Toyota News
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Strange times are on the car industry, perhaps none stranger than what's facing Toyota right now with its European inventory backlog. Short of storage space for cars that are unsold in the EU, Toyota has taken to floating the cars just off the shore of Sweden in a rented container ship. The seriousness of the situation is outweighed only by its absurdity. Over 12,000 cars are already stored in the port at Malmo. With unsold capacity at least 2,500 cars above that mark, Toyota had to do something, says BusinessWeek. "It's an emergency measure that we had to take due to storage space issues,"...
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Toyota to add 1.3L four to iQ lineup at Geneva Motor ShowThe 2009 Geneva Motor Show will play host to a wide range of concepts and production vehicles, from speedy supercars to family sedans and even raw engine technologies. One of Toyota's additions to the show will be a new variant of the iQ, powered by a peppy 1.3L gasoline four-cylinder. The current...
Alex Kaufmann -
Toyota focuses on hybrids for U.S., puts sports cars on back burnerFrom the Mark I inline six-cylinder with just 110hp (82kW) to to the twin-turbo Mark IV with 320hp (239kW), Toyota's Supra remains a legend in the world of high-performance sports cars. But since 2002, the brand has made a strong move away from the image of the Supra and towards the Prius's green...
Kenneth Hall -
New HC-CV concept points the way to Toyota’s latest Camry HybridTo drum up excitement for production of the Toyota Camry Hybrid in Australia for the first time, the Aussie division of the global auto giant is planning to unveil a new concept version of the fuel-efficient sedan at the upcoming Melbourne Motor Show. Before you get all excited about Toyota...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Zipcar's plug-in hybrid on-demand car service launches in San FranciscoWould you give up your car for the chance to use a fleet of them? Or do you prefer your own, highly specialized vehicle? Though many companies predict highly individualized modes of transport, down to personal mobility units like Toyota's i-REAL, others see a future where a communal pool of...
Nelson Ireson -
2010 Toyota Camry previewToyota revealed its facelifted Camry sedan last month at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show, which for the 2010 model year has been given a new look both inside and out and has received an upgraded 2.5L four-cylinder as the base engine. Today pricing was revealed, with a six-speed base car starting out at...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Tesla's Roadster and Model S have garnered much of the hybrid and electric press of late, though new entries from Ford and Honda have also gathered some attention. Now Volkswagen is looking to share in the spotlight, announcing the signing of a letter of intent with Toshiba for cooperation on the development of electric drive units for future cars. The drive units are destined for what VW calls its New Small Family, likely based around the Volkswagen up! range of concepts. The battery and drive systems used to propel the cars are covered by the scope of the letter of intent, though at this...
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Toyota rolls out 2010 Tundra with new 4.6L V8Big, brawny work trucks often find another purpose on American roads - hauling big, brawny Americans around. Toyota's latest gladiator to join the big-truck arena is the 2010 Tundra, and it's packing an all-new 4.6L V8. The big engine may not stand up to the likes of the 6.7L Cummins turbodiesel or...
Nelson Ireson -
Hybrid repair expenses roughly equal to non-hybridsRepairing cars is never a pleasant thought, because it pre-supposes your precious piece of automotive machinery has been damaged. But it's comforting to know that though your fuel-swilling performance machine might be expensive to operate, it'll be a cheap and easy fix, while the likes of the Prius...
Alex Kaufmann -
Nissan pursuing U.S. federal loans for EV programThe past several weeks have been tough ones for Nissan, facing the closure of its Michigan design studio, a forecast loss of $2.6 billion and the cutting of 20,000 jobs worldwide. Nevertheless it is still making plans for the future, and electric vehicles (EVs) figure heavily in those plans. To...
Ralph Hanson -
Scion announces tC Release Series 5.0 pricingThe Release Series of limited-edition Scions gets another member this year as the tC Release Series 5.0 (tC RS 5.0) joins the ranks. The car will be unveiled February 11 at the 2009 Chicago Auto Show, one year after the debut of its predecessor, the tC RS 4.0. Pricing of the new car checks in at...
Ralph Hanson -
Huge demand delays Mini EV test leases in U.S.In a sign that Americans may truly be ready to embrace electric vehicles, including living with any shortcomings and paying a significant price premium, demand for BMW’s Mini E electric vehicle has outstripped supply by 4-to-1. Unfortunately, the plethora of applicants for the 450 available...
Alex Kaufmann -
Toyota has forecast its first operating loss in 71 years, citing falling demand and an appreciating yen as the key factors leading to its poor performance. Despite predicting late last year that its loss would only amount to ¥150 billion ($1.7 billion) in the year through March, the carmaker has now forecast an annual loss three times greater than this. The world's largest carmaker now says its first annual operating loss in seven decades will be ¥450 billion ($4.95 billion) for the fiscal year ending March 31. It also expects is sales to drop 17.87% for the year, down to 7.32 million...
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Fiat and Chrysler deal may be completed by mid-FebruaryFiat and Chrysler first released a joint statement announcing they had signed a non-binding term sheet to establish a global strategic alliance just over two weeks ago but according to Fiat's CEO the deal could be signed and completed by as early as the middle of this month. The alliance, to be a...
James Martinez -
Over 40% of cars built in North America built by foreign companiesIn January we brought you news of Toyota's predicted surpassing of Chrysler in North American output in 2009, and nearly two years ago we reported on the Detroit 3 slipping below 50% market share in the U.S. Now the trend continues, with the Detroit 3's North American car output slipping below 60%...
Nelson Ireson -
Toyota Prius plug-in hybrids averaging 65mpg in initial testingMajor carmakers are rushing to develop a new generation of plug-in hybrid vehicles including industry giants Toyota and GM, which hope to have the technology ready for sale by the end of the decade. GM appears to have the lead at the moment, forming a partnership with LG Chem to develop and...
James Martinez -
Texas considering $5,000 tax credit for plug-in hybrids on top of federal incentivesWith all the talk of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reconsidering allowing states to implement their own fuel-economy emissions and regulations, and the negative flow on effects this would have on carmakers that would be forced to tailor cars to meet varying standards across the country...
James Martinez -
Tesla announces Model S Concept, explains price hikes in town hall meetingThe burgeoning electric car field was just hitting its stride when the bottom fell out of the market last year, and the tough position that has left carmakers like Tesla in has forced some changes to be made. But that's not stopping the company from moving ahead with its product development plans...
Ralph Hanson -
Toyota's North American car output will surpass Chrysler's for the first time during the first quarter of 2009. The two companies' downward trajectories will soon cross, leaving Toyota as the third largest domestic producer behind Ford and General Motors. Both Chrysler and Toyota are sharply cutting back their production, so it's a story of relative gain rather than absolute. Nevertheless, by building a planned 280,500 cars in Q1 2009, Toyota will outstrip Chrysler by over 20,000 units, reports Automotive News. Those figures amount to a 31.8% decrease for Toyota and an even more dramatic...
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Report: Fiat and Chrysler alliance will see seven new models sold in U.S.The proposed alliance between Chrysler and Fiat Group will reportedly see seven new vehicles introduced to the U.S. market, with most of the cars expected to be produced at idle Chrysler plants across North America. According to sources that have seen the product-sharing agreement, several of the...
Ralph Hanson -
Toyota confirms iQ under consideration for U.S.Toyota’s new iQ minicar is set to go on sale in Japan and most parts of Europe very soon, but there are now indications from one of the carmaker’s top officials that the diminutive hatch could make its way to the United States. There has been plenty of speculation that the iQ could be...
Ralph Hanson -
What does the Fiat-Chrysler partnership mean to you?Today’s news of Fiat's decision to acquire up to 35% of Chrysler has taken the automotive world by storm. What might such an alliance portend for Chrysler? What could Fiat possibly derive from the union? And how might you, the car enthusiast, feel about the whole thing? History is always a...
Nelson Ireson -
Toyota founder’s grandson will replace CEO by JuneFollowing Toyota’s shock announcement recently that the company is expecting to post a ¥150 billion ($1.7 billion) loss for the year ending March 2009, comes an official announcement that Akio Toyoda, the 52 year-old grandson of Toyota's founder Kiichiro Toyoda, will step into the role of...
Kenneth Hall -
Toyota confirms 2012 U.S. launch for electric vehiclesToyota used last week’s Detroit Auto Show to unveil its new FT-EV concept, a compact urban runabout based on the iQ minicar and powered by an all-electric drivetrain. The carmaker also used the Detroit event to announce plans to launch an urban commuter ‘battery-electric vehicle’...
Alex Kaufmann