Toyota will drop the Avalon large sedan from its lineup after the 2022 model year, as first reported by Automotive News and confirmed to C/D by a Toyota spokesperson. Production will end in August 2022 at Toyota’s plant in Georgetown, Kentucky, where the company also builds the Camry and Lexus ES sedans.
The Avalon is currently in its fifth generation and has been on sale in the U.S. since 1994. Positioned above the Camry mid-size sedan, it competes in the dwindling large sedan segment that has seen numerous competitors die off in recent years. Apart from the Toyota, the Nissan Maxima, Dodge Charger, and Chrysler 300 are the only vehicles in this segment still on sale after the cancelations of the Chevy Impala, Hyundai Azera, Kia Cadenza, and Ford Taurus.
The fifth-generation Avalon was introduced for the 2019 model year and offers either a 3.5-liter V-6 engine, a 2.5-liter inline-four with all-wheel drive, or a hybrid drivetrain with a 2.5-liter inline-four. It sold 10,328 units through the first half of 2021 and a total of 18,421 units in 2020, similar numbers as the Maxima but far behind the Charger, which sold 42,103 units in the first half of 2021.
Toyota says that the performance TRD model and the all-wheel-drive models will be discontinued for the 2022 model year. After production ends in the fall, the company will continue to sell leftover inventory through the end of next year.