Toyota axing Avalon sedan after 2022 model year

Toyota Motor North America has opted to ax the large Avalon sedan after the 2022 model year, the Japanese automaker told suppliers in a letter Monday.

The Avalon, the mass market brand's flagship sedan, was due to be refreshed in the second half of next year. However, the automaker's purchasing department informed suppliers that Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky will end output of the Avalon.

"Originally introduced as Toyota's flagship sedan in 1994, Avalon built the reputation for offering comfort, innovation, quality and safety that customers expect from a full-sized sedan," two Toyota vice presidents in purchasing and supplier development wrote in the Aug. 2 letter. "Toyota will continue to support service and parts needs of our existing Avalon customers."

A spokesman for Toyota Motor North America confirmed the decision.

"While Avalon will be discontinued after the 2022 model year, Toyota remains committed to the sedan segment and we encourage customers to stay tuned for future developments. Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky production capacity and employment will not be impacted," the Japanese automaker said in a statement to Automotive News.

U.S. sales of the Avalon rose 37 percent to 10,328 during the first half of 2021 compared with the pandemic-forced shutdowns of a year ago, but it beat only the Nissan Maxima in the dwindling large car segment through the first six months of the year, and badly trailed the segment leading Dodge Charger 4 to 1.

U.S. sales of the Avalon peaked at 103,878 in 2000, Toyota said.

The death of the Avalon will leave only the Charger, Chrysler 300 and Maxima in the once large and lucrative big sedan segment. Chevrolet, Ford, Kia, Buick and Hyundai have also abandoned the segment in recent years.

The Avalon is also the second noncrossover/SUV that Toyota has whacked from its U.S. lineup because of slow sales in as many years. The automaker killed the Yaris in the U.S. in 2020.