Happy Birthday America, and Congrats to Our American-Made Camry

With the 4th of July right around the corner, it’s just about that time to take in breathtaking fireworks displays and enjoy barbeques with family and friends. Independence Day is an important piece of our heritage and a living reminder of the resiliency, resolve and pride Americans share.

As we celebrate the birth of this great nation, we here at Westboro Toyota want to also pay homage to our own American icon: the Toyota Camry. Named the “Most American Car” for the third consecutive year, our Camry beat out a slew of competitors in Car.com’s annual American-Made Index.

The index ranks which vehicle is “most American” by the percentage of parts made right here in the United States, where the vehicles are assembled, and how many are sold to buyers domestically. The index can be a helpful tool to refer to when you’re shopping for a new car, truck or SUV because given today’s global economy, it’s not always easy to tell “how American” a vehicle really is.

Westboro Toyota is proud that the Toyota Camry has come in first place for the past three years. We want to recognize the Toyota Tundra, made in Princeton, Ind., and the Sienna, manufactured in San Antonio, Texas, which also made the Index’s 2011 top 10 list.

Many may be surprised to discover that the Camry coveted the top spot given the disastrous earthquake and tsunami that devastated parts of Japan earlier this year. But, the fact is that the Camry is such a popular vehicle here in the States that Toyota relies heavily on U.S.-based factory workers and suppliers to manufacture high-quality parts and the vehicles themselves. Incidentally, the two towns where the Camrys we all drive are assembled carry Colonial-era names: Georgetown, Ky., and Lafayette, Ind. (coincidence…perhaps not!).

American-made products have always been a symbol of excellence. They bring jobs and prosperity to our nation as a whole. The Camry has become a symbol of such excellence, and the results of the American-Made Index are a win-win for Toyota suppliers, Toyota factories and you, our loyal Westboro Toyota customers.

Congrats Camry, and Happy 235th Birthday America. And, from all of us here at Westboro Toyota, we hope you and your families have a happy and safe 4th of July!

Hello Summer: Hello Open Road!

June 21 marked the day we’ve all been waiting for given the long and harsh 2010/11 winter. It’s hard to believe just a mere four months ago we were shoveling snow off our roofs so they wouldn’t collapse under the weight of massive quantities of snow and ice that Mother Nature so graciously dumped on us.

But enough snow talk. Summer is officially here and when we think Solstice, we tend to think road trip, too. Hallejhiah! The time is here to load up the trunk, pile in the kids, and head for the beaches off the New England coast, to the White Mountains, or even further.

Summer is a time to explore the open road, kick back, and relax, and regardless of your destination, your Toyota can get you where you want to go. Here are some tips we at Westboro Toyota recommend to make summer drive time as fun and relaxing as it should be.

Travel at non-peak hours if possible. Summer is the time for roadway construction, so you’re bound to hit some bottlenecks in your travels, but if you on traveling before or after the morning and afternoon rush, you’ll be more likely to sail through those construction zones without all that much idling.

Speaking of idling, it wastes fuel—something given the current price of gas, none of us want to do! If you find yourself stuck in traffic—and we certainly hope you don’t—it’s better to turn the engine off if you’re not going to be moving forward anytime soon. Also, don’t rev the engine, as this, too, is a gas guzzler.

Turning the engine off isn’t the only way to conserve gas. For instance, you also can improve fuel economy by following these simple steps:

Drive the speed limit. If the maximum posted speed is 65 mph, don’t go over that. Driving the speed limit is safer than speeding, which we do not recommend. Plus, it allows you to drive without the worry that you’ll be tagged by a state trooper’s radar gun and pulled over—talk about a summer road trip bummer). And, driving no more than 65 mph can save you about 20 percent in amount of fuel used.

Clean out that trunk. Toyotas have great cargo space, but the added weight of anything you put there means lower fuel economy because the engine has to exert more power to pull the extra load.

Cruise when you can. Cruise control allows your Toyota to consistently deliver fuel to the engine. Giving the engine a steady flow of gas is far better than the alternative.

Don’t over-accelerate. Gunning the gas pedal can lower your miles per gallon by more than 30 percent—ouch!

Maintain ideal tire pressure. If your tires aren’t inflated to the proper psi, this presents a danger to you as the driver, your passengers, and other vehicles on the road. Tires and brakes are a vehicle’s crucial safety mechanisms. Poor tire pressure adversely affects your car, truck, or SUV’s ability to corner and brake, as well as its overall stability on the road. Under-inflated tires also may cause additional fuel loss—you can wave bye to about 3 percent of gas as the result of poor tire pressure.

Before embarking on your summer jaunts, come on in to Westboro Toyota for a quick filter oil change. We’ll rotate your tires and perform a 21-point inspection, both complimentary with the oil change, for the low price of $34.95 plus tax. Visit http://westborotoyota.com/Specials.aspx and scroll down to the offer to print your coupon today.

Above all, have a safe, sun-filled, and fantastic summer. After this past winter, we all for sure deserve it!

Congrats to Our Boston Bruins: How Far Westboro Toyota & the Black, Yellow and White Have Come Since '72

Thirty-nine years in the making. Congratulations from all of us here at Westboro Toyota to our Boston Bruins for overcoming what to those outside the ring of Beantown fandom may have seemed insurmountable—winning a Game 7 not once, not twice, but three times in the same postseason, not to mention while away from the comfort of the Garden’s home ice! It’s the first time it went down just like this in NHL history and we’re proud to say our Bruins did it.

It’s hard to fathom that nearly four decades have passed since Bruins greats Bobby Orr, Phil Esposito and Derek Sanderson embraced the coveted Stanley Cup. But, seeing the emotion and excitement on the faces of current stars, including standouts Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand and Tim Thomas, shows us that unadulterated pride is timeless.

Sure, Causeway Street and the Boston Garden looked a lot different back in ’72, which coincidentally is the year we established Westboro Toyota. The elevated central artery cut the city of Boston virtually in half. Life was different, too. Gas prices hovered around 36 cents per gallon. Toyota’s fleet included the Carina, the Celica, the Corolla, the Corona, and the Crown. Cars had a boxy style featuring wood paneling and shag carpets dominated interiors. Bill Gates formed Traf-O-Data, a computer company that strived to read raw road data and create reports for traffic engineers—a far cry from the Microsoft of today.

In the more than 14,200 days that have past since the Cup last resided here, we’ve witnessed and been a part of so much history in the making. We’ve seen the political and economic landscape of this country and countless others shift in ways that before may have seemed unimaginable. With the birth and explosive growth of the Internet over the past 10-plus years, we’ve gained 24/7 connectivity to the world at large—not to mention we’ve found a way to plug in our cars, too!

Gas prices are now about 10 times what they were back then. Big Dig tunnels have replaced the monstrosity of the Central Artery, marrying North Station to the North End, as it should be. Toyota has since retired many of its classics, only to reinvent itself with so many sleek and beloved models, like the Camry, the Prius Hybrid, the Rav4, the Matrix, and the Highlander, just to name a few. Have you checked out Toyota’s concept models lately (http://www.toyota.com/concept-vehicles/)? Pretty impressive technology that’s light years away from the AM radio of the 1970s.

Yes, times have changed, but some things never will. Today, hard-core and fair-weather fans alike in the city of Boston and across our state will be decked out in their black, gold and white, beaming with a renewed sense of pride and adoration for what the Bruins and the rest of our revered sports teams have accomplished.

Did you know that Wednesday’s win makes this the 7th championship title we’ve won in the past 10 years? Rock on Bruins, Patriots, Red Sox, and Celtics and rock on fans. To the next 40 or so years—I wonder what our Toyotas will look like then!

Toyota Owners: You’ve Got a Friend!

Sure you love your Toyota, you doesn’t! Now you can connect with your like-minded Toyota “friends” online.

Toyota Motor Corporation is rolling out “Toyota Friend.” which will link owners to us here at Westboro Toyota and Toyota headquarters. The private social network will be chock full of information on Toyota products and services. You’ll also get tips on how to properly maintain your Toyota model(s).

For those of you who have opted to go electric, with a model like the Prius Hybrid, Toyota Friend can send you an instant alert to your smart phone, tablet PC or other mobile device letting you know that your electric (EV) or plug-in hybrid (PHV) battery is running low on juice.

Plus, if you’ve ever forgotten that it’s time to renew your inspection sticker, Toyota Friend can make sure that never happens again. It will be able to notify you once you’re up for re-inspection and automatically link you to Westboro Toyota so you can set up your service appointment.

If you’re already familiar with Facebook—and even if you’re not—Toyota Friend should be a snap to use. You’ll be able to mark conversations as private or share them with your Toyota Friends, Facebook friends and Twitter followers. You’ll also be able to invite your family and friends to join Toyota Friends through those sites.

Toyota is teaming up with Salesforce.com, which specializes in cloud computing, to bring you Toyota Friend, which will initially launch in Japan with the 2012 rollout of the EV and PHV models.