A dealer and automaker can tout their brand all they want, but when a trusted-third party recognizes the value of a car manufacturer or their models, people always take more notice. That might be why so many prospective car buyers are increasingly turning their attention toward the Toyota RAV4, Toyota Sienna, and Toyota Prius. Consumer Reports magazine recently awarded each of these cars with the following titles of distinction:

-    RAV4 (Recreational Active Vehicle four-wheel drive…

Award-winning automaker Toyota has scored another accolade for the team: Best Passenger Car Value for 2011. The award was recently presented to Toyota by Vincentric, a firm that focuses on measuring value in the automotive industry.

To win Vincentric's industry-acclaimed distinction, Toyota had to beat out competitors in eight critical areas: depreciation, insurance, repairs, maintenance, fuel economy, opportunity cost (the cost of having your money in a vehicle rather than appreciating investment), and fees…