Toyota embraces Bay history

HB Toyota CEO Angus Helmore and Art Deco Trust's Sally Jackson with the latest Rav 4 and a 1936 Packhard - both with earthquake-era links. Photo / Paul Taylor

A sponsorship deal between the Art Deco Trust and the Japanese automobile manufacturer, Toyota, was almost meant to be, the trust's general manager Sally Jackson said as she unveiled their new Toyota RAV4 yesterday.

Provided by Hawke's Bay Toyota, it looked decades apart from the more deco-esque vintage car beside it, a very close historical cousin.

One was from an era when an earthquake devastated the Bay's twin cities, and one was effectively sparked by the need to assist after an equally severe earthquake half a world away.

As Mrs Jackson explained, the trust had begun seeking support in getting an appropriate vehicle which could be used to ferry media and travel officials around the region, and for general transportation purposes throughout the year - especially during the busy Tremains Art Deco Weekend.

She came across the story of Toyota due to its link with the same natural disaster that destroyed the Bay. The company had started in the late 1800s in the village of Yamaguchi and was centred on looms and weaving.

It only grew to become part of the automobile industry in the 1930s - sparked by the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923.

At the time the earthquake struck, Kiichiro Toyoda, who was the son of founder Sakichi Toyoda, saw that the Japanese railway system had been devastated by the earthquake and recognised the crucial part that automobiles played in transportation.

Many lives were saved due to automobiles, and when it came to the post-quake clean-up and reconstruction, trucks were widely used.

The surge in demand for automobiles following the earthquake was met by US automakers, but Sakichi Toyoda and his son believed that the foreign companies had considerable waste and set a challenge to build better cars than the Americans so they could effectively assist the community.

In 1936, the car company sparked into life - under the name Toyota.

"It was a great link and I took that to them," Mrs Jackson said.

Hawke's Bay Toyota chief executive officer Angus Helmore agreed and put it to his fellow directors and they too saw that a link with the trust was very apt.

"We're pleased to be part of a great event," he said.

"As well as putting something into the community, it's just a good positive thing to be involved in."

Along with the RAV4, Hawke's Bay Toyota has also committed to become the naming sponsor of the Winter Art Deco Weekend, held on the third weekend in July.