A group of volunteers in Aichi Prefecture has made a life-sized replica of the first-generation Toyota Corolla using thinned wood sourced from Toyota Motor Corp.'s namesake city.

Even with volunteer support from automobile-related companies, it took Mori no Present three years and 246 Japanese cypress trees from the city's Mikawa Highlands to build the wooden replica.

"I want people to know you can make wonderful objects out of thinned wood," said Nobuo Hazama, 77, who heads the group.