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Automotive Industry

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

Automotive Industries, March, 2003 by Andrea Wielgat

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.

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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 declared Sienna would be defined by its convenience, flexibility and interior comfort.

Backing up those attributes the minivan would also need a powerful engine, loads of safety features and a solid structure-all crucial things for a minivan.

"The other thing that really hit home is what I call the kid factor," Yokoya says. 'It's the kids who occupy the rear two-thirds of the vehicle. And it's the kids who are the most critical and the most appreciative of their environment"

While Yokoya worked in Japan, John Jula, executive engineer and program manager, worked at Toyota Technical Center in Ann Arbor, Mich., to help get costs down but content up. Jula, who rode shotgun with Yokoya during his North America Sienna trek, says that while Toyota wanted the best-in-class minivan, it had to be affordable. The company needed to find new efficiencies while keeping quality, content and performance as high as possible.

"The goal was not to slash costs," Jula says. "The goal was to achieve greatness at a great price and that meant rethinking, refining the entire development and manufacturing process."

Any cost savings taken out of development and manufacturing would be funneled back into a prioritized list of product and quality improvements, he says. One example Jula gives of both manufacturing cost savings yet improved vehicle quality is in the sliding door. The previous generation Sienna provided power to the door via contact terminals mounted on the B-pillar and door. The new Sienna has continuous power provided by a flexible harness routed around the door opening.

"The new design of both the track assembly and the wiring harness is much more dependable, lower in NVH and more durable," Jula says. "Not only are there significantly fewer parts, tooling complexity was simplified reducing the cost of both parts and tooling."

Final assembly is also simpler, takes less time and requires fewer individual steps. All of this, he says, reduces manufacturing costs. Sienna's quick 22-month development cycle helped keep costs in check as well.

Software Saves lime and Money

With a goal of zero engineering changes, Toyota turned to its proprietary computer software, which allowed engineers to design, fabricate and assemble every component on the new Sienna before building any prototype part.

"Because parts were designed digitally, changes could be done quickly, at a fraction of the cost with much closer tolerance and higher quality," says Jula.

Automotive Industry

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

Automotive Industries, March, 2003 by Andrea Wielgat

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