While it’s known stateside as the Toyota TEQ Logo, it actually reads “Toyota” in Japanese Katakana. The three characters correspond with a syllable: 
 
ト is said as “to”, but pronounced like tow
ヨ is the character for “yo”
ダ reads as “ta”
 
Originally the company was named Toyoda, after the founder Sakichi Toyota, the “da” character (ダ) was switched to “ta” (タ). This both made it easier and faster to writer, while also shortening the amount of strokes required to write the name to eight; a number signifying wealth and good fortune.