The Prius That Shook.. - VFAQ Prius Site

Isao Tsuzuki, Chief Engineer for the Raum model, had
theorized that "since Raum is a family car that is comfortable
for both the elderly and children, a sedan type would be most
appropriate." He held onto the sedan design as long as he
could, but finally gave up and switched the design concept
to a two-box type, station wagon vehicle without a trunk.
This time the design was approved at once because the design
had been thoroughly scrutinized. The Raum available today is
the result of the design change. Uchiyamada had carefully
watched the process, and had become convinced that
obtaining the approval for a three-box sedan would require
much work and his strong conviction that his design
selection was correct.
Design Facilities of Japan, the U.S., and Europe
Toyota's design division is divided into four locations.
They are the Design Division at Toyota's Head
Office in Toyota City, Tokyo Design Division, CALTY Design
Research in California, U.S.A., and the European Office of
Creation (EPOC) in Brussels, Belgium. The design
division in Toyota City is further divided into four
autonomous sections: an independent Design Division
within the Technology Division, Design Division I in the
Vehicle Development Center I, Design Division II in the
Vehicle Development Center II, and Design Division III
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