Toyota’s slow wind-down of Australian production reaches another milestone as the last Aurion rolls off the line at Toyota Australia’s Altona manufacturing base.
The Japanese automaker’s big V-6 family sedan racked up more than 110,000 sales on the domestic market, with another 70,000 units built for export in its 11-year production run.
The last Camry Hybrid will be built locally in September, followed by the final Camry gasoline model in October.
The Aurion debuted at the 2006 Melbourne auto show, succeeding the Avalon as Toyota’s largest family sedan. Nick Hogios, now Toyota Australia design chief, was at the center of the Aurion’s design, adding to its Aussie-built, Aussie-designed credentials.
At the time, it featured the most advanced and powerful engine ever offered in a Toyota vehicle in Australia: a 3.5L Quad Cam V-6 developing 268 hp of power at 6,200 rpm and 248 lb.-ft. (336 Nm) of torque at 4,700 rpm on regular unleaded gasoline.
Despite the end of the Aurion, Australian buyers looking for a V-6 can find that engine configuration in the lineup of the all-new Toyota Camry featuring an advanced direct-injection system paired with an automatic 8-speed transmission set for release in November.
Graeme Ward, dealer principal for Melbourne-based Chadstone Toyota, traveled to Altona to take delivery of the final Toyota Aurion – a white, top-trim-level Presara – and met the team that built the last car.
