Toyota-badged Pontiac Vibes in Japan? Cue the skateboard music!
Crazy Japanese JDM ad for Toyota Voltz
The Voltz "V" grille badge is the same shape as the Pontiac arrowhead emblem.
The Toyota-GM deal that resulted in the GM Fremont Assembly Plant in California becoming the home of NUMMI produced a lot of Corolla-based Chevy Novas, Geo/Chevy Prizms, and Toyota pickups during the 1984-2010 period. The Pontiac Vibe, mechanically similar to the Corolla-based Toyota Matrix and one of the final vehicles to bear the Pontiac name, was built by NUMMI as well… alongside a brief production run of a right-hand-drive version of the Vibe badged as the Toyota Voltz and exported to Japan.
Japanese car buyers could buy the Voltz at the youth-oriented Netz Store for the 2002 through 2004 model years, but— like the earlier Toyota Cavalier— the cute little Pontiac hatchback wasn't big in Japan.
The Voltz "V" grille badge is the same shape as the Pontiac arrowhead emblem.
The Toyota-GM deal that resulted in the GM Fremont Assembly Plant in California becoming the home of NUMMI produced a lot of Corolla-based Chevy Novas, Geo/Chevy Prizms, and Toyota pickups during the 1984-2010 period. The Pontiac Vibe, mechanically similar to the Corolla-based Toyota Matrix and one of the final vehicles to bear the Pontiac name, was built by NUMMI as well… alongside a brief production run of a right-hand-drive version of the Vibe badged as the Toyota Voltz and exported to Japan.
Japanese car buyers could buy the Voltz at the youth-oriented Netz Store for the 2002 through 2004 model years, but— like the earlier Toyota Cavalier— the cute little Pontiac hatchback wasn't big in Japan.
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I think the Netz name is the youth-oriented nameplate for Toyota in Japan, kind of like Scion is here in the US. But with ads like that, it's no wonder the Vibe only had a dismal 2 year run in Japan.
1 - 3 of 3 Posts
