Johannesburg – With the mission to “Produce Happiness for All”, Toyota is committed to create a society where people can dream of a brighter future and believes in the power of creativity as the driving force. To this effect, Toyota South Africa Motors (TSAM) is excited to announce the National winners of the 18th Dream Car Art Contest, an annual international art competition targeted at children under the age of 15 years.
Under the theme: Draw Your Dream, Drive The Future, the national art contest ran from December 2024 to February 2025 and garnered over 18 000 entries across South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho and Eswatini. Among the entries, the top 3 artworks from each entry category will represent South Africa at the World Contest, to be held in Japan. Toyota holds the annual Dream Car Art Contest with the hope that children, who lead the future, will unleash their creativity and enjoy having a dream.
“The Toyota Dream Car Art Contest is global platform that brings children’s collective artistry that presents ideas we believe will change the future of mobility. Through the children’s exceptional artwork, we are able to tap into their creative prowess to support the development of ideas that can change the future of automotive,” says Tasneem Lorgat, General Manager of Marketing Communications at Toyota South Africa Motors (TSAM).
The 2025 National Contest Overall winners
Placing first in the under 8 category is Mohamed who believes that every child has a right to quality education. With his iSmart Pro, seven-year-old Mohamed’s Dream Car supplies books and stationery to all children around the world, helping them to get a better education without the stress of the cost of educational supplies.
Makenna’s Save Our Oceans dream car placed her first in the under 11 category. Her Toyota Dream Car sucks up rubbish in the ocean and transforms it into bubbles.
In the third category - ages 12 to 15 - the Travelator, Blake’s artistic creation won first prize. Blake’s Dream Car can travel between dimensions of your imagination. The art shows it going from a black and white world to a colourful cartoon world.
Category 1: Under 8
Category 2: 8 – 11 Years
Category 3: 12 – 15 Years
The winners walked away with the following prizes:
In addition to the top 5 winners in each category, the national art contest awards three schools with the most valid entries. 231 schools participated in the 18th instalment of the Toyota Dream Car Contest across Southern Africa. With 1173 valid entries, Addington Primary School secured first prize, winning R15 000. The runner-up schools Tyburn Primary School and Cresslawn Primary School placed second (winning R 10 000) and third (winning R5 000), respectively.
“At Toyota, we are proud of all the winners and the many children who submitted their artwork. To see the world and the future through the eyes of children is the first step to creating a world that’s better for the next generation. Congratulations to all who won and those will represent us in the global competition,” concluded Lorgat.
Explore the Toyota Dream Car Contest here https://www.toyota-dreamcarart.com/top/.