Toyota News Archives

Yet another sign consumer interest is turning from horsepower to fuel economy: the hybrid-electric version of the Toyota Camry, one of the nation's best-selling cars, is outselling V6-powered Camrys by a solid ... via AutoSpies

Wednesday April 30, 2008 Race/Date: Carolina 500k - ' May 4, 2008 Location: Rockingham Speedway - ' Rockingham, N.C. NOTES : This Week's Racecar for Kansas Speedway is Chassis 28-107. This is the same car that ... via The Frontstretch

“It is a very litigious world, and on any given day, any automaker will have a dozen suits on one thing or another.”

Seattle engineer Conrad Gardner has sued Toyota Motor Corp., alleging that the giant Japanese auto manufacturer infringed on a patent for hybrid technology that is now used in the Prius, Camry and Highlander . via Hispanic Business

“I was raised with environmental awareness and the idea of preserving the environment”

Talk Back: Post a comment on this article By Pablo Pereira KNBC CHATSWORTH, CA -- A California driving school has decided to use a fleet of cars that send an environmental message to students. via First Coast News

The current Prius is baked from a refined recipe that results in a roomy, practical and efficient vehicle lurking under an eco-statement exterior, or at least we thought so . via Autoblog

“It's rough no matter how you slice it.”

Tom Robinson said family trips this summer might be cut if the price of gasoline jumps much higher. via Easton Express-Times

Kim Fenske drives a bus in Colorado by day, but when he's not working, he zooms around the mountains in a 2007 Toyota Prius. via EDGEboston.com Style Feed v1.0

“We've been asking for more inventory for two years and now we finally got it. This is a great opportunity. You have to take it when you can get it”

Although Toyota has recently claimed the title of the World's Largest Automaker in terms of global sales, the Japanese-giant is finding out that life at the top isn't all it's cracked-up to be. via Autoblog

Toyota's 1/X concept may hint at some ideas for the new Prius. The Truth About Cars blog posted commentary on the next generation Toyota Prius today. via CNET News.com

“There's a power-train shift in the four-cylinder area”

You've got two kids and just found out another is on the way. If you're like most families, that means it's time for a bigger car -- which is the last thing most parents want to think about these days. via KCRA.com

“It's about a two-week to six-month wait, especially if you are color- or package-specific”

As gasoline prices continue to rise at the pump, more consumers are steering toward hybrid car purchases. via MiddletownJournal

The General Motors company is about to enter the Chinese market with a hybrid car, the LaCrosse. via Philippines News.net

The price of oil today closed at 116-dollars a barrel. The price of a gallon of gas at the Shell station across the street, as of two hours ago anyway, was 3-55. Maybe it is time for a hybrid? Maybe -- BUT-- ... via WYFX-TV Youngstown

So, in the interest of full disclosure, I should say that I am the proud owner of a Toyota Tacoma that I am about to sell for nearly three times what I paid for it. via Barre-Montpelier Times-Argus

Sport utility vehicles no longer are the darlings of car showrooms. But Nissan has a new SUV that's sure to attract buyers - even those who are keenly sensitive to gasoline prices. via Worcester Telegram & Gazette

“A lot of people have come in requesting something with better gas mileage”

It's no secret that the rising cost of gas has affected the way consumers across the nation are spending their money. via Hattiesburg American

With record U.S. fuel prices, the automotive electronics technology in Toyota's hybrid Prius is still efficient and even timelier. via PlanetAnalog.com

“Owners find out they don't have the trade equity they thought they had and are forced to keep their vehicles or come up with a large sum of cash to make up the difference”

For used car dealer Ivan Hoyos, accepting a sport utility vehicle as a trade-in is no longer good business. via Cleveland.com

“A middle class is starting to develop, and they're trying to move up scale from smaller cars to the larger compact-size cars”

Scott Piechocinski roamed the rows of a CarMax dealership in Charlotte, N.C., on a recent afternoon, searching for something small to replace his son's 2001 Nissan Pathfinder sport utility vehicle. via Globeinvestor.com

“Customers are moving up, they want the bigger, more established brands”

Chen Yanfe watched guests arrive in their cars for a neighbor's wedding in Shuang Miao, China recently, with a Toyota decorated for the occasion. via HendersonvilleNews.com

“It's a good call on automakers' parts to not make their hybrids so funky and out of body style than what's already out there”

Trust in technology, rising prices motivating factors Dee-Ann Durbin * THE ASSOCIATED PRESS * published April 25, 2008 12:15 am DETROIT Kim Fenske drives a bus in Colorado by day, but when he's not working, he ... via The Asheville Citizen-Times

Testing of EnerDel's 1.1 kWh lithium-ion pack for hybrid electric vehicles by the Center for Transportation Research of Illinois-based Argonne National Laboratory corroborated the company's earlier claims of ... via Green Car Congress

“The dealers can't handle all of the requests at once”

As public works crews sweep up the sand and salt deposited on roads this past winter, some vehicle owners have recently learned that the rust on their vehicles is a blessing in disguise. via Rutland Herald

Tags: Lotus Tag Link: Lotus More info on the 262-hp Lotus Eagle We were pretty excited when we heard that Lotus will debut the much anticipated Lotus Eagle at the 2008 Geneva Motor Show last month, however all ... via AutoSpies

“While the challenges of the U.S. economy continue to put pressure on the automotive industry there, we saw nearly 20% growth in the Latin America, Africa and Middle East, and 6% growth in the Asia Pacific region”

Toyota Motor has taken the first-quarter global automotive sales lead from General Motors , selling 2.41 million vehicles to GM's 2.25 million the first three months of the year. via USA Today

“We're selling more Malibus with higher trim levels and attracting younger and better-educated customers than we did with the old model”

By MARK PHELAN * FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER * April 22, 2008 The price customers are paying for the 2008 Chevrolet Malibu has soared compared to the old model, and actually exceeds what people are paying for ... via Detroit Free Press

Creative Productions, an integrated marketing and promotions agency, announced that it won a W3 Award from the International Academy of the Visual Arts for creative excellence on the Web for the interactive ... via The Auto Channel

“As hybrid buyers migrate within a brand, manufacturers have to be prepared to meet their expectations for offerings if they want consumers to remain loyal.”

April 21, 2008 By Steve Miller Registrations for hybrid vehicles rose 38% last year, led by the Toyota Prius, which captured 51.2% of the hybrid market share, according to a study released today by market ... via Technology Marketing

Volvo V70 - turning the tables on bloke-schism By Michael Booth I've written before about the tragic bloke-schism that divides car enthusiasts and football fans. via Motoring.co.za

“My decision is a very political decision. I want to get people in this country off their dependency on foreign oil”

Kim Fenske drives a bus in Colorado by day, but when he's not working, he zooms around the mountains in a 2007 Toyota Prius. via ETruth.com

“For now, the easiest, cheapest way for new-car shoppers to get better mileage is to choose a model with a conventional four-cylinder engine. And they are”

Hybrid technology may be the poster child for change in the struggling U.S. auto industry, but a cash-strapped public is leaning far more heavily on little four-cylinder engines to ease their fiscal pain, ... via Canada.com

“Everyone I talk to about this concept is excited about it”

Solution to $4 gas? Plug in hybrid, professor says Andrew Frank, proud father of the "car of the future," has a news flash for gas-guzzlers: The future is now. via ScrippsNews

“I could have, I would have -- I drive.”

These days, Mayor Sheila Dixon doesn't get much of a chance to use public transportation. Her security detail takes care of that.

But there she was this morning in the back of a taxi cab -- albeit a highly unusual one. It was a green and yellow first-of-its-kind Toyota Prius taxi, a fuel-efficient, gas-and-electric vehicle that is to be just one of many on Baltimore's streets.

'Nice ride,' Dixon said as she stepped out of the back of the Prius in Druid Hill Park, where she was to announce a series of events tied to Baltimore's Green Week, which kicks off on April 26. Read more

“It's an unfortunate situation where the company is taking good jobs from Long Beach and sending them off to facilities all over the place in other states”

Toyota will shutter its Hino commercial truck assembly line in North Long Beach this summer, bringing an end to nearly 80 years of automobile production in Southern California. via Press-Telegram

“I've been driving minivans for years. Once you get one, you'll never want anything else”

I swore I would never get one. My husband said repeatedly, knowingly, obnoxiously: "Just you wait and see." I hate to admit he was right, but I recently traded in my shiny silver two-door for a shiny silver ... via WEWS

“Now standard with an antilock braking sysytem and side and curtain airbags for safety, the Corolla's new design provides class with a stylish appeal, yet remains fuel efficient and affordable”

Nearly 40 years after the Corolla was introduced to American drivers, an all-new, 10th-generation 2009 Corolla will continue to offer the quality and value for which the brand has long been known. via Home News Tribune

CAMPBELL, Calif. - IntelliChoice.com , the leading source for automotive ownership cost and value analysis, today announced its " Best Deals of the Month " for cars, trucks, and SUVs for April. via Earth Times

“We need to agree on reaching progress for signing a peace treaty to bring our relations to a new level”

Tokyo hopes that the talks between the foreign ministers of Japan and Russia in Moscow will boost the chances of signing a peace treaty, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said on Sunday. via RIA Novosti

“It's such a normal function of your car, you'd never think someone would come and violate that”

Catalytic converters are quickly replacing stereos and rims as the items most likely to be stolen from cars across Western Washington. via KING-TV Seattle

“We sold 21,000 Focuses last month. That's an incredible transformation for a company that not too many years ago was so focused on trucks and SUVs”

The current U.S. economic slowdown is kicking the Big Three right where it hurts--and when they were already down. via KRISTV.COM Corpus Christi

Buy Daily Star photo reprints The 2008 Ford Escape Hybrid, which starts at about $25,000, blends the ruggedness and power of a high-clearance SUV with the efficiency of an electric-gasoline hybrid power system. via Arizona Daily Star

“It's mostly to increase our capacity”

Owners of Frank Smith Toyota tried to make their new dealership in Pharr unlike any other auto lot - except for the cars, of course. via Valley Morning Star

“With gas prices (more than) $3.30 a gallon on average nationwide, consumers are taking a close look at fuel-efficient options”

With gas prices again hitting record highs, the number of shoppers searching for hybrids and other fuel-efficient vehicles has gone up. via KIRO-TV Seattle

“We need to make a decision soon on when and where we are going to do it”

Toyota, the world's second biggest automaker, is building its second plant in India to boost production in a key growing market. via MyTELUS

The world's two largest automakers are recalling more than a half-million vehicles because of power window problems. via ABC12.com

Also, Toyota issued another recall of 540,000 Corolla and Matrix brands released in the US. via ClipSyndicate

WASHINGTON : General Motors Corp. is recalling 122,593 Pontiac Vibe passenger cars in the United States to fix bolts in the power window system that can become loose and lead to the window shattering. via International Herald Tribune

“The alliance with Fuji Heavy is a win-win situation”

Toyota Motor Corp. will pay $311 million to raise its stake in Fuji Heavy Industries to 16.5 percent, and the two companies said Thursday they will expand their ties and develop cars together.Toyota said the ... via NewsChannel 8

When Toyota bought into Subaru a few years ago, auto pundits assumed that the companies would start sharing brainpower at some point. via TCC Confidential

Toyota Motor Corp will recall about 539,500 Corolla and Matrix vehicles sold in the United States due to defects in window glass, the Japanese automaker said on Wednesday. via Reuters

But a type that tastes bitter to kids and animals is even better solution. Dear Tom and Ray, What are your thoughts on the "pet-safe" antifreeze versus the more commonly used, more deadly, ethylene glycol? I am ... via Detnews.com

THE CULLMAN TIMES CULLMAN, Ala. - Pontiac's advertising honchos are quick to tell you their company builds excitement. via Pharos-Tribune

SYDNEY, Australia - Lexus plans to roll out its LF-A supercar by 2011 and will slot an entry-level model below the IS sedan to compete with the BMW 1 Series and the Audi A3 . via Edmunds.com News

“We believe there is a direct correlation between the significant increase in consumer interest in the overall compact car segment of our Web site and the average nationwide increase in gas prices so far this year”

With gas prices skyrocketing, it's probably no surprise that those who actually do go buy a new car are heading for smaller models than the large trucks and SUVs we still see on the roads. via Motor Age

“Just because a vehicle is a hybrid does not necessarily make it an environmentally friendly car and does not necessarily make it a fuel-efficient vehicle”

It wasn't long ago that SUVs were considered the ultimate suburban status symbol, and the running joke was that Americans spent more on designer water than gas. But with regular unleaded projected to reach $4 a gallon this summer, suburban soccer moms who roll silently up to the playing field in their sleek new hybrid cars increasingly claim the title of coolest ride. A Maryland law passed last year to tighten emissions standards to combat global warming has further added interest at local showrooms. Read more

“We are taking three days of production out of the schedule at the Marysville plant”

Depending on who's counting, sales of new vehicles in the U.S. are now at the lowest ebb in 15 years and nobody is quite sure when they will begin to recover. via IndustryWeek

“Yaris ? I've never seen a model in that segment with sales that high, ever”

The smallest, cheapest, cars are the biggest, brightest spot in the dreary auto market, reflecting continuing buyer flight to fuel economy and lower prices. via WBIR-TV Knoxville

Toyota could be considering moving its Tundra pickup truck production entirely to its San Antonio production facility, a new report finds. via Left Lane News

“Consumers are being lured by considerable new model activity in the SUV market, greater availability of diesel engines and a general preference for the versatility and flexibility that these vehicles offer”

Australian vehicles sales dipped three per cent in March, the fall flowing from the Easter break rather than a slowing economy or rising interest rates, officials say. via The Age

“In our case at Toyota, we never have zero percent for 60 months or incentives up to 4-thousand customer cash back. It's like the first time ever.”

It's a buyer's market at a car lot near you. Dealerships are getting new inventory and that, combined with slow sales this winter, means better deals and more incentives for customers. via KSDK-TV Saint Louis

“I can say 100 percent that Toyota received absolutely no support -- no money, no grants -- from the Japanese government for the development of the Prius”

Toyota denies it received public money for Prius gas-electric hybrid car Prius has become a global hit because of its green technology Japanese companies have a reputation for close relations with the ... via CNN

“There's no question that the industry and the economy is in a weakened state”

Automakers reported double-digit U.S. sales declines in March as demand for trucks and sport utility vehicles plummeted and consumers held back because of concerns about gas prices, the housing slump and ... via KABC