 105 Toyota
dealerships in California at their initial launch on June 6, 2003.
The subsequent rollout of the brand to the South, the Southeast, and
the East Coast occurred in February 2004. Scion vehicles were
available nationwide in June 2004, coinciding with the release of
the 2005 tC.
On December 16, 2006, Scion unveiled the next-generation xB, based
on the t2B, xD concept (the new successor of the xA), at an
invitation-only, no-camera event in Miami. Both cars were then
publicly unveiled on February 8th, 2007 at the 2007 Chicago Auto
Show.
Scion are based on a pure pricing model of selling point and offers
about 40 different accessories. Dozens of after-market companies are
adding new accessories that will allow customizations to make a
Scion your own.
The Founder
Sakichi Toyoda (1867-1930), the great industrial entrepreneur and
national hero, was the Japanese equal of Thomas Edison. As recently
as 1985, the patent office listed Sakichi Toyoda as one of the ten
most important inventors in Japanese history. The textile machinery
company that he founded eventually gave birth to the Toyota Motor
Corporation.
Origins in Toyoda Automatic Loom —1936
The origins of the company are found as an automobile section of
Toyoda Automatic Loom, implemented in September 1933. From an early
age Sakichi Toyoda worked on improving looms. In 1891 he obtained
his first patent for the Toyoda wooden hand loom. He went on to
focus his efforts on the improvement and invention of looms,
including a significant number of excellent motive and automatic
machines.
In 1924, Toyoda invented the Type-G Toyoda automatic loom with
non-stop shuttle change motion, the first of its kind in the world.
The Type-G Toyoda automatic loom was a groundbreaking invention
containing a number of features such as automatic thread
replenishment without any drop in the weaving speed. Platt Brothers
& Co., Ltd. of England, a world leader in the loom industry of the
time, paid the 1929 equivalent of 1 million yen for transfer of the
rights to the Type-G loom. Toyoda later used these funds as seed
money to found Toyota Motor Co., Ltd.
As a result of Toyoda's inventions the quality of Japanese looms and
textile products jumped to an internationally competitive level.
Quickly thereafter the section produced its first Type A Engine in
1934, used for the production of the first Model A1 passenger car in
May 1935 and the G1 truck in August 1935. Production of the model AA
passenger car started in 1936.
Although the company is most well known today for its cars, it is
still in the textile business.
Establishment of Toyota Motor Co. and WWII 1936–1946
Although the founding family name is Toyoda, the company name was
changed. Toyota Motor Co. was established as an independent company
in 1937.
Signify the separation of the founders' work life from home life;
simplify the pronunciation, and give the company an auspicious
beginning. Toyota is considered luckier than Toyoda due to the fact
that eight is a lucky number, and is the number of strokes it takes
to write Toyota in Katakana.