It's always good to mark positive milestones in the used car business and Toyota passed a major one with the announcement that it has sold its 3 millionth certified pre-owned vehicle.
Toyota marked the unprecedented event by giving away a 2008 Sienna to the 3 millionth CPO buyer. It is the first single line manufacturer to sell 3 million certified used vehicles.
The record-breaking sale came on the heels of a milestone year in 2010, when Toyota became the first single line nameplate to break the 300,000 mark for certified used sales. Unit sales of 315,418 in 2010 represented an increase of 18.6 percent over the previous year.
This week, Bob Carter, Toyota Division group vice president and general manager, presented a check in the amount of $22,470 to the 3 millionth customer, Sara Hirschhorn of Chicago, Illinois, to reimburse her for the purchase price of the 2008 Sienna. Hirschhorn, a nurse at the NorthShore University HealthSystem Evanston Hospital in Cook County, traded in a 2002 Hyundai Elantra. Toyota also contributed a matching donation of $22,470 to the NorthShore University HealthSystem Foundation in Hirschhorn's honor to commemorate the sale.
It's been awfully easy to knock Toyota in the last year (and some of you may remember that I resisted doing so). That's why I wanted to share the news that it has sold 3 million certified pre-owned vehicles. There is still a lot of confidence in the brand.
