Toyota is taking a larger-than-life approach for its first-ever 2024 Grand Highlander SUV.

Billed as its most powerful Midsize SUV the brand has ever built, the campaign is themed “Life’s Grander in the Grand Highlander.”

The campaign is inspired by the reality that life, with all its unexpected surprises, is pretty grand, says Lisa Materazzo, group vice president, Toyota Marketing, Toyota Motor North America. 

Toyota developed the integrated Grand Highlander campaign with its Total Toyota (T2) model, which integrates efforts to create a cohesive approach inclusive of multicultural marketing and the mainstream market.

Conill Advertising’s “Labor” shows how the whole family goes to the hospital with the parents-to-be. Thanks to the Grand Highlander’s roomy third row, even the baby’s godmother (and auntie) can ride along.

InterTrend Communications developed two spots for the campaign. “Yes Day” features a family embracing saying “yes” with an unexpected day of fun in the Grand Highlander after their kids’ tutoring lessons are canceled. In “Grand Recruiting,” a family’s cricket game is almost forfeited because of a lack of players. The Grand Highlander quickly saves the day by helping pick up more teammates along the way, including a last-minute unexpected recruit, international cricket star Unmukt Chand.

In Burrell Communications Group’s spot, “HBCU Tour,” a family’s college visit trip in the Grand Highlander turns interesting as the proud parents of rival colleges find themselves in a tug of war to see which legacy HBCU their son will choose. “Back There” shows playful kids frolicking in the backseat of a Grand Highlander who are warned by their mom, who says “Don’t make me come back there!” 

“Slamming Doors,” created by Saatchi & Saatchi, features a teenager picked up from school in a Grand Highlander. The annoyed teen’s frown turns into a smile as her entire family, grandma included, begins singing together – “this is gonna be the best day of my life.” 

Saatchi & Saatchi also created “Rescue Run,” a humorous spot in which a family driving home from a day at the lake makes a quick turnaround in their Grand Highlander to safely return a live fish their son was quietly keeping in his leaking bucket.

The campaign extends across linear TV, digital video, digital content, cinema, programmatic, paid social, audio, and search. High profile Network Prime, cable, Prime Novelas, and sports programming includes Thursday and Sunday Night Football, Premium Soccer, and the Billboard Latin Music Awards. 

Digital content/video includes partners such as Hulu, YouTube, MAX, Sensical, and Pandora. Partnerships include Bustle’s “Camp Romper,” Moveable Feast, Amazon, Uber Eats, and The Weather Channel, among others. Paid social runs across TikTok, Meta, Snapchat, Reddit, LinkedIn, and Pinterest.