This weekend marks the 50th anniversary of the Toyota Corolla, one of the world's best-selling cars.
Since the first model went on sale in Japan on November 5, 1966, 44.3 million Corollas have been sold globally, including the Corolla Fielder station wagon and other variants.
In the late 1950s, as Japan's economy recovered from World War Two, automakers aimed to produce an affordable car for the average family, most of whom didn't have a vehicle.
Toyota first came out with the Publica, which wasn't very well received.
But in 1966, it introduced the sportier two-door Corolla with a jaw-dropping plan: to build 30,000 of them a month at a time when Toyota's total monthly production was 50,000 vehicles.
Three years after the launch, the Corolla became the country's top-selling car and helped usher in an age of motorisation in Japan.
Toyota has stuck to its tradition of introducing new technologies to the masses with each remodelling of the Corolla.
Now in its 11th generation in Japan, the car is made in 13 countries around the world and sold in more than 150 countries.
After 33 straight years as Japan's top-selling model, the Corolla lost the crown in Japan to rival Honda Motor's Fit hatchback in 2002.
It is now also outsold by the Toyota Aqua and Prius hybrid-only models in Japan, as domestic customers opt for more fuel-efficient cars.
The outlook at home is bleak, with the overall car market due to shrink further along with the population.
Domestic sales of the Corolla are now about a quarter of their peak of around 400,000 in 1973.
But the Corolla is still a cash cow in the United States, where it is the No.2 best-selling passenger car model so far this year, behind only the Toyota Camry.
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