Driving Sports

One of the saddest moments in automotive history was Toyota's decision to move out of the sports car market and focus exclusively on grocery-getters and workmobiles for people who fundamentally don't know how to drive a car and don't want to learn.

It was sad because Toyota really does have the right stuff when it comes to building a high-quality automobile at a reasonable price. Toyotas are bulletproof and last forever, even in the hands of people who can barely manage to keep control of their cars at freeway speeds.

So there's a great piece of good news in the Wall Street Journal today (subscription required), stating that Toyota's President and CEO, Akio Toyoda, is steering the company back to sports cars for the North American market. The word from the journal is to expect a "fun to drive affordable sports car" within the next few years.The high-end Lexus LF-A is also expected to cross the Pacific and make an appearance on our shores.

The new sports car is rumored to be the long-awaited partnership project between Toyota and Subaru. The car has been spotted and drawn in both two-door coupe and four-door sedan styles.

With Toyota's manufacturing acumen, an affordable and groovy sports car could be just the ride that takes the world's biggest automaker from stodgy to stunning. Let's hope it works out that way.