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Toyota: In your driveway, your heart, your mind
Richard Bosselman
August 12, 2025
The country’s largest car brand has started a ‘come to the light’ campaign.
THEY’RE everywhere - and from the tenor of a latest feel-good spruik from Toyota New Zealand, resistance is futile.
Effort by the dominant new and used car brand here to enmesh as the natural choice for Kiwis has ramped up.
The national distributor has launched phase two of its ‘Let’s Go Places’ campaign, a feel-good ‘you know you want to’ hearts and minds effort.
What relays in Toyota-speak as an opportunity to focus on its positioning as “comprehensive mobility solutions provider” builds on the brand having been the country’s top choice for more than three decades.
A propaganda exercise to suggest this giant car maker now holds the keys to your soul?
Some might see it as such, but Toyota cites NZTA registrations data as evidence of its dominance in this country.
It says one on every four passenger and light commercial - so, van and ute - vehicles on the road are Toyotas.
That conceivably means at least one million vehicles out of a national operational fleet of more than four million.
That’s a big slice of the action; inference is that it’s way more than any other single make enjoys. That could be right. While there are three million vehicles out there that are not Toyotas, NZ has more new vehicle makes represented here than many countries.
About those. Not all the one million will have been sold new by Toyota New Zealand, The brand also enjoys strong popularity in the ex-overseas pre-owned ranks, not least because Toyota has made the most of that channel with its own Signature Class effort.
TNZ kicked off its ‘Let’s Go Places’ ideal in November of 2022 and, at that time, the focus was on sustainability and life cycle emissions from the vehicles it sells.
Back then it was strong in commitment to reduce its total carbon emissions by a minimum of 46 percent by 2030 – the reduction compared with 2019 levels, which were higher than it was achieving there years ago.
The Palmerston North operation contended then it was the first automotive company in New Zealand to include life cycle tailpipe emissions from vehicles sold in its target and said its ‘science-aligned emissions target’ included all cars it sold, either brand new or as pre-owned imports from Japan, not just as Toyotas but also from its upmarket Lexus makes.
Now the talk is more about mobility solutions; an updated campaign is setting out to highlight Toyota’s transition from a vehicle manufacturer - which it isn’t in NZ (as no cars are made here these days) - to what it describes as a make with offerings ranging from traditional vehicle ownership to rental, leasing, and car-sharing options.
Sounds a bit vague? Certainly, there’s a swag of wishy-washy corporate speak in the hefty media share it put out.
The position is now being voiced in a different way, too. In 2022, the brand’s then chief executive, Neeraj Lala, was fronting the campaign.
Now it’s been put in the hands of Susanne Hardy, assistant vice president of marketing, who sounds even more enthusiastic.
Hardy says the campaign reflects the company’s role in meeting a wide range of transport needs and suggests it is about “Toyota’s place as a brand for all New Zealanders. Mobility is rapidly changing, and so too is the way that we access it.”
Basically, what TNZ proposes is that everyone has a unique transportation need “and we are committed to meeting these with sustainable, efficient, and accessible solutions.”
That creative concept of all needs meeting in an “intersection” between everyday life and mobility, to reinforce the brand’s visibility on New Zealand roads, is the storyline to an advertisement running virally and on television at the moment. In this, every vehicle is … wouldn’t you know … a Toyota.
Explains Hardy: “When you’re at an intersection, look around and chances are you’ll see Toyotas everywhere.
“Toyota is ubiquitous in NZ, and our new brand campaign concept highlights how Toyota is intertwined with communities right across our country.
“We recognise that comes with a responsibility: Toyota is not just envisioning the future of how we get around but actively creating it, ensuring that the freedom of movement is a reality for all, because mobility is a universal need.”
Which boils down to? A value chain. This mans that if you’re talking about car purchase, finance, insurance, servicing and mobility services such as the rental and car sharing outfits it owns - Ezi Car Rental and Cityhop - you’re then you’re talking Toyota.
According to Hardy, that makes it a holistic mobility experience.
“This means we can provide practical solutions to Kiwis, solutions that make their everyday lives better and easier, while supporting our sustainability goals and enriching communities across NZ.
“With Toyota vehicles making up a quarter of cars on our roads, Let’s Go Places spotlights the diversity and interconnectedness of NZ communities,” Hardy says.
“Everywhere you look, Toyota is enabling mobility, supporting sustainability, and fostering community connections.”
TNZ is now working on sharing what it calls ‘real stories’ of how its mobility solutions impact lives positively every day.
“Toyota’s Let’s Go Places campaign isn’t just about vision, it’s about tangible action and genuine outcomes,” Hardy says. “Together, we’re driving New Zealand forward towards a brighter, more sustainable future.”
The Tucson maintains the 1900kg towing status that was once held by the Mr Muscle of the previous generation Tucson, a diesel.
The incoming car gets updated styling inside and out. A curved screen incorporates twin 12.3-inch displays with new software. It also has ability for over-the-air update capability and hosts wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
Another change Hyundai has made has been to move the gear selector from the centre console to a toggle mounted on the steering wheel column. This is to free up storage space on the centre console and makes switching gears far simpler, the brand says.
Another revision is the introduction of a shortcut to mute the annoying Intelligent Speed Limit Assistance function. Hitting the steering wheel button mutes the audible “overspeed” warning that sounds whenever the car strays above a posted speed limit. It’s an update set to span more Hyundai cars.
The hybrid variant actually has a bigger boot than the non-hybrid present models, but that’s only because the hybrid gets a space saver instead of a full-size spare wheel.
In any case, the Tucson can fit 582 litres in its boot and that expands to 1903L with the seats folded flat.
The Tucson was last safety-rated by ANCAP in 2021, receiving the top result of five stars then. This result expires in 2027.