Latest news with #BenjaminJimenez
Forbes
23-05-2025
- Automotive
- Forbes
Toyota Does It Again With A Smashing New TRD Pro Color: Wave Maker
2026 Toyota Sequoia TRD Pro in Wave Maker. Every year, Toyota comes up with a new marquee paint color for its Toyota Racing Development line, called TRD Pro. That finish is used only on Toyota TRD Pro vehicles, which now includes the 4Runner, Sequoia, Tacoma, and Tundra. Over the years, a few of my favorites tend to be in the blue-hue family, like Cavalry Blue from 2018 and VooDoo Blue in 2019 (however, I have to admit there's something about the 2022 Electric Lime that I can't quit). For 2026, Toyota has debuted a vibrant turquoise blue called Wave Maker, and to me, it takes the crown for the best TRD Pro color of all time. 2026 Toyota TRD Pro lineup in new Wave Maker finish. Toyota says ice, water, and even outer space inspired its designers for this standout color. 'We had a few years of warm natural hues inspired by traditional landscapes like Terra and Mudbath as signature colors. With Wave Maker, we were inspired by unexplored areas of adventure including extreme territory and even beyond earth,' says Benjamin Jimenez, general manager at Toyota's CALTY design team in Ann Arbor. 'Wave Maker expresses an elemental spirit that evokes images of glacial depths and the thrill of new frontiers.' 2026 Toyota TRD Pro SUV in new Wave Maker finish. This is the eleventh year in a row Toyota has debuted a new TRD Pro color, starting in 2015 with Inferno. It was such a hit the brand opted to keep it going. Last year's Mudbath color was a terra firma brown, a good fit for a trim voted 'most likely to get really dirty' in the Toyota yearbook. TRD Pro vehicles are kitted out with off-road accoutrements like adjustable 2.5-inch Fox Internal Bypass shocks, unique stabilizer bars, and more. The CALTY design team looks at market trends to see what colors are hot, but they aren't driven by trends alone. TRD Pro vehicles have to inspire a sense of adventure and exploring that others don't, and color is beyond skin deep for this lineup. Wave Maker represents that spirit of off-roading, and while it may not blend in with the terrain as much as Mudbath or Quicksand, it stands out in a sea of sometimes boring colors on the road. According to AAA, white, black, gray, and silver are the most popular car colors. However, popular doesn't mean it's the best choice in all cases. Consider statistics from this research: 'According to the National Insurance Crime Bureau, black, silver, white, green and gold are the colors most associated with vehicle thefts,' AAA reports. 'Colors that more easily blend in with a crowd–white, gray, silver and black–tend to be reported stolen the most.' With this bright blue, it's hard to imagine it could be missed, even in the fog and in the dark. The newest Toyota TRD Pro color, Wave Maker, is at the top of my list. It's unmistakable and distinctive, and if that's your personality too this could be the right one for you. 2026 Toyota 4Runner TRD Pro in new Wave Maker finish.
Motor 1
16-05-2025
- Automotive
- Motor 1
Toyota's New Blue Paint Is Awesome, But It's Only for a Few Models
Toyota's TRD Pro line has offered some excellent color options throughout its history: Army Green, Electric Lime, Terra, Mudbath—the list goes on. This year, Toyota is adding another sweet shade to its already robust color palette: Wave Maker. Wave Maker was developed by Toyota's Calty Design team and marks the eleventh unique paint option for the TRD Pro line. It's one of just five colors available on TRD Pro models for 2025 (for now), alongside Ice Cap, Magnetic Gray, Midnight Black, and the aforementioned Mudbath. Photo by: Toyota 'We had a few years of warm natural hues inspired by traditional landscapes like Terra and Mudbath as signature colors. With Wave Maker, we were inspired by unexplored of areas of adventure, including extreme territory and even beyond Earth. Wave Maker expresses an elemental spirit that evokes images of glacial depths and the thrill of new frontiers.' — Benjamin Jimenez, General Manager, Calty Ann Arbor The new shade is similar to the Heritage Blue already offered on other models like the 4Runner and Land Cruiser, but still plenty unique. It stands out from its sibling shade with a brighter finish and more turquoise notes. In fact, there aren't many colors on the market today that come close. Wave Runner will be available on TRD Pro versions of the 4Runner, Tacoma, Tundra, and Sequoia beginning later this year. Toyota hasn't confirmed if it will cost extra, but expect an additional price increase of anywhere from $350 to $475 if it does (and it likely will). 25 Source: Toyota The Latest From Toyota TRD Pro The Tacoma TRD Pro Has an Easter Egg Most Owners Will Never See The New Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro Costs $65,395 Get the best news, reviews, columns, and more delivered straight to your inbox, daily. back Sign up For more information, read our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use . Share this Story Facebook X LinkedIn Flipboard Reddit WhatsApp E-Mail Got a tip for us? Email: tips@ Join the conversation ( )
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
I Can't Believe Toyota's New TRD Pro Color Is Actually Worth Writing About, But This Light Blue Is Fantastic
When it comes to topics I actually want to cover, new paint colors are pretty darn close to the bottom of the list. Most of the time, it's just a new variation on the same grayscale theme that's turned our roads and parking lots into a sea of generic sameness, hitting the minimum word count is almost always a pain and the overwhelming majority of our readers couldn't care less. So when Toyota emailed me to announce a new TRD Pro color, I groaned. Then I clicked and was greeted with images of a new light blue that's so good, it's actually worth writing about. It isn't like Toyota is incapable of offering good colors. Just look at the Electric Lime Metallic it gave the 2022 Tacoma TRD Pro. And while Toyota initially refused to sell the redesigned Prius in the U.S. with a yellow paint option, 2025 Prius Nightshade Edition buyers now have that choice. But despite the press release's claim that "Wave Maker joins an impressive pedigree of exciting TRD Pro colors," if you hop on Toyota's configurator, there are no exciting TRD Pro colors to be found. For example, your choices on a 2025 4Runner TRD Pro are literally black, white, dark gray and mud. The Tacoma offers the same options, but no matter which one you prefer, the roof comes in black. Switch to either the Tundra or Sequoia TRD Pros, and again, the closest thing to a good color is Mudbath, and that isn't even an actual color. Because of that, I'm not just excited to see that Wave Maker is an objectively fantastic light blue. I'm also excited you can actually get a TRD Pro in a real color again. More of this, please, Toyota. Read more: The Best-Looking Pickup Trucks Ever Sold, According To Our Readers Unfortunately for whoever Toyota tasked with writing this particular press release it's hard to make a new paint color sound exciting while also pleasing the C-suite. And wow, this Wave Maker announcement sure does lay it on thick. I mean, just read the opening paragraph. I love it so much: Color can evoke strong emotions and inspire our inner adventurer. A vehicle's color makes a bold outward statement to the world about inner ambitions. The all-new color Wave Maker is exclusive to 2026 TRD Pro models and is a striking shade of blue that makes your rowdy intentions known to the world. If you buy a TRD Pro in Wave Maker, you aren't just buying the one good paint color. You aren't picking the option that will make your truck easier to find in the Costco parking lot. You're "[making] a bold outward statement to the world about inner ambitions." Clearly, you have "rowdy intentions" and want to make that known. What those rowdy intentions are isn't entirely clear, but don't you dare keep them to yourself. You wouldn't want to disappoint your inner adventurer. Of course, you can't conclude a press release without a statement from some sort of corporate boss, either. And here, the Wave Maker also delivers with a quote attributed to Benjamin Jimenez, General Manager at CALTY's Ann Arbor location, that reads: We had a few years of warm natural hues inspired by traditional landscapes like Terra and Mudbath as signature colors. With Wave Maker we were inspired by unexplored areas of adventure including extreme territory and even beyond earth. Wave Maker expresses an elemental spirit that evokes images of glacial depths and the thrill of new frontiers. "Inspired by unexplored beyond earth [sic]"? "Wave Maker expresses an elemental spirit"? 10/10, no notes. That's 100% how you give a quote about a new paint option. And now that you can finally get them in a Good Color again, I expect every single one of you to be a Wave Maker if you buy a 2026 TRD Pro. Don't you want to express your elemental spirit and make your rowdy intentions known? I mean, sure, Toyota still hasn't revealed how much the Wave Maker paint option will cost, but the 2025 Tacoma TRD Pro is already a $65,000 truck before dealer markups, so it's not like even an extra $1,000 or even $2,500 actually matters. It's the only good color! Now, if only Toyota would let customers actually order the exact truck they want in the exact color they want... Want more like this? Join the Jalopnik newsletter to get the latest auto news sent straight to your inbox... Read the original article on Jalopnik.
