The 1958 Toyota Toyopet Custom Crown deluxe was purchased on eBay by a community of supporters from Tupelo, Mississippi. The Tupelo Automobile Museum and the Community Development Foundation played essential roles in purchasing the Toyopet, picking it up in San Francisco, transporting it back and completing its restoration.
The Community Development Foundation serves at the local Chamber of Commerce for Tupelo, Mississippi and the Economic Development Organization for the Tupelo/Lee County area (http://www.cdfms.org). David Rumbarger (President and CEO) found the Toyopet on eBay and two CDF employees, Daron Pitts and Jamie Kennedy, drove to San Francisco to pick up the car and conduct research on it’s origin.
The 1958 “Tupelo Toyopet” Custom Crown Deluxe is currently on display at the Tupelo Automobile Museum.
The display features the car and several artifacts discovered in the renovation of the vehicle. The original air filter with the original Toyota logo, a Toyopet service manual, the original registration from the Consulate General of Japan and several old magazines featuring stories on the Toyopet when it was on sale.
To contact the museum and see the Toyopet, visit http://www.tupeloautomuseum.com or call 662.842.4242
Volunteers show up at the Tupelo Automobile Museum to unload the Toyopet (August 2008).
