Dubai’s iconic Toyota Building may soon disappear from Sheikh Zayed Road, but the famous red-and-white Toyota sign that gave the landmark its popular identity will live on.
The 15-storey Nasser Rashid Lootah Building, known to generations of residents as the Toyota Building, is being prepared for demolition as tenants move out in phases. However, Al-Futtaim Toyota has confirmed that plans are underway to preserve the legacy of the famous sign, with further details expected in the coming months.
According to Jacques Brent, Managing Director of Al-Futtaim Toyota, the company also has “one last surprise” planned before the landmark finally disappears from Dubai’s skyline.
A familiar name on Sheikh Zayed Road
The building was constructed in 1974 and officially named the Nasser Rashid Lootah Building. Yet its official identity was gradually overshadowed by the giant Toyota billboard installed on its rooftop in 1981.
Over time, residents began using the massive sign as a visual reference point, and the property became widely known as the Toyota Building.
Interestingly, the building never housed a Toyota showroom or service centre. Nevertheless, the prominent billboard became so strongly associated with the location that its nickname remained part of everyday life in Dubai for decades.
Toyota sign became a symbol of old Dubai
When the sign first appeared in 1981, Sheikh Zayed Road looked very different. The city’s skyline was still developing, and the area had only a small number of prominent high-rise buildings.
As Dubai transformed into a global metropolis, skyscrapers surrounded the older building. Towers such as the Burj Khalifa and Emirates Towers came to dominate the skyline, but the Toyota Building remained a familiar connection to the city’s past.
For many long-term residents, it was more than simply a building. It represented memories of an earlier Dubai.
Sign disappeared before returning in 2022
The Toyota sign was removed in 2018 after its advertising contract expired. However, the building continued to be known by its unofficial name.
Following strong public nostalgia, Al-Futtaim Toyota restored the iconic billboard in 2022. Its return was welcomed by residents who saw the move as a tribute to old Dubai and one of the city’s most recognisable visual landmarks.
The sign had become deeply connected to Dubai’s changing identity, surviving through decades of dramatic development along Sheikh Zayed Road.
Al-Futtaim Toyota plans to preserve the legacy
With demolition approaching, questions have emerged about what will happen to the iconic sign.
Al-Futtaim Toyota has confirmed that the story will not end with the demolition of the building. The company said it plans to carry the sign’s legacy forward and will announce more details in the coming months.
However, it has not yet revealed whether the physical sign will be relocated, reinstalled at another location or preserved as a heritage feature.
Brent said the company was saddened by the end of the landmark but also looking ahead to what comes next at the prime Sheikh Zayed Road location.
One final surprise before demolition
Before the Toyota Building disappears, Al-Futtaim Toyota is also preparing a final surprise for Dubai residents.
The company has not disclosed details, but Brent said people would recognise the moment when it happens.
The announcement has added another layer of anticipation to the farewell of a building that has remained part of Dubai’s visual identity for nearly half a century.
Before GPS, landmarks guided Dubai residents
The Toyota Building played a practical role in Dubai before digital navigation became part of daily life.
In the years before GPS, Google Maps and smartphone location pins, residents often used major landmarks to provide directions.
The World Trade Centre and the Toyota Building were among the familiar reference points used to help people navigate the city.
Instead of sharing a digital location, residents would simply tell others to meet near a famous building or landmark.
This made the Toyota Building more than a rooftop advertisement. It became part of the language of Dubai.
An important chapter in Dubai’s changing skyline
The planned demolition reflects the continuing transformation of Dubai, where new developments regularly reshape the city’s skyline.
Yet the Toyota Building’s departure also marks the end of an era for residents who remember a different Sheikh Zayed Road.
Surrounded by some of the UAE’s most famous modern buildings, the landmark remained one of the few visible reminders of Dubai’s earlier development.
While the Nasser Rashid Lootah Building may soon disappear, Al-Futtaim Toyota’s plans suggest that the famous red-and-white sign will continue to have a place in the city’s future.
For now, residents are waiting to see what the company’s final surprise will be and how the legacy of one of Dubai’s most recognisable landmarks will be preserved.
