Capital Toyota Blog | Chattanooga, TN

4 Tips for Test Driving a Car

If you are purchasing a vehicle for the first time — or if it’s just been a while — you might be feeling a little nervous about the process. Before heading to Capital Toyota, review our tips for test driving a car.

Come prepared

Know what vehicles you want to test drive by researching cars, trucks, and SUVs that fit your lifestyle and budget. Come with your driver’s license and proof of insurance, and consider scheduling an appointment to make sure you can get through all the vehicles on your list.

Inspect the vehicle

If buying used, do a thorough inspection of the condition of the vehicle before driving it. You can also drive it to a trusted mechanic during your test drive to have them look it over for you.

Drive it how you would drive your daily driver

That means test it out on the highway at highway speeds, test it out in city and suburbs driving (paying attention to how it brakes and accelerates at intersections), and try parking in it in a lot or on the street.

Try out the features

Finding the right match isn’t just about exterior color and horsepower. Also try out the infotainment system, climate control, and sound system to ensure they all meet your needs.

If you’re ready to take a test drive, stop into Capital Toyota and we’ll make it happen.

Why We Love the 2019 Toyota Land Cruiser

The 2019 Toyota Land Cruiser at Capital Toyota in Chattanooga

Whether you have a big family, regularly travel with lots of luggage (or dogs), or just need a vehicle that does the heavy hauling for your boat or trailer, the 2019 Toyota Land Cruiser is the best choice — and it’s available now at Capital Toyota. Here are just a few reasons we love the new Toyota Land Cruiser:

The Land Cruiser means business. Its 5.7-liter V8 engine is ferocious. Featuring Dual Independent Variable Valve Timing with intelligence and partnered with an eight-speed electronically controlled automatic transmission with intelligence, this engine serves up 381 horsepower, produces 401 lb-ft of torque, and offers a max towing rating of 8,100 pounds.
The Land Cruiser makes your family’s safety a priority. The luxury SUV comes with so many standard safety technologies, it’s easy to lose count. The Land Cruiser has 10 standard airbags, Blind Spot Monitor with Rear Cross-Traffic Alert, and the Safety Sense P suite of technologies, like Dynamic Radar Cruise Control and the Pre-Collision System with Pedestrian Detection. And that just barely scratches the surface.
The Land Cruiser is spacious: Inside the 2019 Land Cruiser, you can comfortably seat up to eight occupants. Or, make use of the 40/20-40 split second-row seat and foldaway third-row seats, and unlock up to 81.7 cubic feet of cargo space.

There’s plenty to love about the new Toyota Land Cruiser, but only one way to learn everything there is to know about it: in person. Stop into Capital Toyota and let us show you everything the new Land Cruiser can do.

Road Trip Destinations from Chattanooga, TN

For your next adventure, check out one of these road trip destinations near Chattanooga

At Capital Toyota, we are proud to call Chattanooga our home. Chattanooga, Tennessee, is a beautiful place to live and work, and it has so many other cities within driving distance. After you take home your new vehicle from Capital Toyota, consider one of these road trip destinations near Chattanooga.

Nashville

There’s no question that Nashville, Tennessee, is a popular place to visit in the area. Nicknamed Music City, Nashville is a 2-hour drive from Chattanooga. If you’re interested in country music, you’ll definitely want to visit the Grand Ole Opry while you’re in town.

One of the busiest places in Nashville is Lower Broadway. You’ll find a handful of famous bars and restaurants there, including Honky Tonk Central and Tootsie’s. Lower Broadway is the ideal place to hear up-and-coming Nashville musicians play live.

Gatlinburg

Gatlinburg, Tennessee, is only a three-hour drive from Chattanooga and serves as a peaceful, scenic getaway. Sitting in the heart of the Smoky Mountains, Gatlinburg has plenty of cabins and homes you can rent in the area. Enjoy outdoor sports like skiing and tubing in the winter and hiking and whitewater rafting in the summer.

If you’re hunting for that road trip-ready vehicle, visit our showroom at Capital Toyota to find the perfect car for your lifestyle.

2019 Toyota Highlander Interior: Luxury, Comfort, and Entertainment

Check out the luxurious 2019 Toyota Highlander interior at Capital Toyota in Chattanooga

The 2019 Toyota Highlander is known for its brute strength and pure towing power — it can tow up to 5,000 pounds with its V6 engine. It’s also known for its advanced safety offerings, like its eight standard airbags, Dynamic Radar Cruise Control, and Lane Departure Alert Steering Assist. But it is perhaps most loved for its comfortable interior with an abundance of technology.

Passenger Comfort

The 2019 Toyota Highlander interior offers seating for up to eight passengers. If you fold down the 60/40 split third-row seat, you can use up to 83.7 cubic feet of cargo space.

Keep passengers comfortable with available three-zone climate control and active noise-cancelling materials for a quiet ride. On nice days, let in the sky via the available panoramic moonroof.

Tech Features

Technology is perhaps the most important aspect of the 2019 Highlander, which boasts the Entune™ Multimedia bundle with an 8-inch high-res touchscreen display and the available rear-seat entertainment system for the kiddos in the back. This system includes Blu-ray Disc™ playback, two wireless headphones, and a 9-inch display screen.

The Bird’s Eye View Camera makes navigating tight spaces easy — giving you a full view via the 8-inch screen in the center stack.

Test drive the 2019 Toyota Highlander at Capital Toyota. Once you experience how easy the Highlander can make your driving experience, you’ll never want to get behind the wheel of anything else.

Under the Hood: Engine Options for the 2019 Toyota Corolla Engine

For decades, the Toyota Corolla has been revered for its fuel-efficient yet sporty engines. Toyota continues to push the envelope for 2019, offering two efficient and peppy powertrains that offer balanced performance.

1.8-liter four-cylinder engine with Dual Variable Valve Timing with intelligence (VVT-i): Most trims of the 2019 Corolla — Le, LE, XLE, SE, and XSE — are powered by the 1.8-liter four-cylinder with VVT-i, which is mated to a Continuously Variable Transmission with intelligence and Shift Mode (CVTi-S). On select trims, the engine can instead be linked to a six-speed manual transmission for a more hands-on experience. This engine serves up 132 horsepower and 128 lb-ft of torque. With the CVT, it achieves up to 28 miles per gallon in the city and 36 on the highway; with the manual gearbox, it earns up to 27 mpg and 36 mpg in the city and on the highway, respectively.*
1.8-liter four-cylinder engine with Valvematic technology: Exclusive to the LE Eco model, this efficient powertrain achieves up to 30 miles per gallon in the city and 40 on the highway.* Despite this boost to fuel economy, the engine is still quite potent, pumping out 140 horsepower and 126 lb-ft of torque.

Outside of performance and efficiency, there’s quite a lot to love about the 2019 Toyota Corolla. To experience all of that good stuff for yourself, stop into Capital Toyota and take one for a test drive.

*2019 EPA-estimated mileage. Actual mileage will vary.

These Are the 2019 Toyota Tacoma Performance Stats

The Toyota Tundra is Toyota’s full-size pickup truck, which offers massive amounts of power and towing capability. But some truck drivers don’t need that much power and would rather have a nice blend of efficiency and solid towing capability: That’s where the 2019 Toyota Tacoma comes in.

Think the Tacoma might be right for you? Here are the 2019 Toyota Tacoma performance stats you can expect:

The 2.7-liter four-cylinder engine with VVT-I is matched to a six-speed electronically controlled automatic transmission with intelligence (ECT-i), generating 159 horsepower and 180 lb-ft of torque. With this engine, the Tacoma achieves up to 20 miles per gallon in the city and 23 on the highway.*
Offering more power and surprisingly improved fuel economy is the 3.5-liter V6 with VVT-iW and VVT-I exhaust, which is matched to that same gearbox. This engine cranks out 278 horsepower and 265 lb-ft of torque and enables the Tacoma to tow up to 6,800 lbs when properly equipped. This engine yields up to 19 miles per gallon in the city and 24 on the highway.

You can test drive the new 2019 Toyota Tacoma with either engine option in six trim levels (SR, SR5, TRD Sport, TRD Off-Road, Limited, and TRD Pro) at Capital Toyota.

*EPA estimated.

Celebrate Your Favorite Team with These Tailgating Tips

Football has returned once again, which means it’s time once more for one of America’s favorite pastimes: tailgating. If you’re looking to head out to your favorite team’s game in the future and want to celebrate before it begins, make sure you keep these tailgating tips in mind.

Think ahead. Planning your tailgating beforehand is a sure-fire way to ensure you don’t forget anything. After all, you don’t want to get to your destination only to realize you forgot something essential like burger meat or beer! Create a checklist of all the items you need and go through it before you head off.

Create your own warming oven. Don’t want your pre-cooked food to get cold before you can dive in? Use bricks, some wet tea towels, and your oven at home to create your own to-go warming oven. Just wrap the bricks in aluminum foil, stick them in your home oven at 400 degrees for 45 minutes, and line the bottom of your cooler with wet tea towels. Then, place the hot bricks on top and layer another layer of wet tea towels. Finally, put whatever you want to keep hot in the cooler and there you go!

Don’t forget an extra storage tub for dirty dishes. No one wants to worry about dirty dishes when the game’s going on. Rather than washing your dishes as you go or using disposable options, simply bring a large plastic tub with you to put all the dirty dishes in. That way, they stay separate from everything else and you can easily get them into the house and washed.

If you need a new vehicle capable of supporting your tailgating ambitions, look no further than the selection at Capital Toyota.

4 Reasons to Buy the 2019 Toyota Corolla

The Toyota Corolla has been king of cars for decades; appropriately enough, its name actually means “crown.” For 2019, the Corolla continues its dominance in the sedan segment by making a great thing even better. Here are four reasons to buy the 2019 Toyota Corolla.

It’s serious about safety. The 2019 Corolla offers a wide range of safety features, including standard Toyota Safety Sense™ P. This suite of safety technologies includes Lane Departure Alert with Steering Assist and Pre-Collision System with Pedestrian Detection.
It seriously looks so good. The Corolla is offered in eye-catching colors like Barcelona Red Metallic and Blue Crush Metallic. If those bold colors don’t turn heads, the standard Bi-LED headlights and available 17-inch alloy wheels certainly will.
The interior is sporty as all get out. Like to feel like a racecar driver when you get behind the wheel? The Corolla’s sporty interior has got you covered with a sport gauge cluster (SE and XSE models), Sport Mode (SE and XSE models), and paddle shifters.
It’s efficient to boot. Thanks to the 2019 Corolla’s aerodynamic design and innovative engine technology, the Corolla can achieve up to 40 miles per gallon on the highway and 30 in the city (Corolla LE Eco).*

The best reason to get the 2019 Toyota Corolla? It’s just a ton of fun to drive. To experience this finest of qualities for yourself, stop into Capital Toyota for a test drive.

*EPA estimated.

Here’s What to Pack in Your Summer Car Emergency Kit

We’ve all heard of winter emergency kits for our cars, but did you know that you should also pack a summer car emergency kit, especially here in the blistering heat of Chattanooga? Here are six essentials for your kit this summer:

Water: In the scorching summer heat, there is nothing more important than staying hydrated, especially if your car breaks down and leaves you stranded. Keep a pack of bottled water in your trunk.
Sun screen: If you are out on the road fixing your vehicle or waiting for a tow, be sure to protect your skin by applying sun screen.
Blanket: It may be hot, but blankets will come in handy for providing shade from the sun if you are left stranded.
Phone charger: Make sure you can call for help by keeping a phone charger in your car at all times.
Visibility gear: Longer summer days mean we are more likely to stay out past dark. Pack a flashlight, flares, and hazard triangles, just in case you become stranded at night.
Toolkit: Keep the essential tools for car repairs stored in your car. However, if you have zero car know-how, we recommend calling for roadside assistance instead.

These are just six of the many necessary items you can include in your summer car emergency kit. If you need a new ride to store it in, stop by Capital Toyota and see what we have on the lot.

2018 Toyota Camry Named on Wards 10 Best Interiors List

Finding a vehicle that is both practical and good-looking can be difficult – unless you’re looking at the 2018 Toyota Camry. The mid-size sedan was recently honored with a spot on the prestigious Wards 10 Best Interiors list, which is put out by Wards Auto. This means it has one of the nicest, most comfortable cabins in the industry.

Superior Craftsmanship

The Camry made a lasting impression on the judges thanks to its “artistic approach, eye for detail, high degrees of functionality, and onboard technology.” Its seats were noted for its comfort and craftsmanship, while its interior’s signature lines and bold use of color – red in particular – showed off the model’s style. As one judge said, “Finally, an interior with some color that pops.”

Sporty Style

In addition to its compelling design, the Camry also earned notice for its sporty appearance. Its easy-to-read driver information system in particular was highlighted, particular the fact that the there were just enough “read outs and information not to put the driver into sensory overload.”

Unbeatable Value

Overall, the editors found the 2018 Toyota Camry to be an overall good value in the mid-size sedan segment. Toyota received the commemorative award earlier this month at the Wards Auto Interiors Conference at the Cobo Center in Detroit.

While awards might be nice indicators of quality, we think the best way for you to determine that the 2019 Toyota Camry is the best choice for you is to test drive one. Stop into Capital Toyota and feel the difference that quality makes.