Toyota passes three million hybrid mark

Toyota has sold just over three million hybrids globally since it introduced its first, the Toyota Coaster Hybrid EV bus in 1997, followed that same year by the first-gen Prius. More impressive is the fact that more than a million of those sales have come since August of 2009.

Toyota offers 16 different hybrid models around the world, and it’s about to introduce several new variations of the Prius to our shores. Toyota’s Lexus luxury division has augmented the company’s hybrid movement, offering a gas-electric electric option on the RX, GS and LS models, and two dedicated hybrids, the CT andHS.

By the end of 2012, Toyota says it will add 10 more hybrid models to the global market. According to Toyota, hybrid vehicles had saved the nearly 18 million tons of C02 it would have produced building similarly sized traditional gas-powered cars.

Source:Autoblog

Toyota’s unstoppable Land Cruiser turns 60

The year was 1951 and Toyota was hard at work creating a new all-terrain vehicle for military use. After much development, the Toyota BJ was the result of the Japanese automaker’s hard work, and the go-anywhere SUV quickly established itself as a capable workhorse. In fact, it was the first vehicle to be driven to Mt. Fuji’s sixth hill station, a climb rising 2,500 meters. After that feat, the Toyota BJ was applied to police fleets around the country. Sixty years and a name change later, the Toyota Land Cruiser is still running strong around the world.

The Land Cruiser name was applied to the BJ in 1954 and five million of these tough trucks have now been sold around the world. Evolving from the beloved FJ through the 20 Series and on to the 200 Series, the Land Cruiser has gained a level of luxury far removed from its distant BJ ancestor. However, it remains a capable off-road vehicle suited for tackling whatever this planet can throw at it.

Turning 60 is a big deal and Toyota has created two 60th anniversary models of the 2011 Land Cruiser, though these special edition models are currently being built for the UK only. Essentially, the anniversary Land Cruisers are fully-loaded versions of the well-to-do SUV sporting special badging and trim pieces. Follow the jump for Toyota’s official press release.

 

 

Source:Autoblog

Toyota taking “devil’s advocate” approach to product development

If you don’t get pinched by the wiper arm on the new Toyota Yaris, you have the company’s new “devil’s advocate” product development philosophy to thank. The approach entails a team of engineers doing things with the car that Toyota wouldn’t normally be able to fathom. The events of the past year have shown that people will do wacky things with their cars, like making floormat layer cakes, and this spurred management changes like more local authority for North American operations.

Toyota has installed more executives in its American plants and given the U.S. arm of the business its own decision-making power on recalls, rather than waiting for word from the home office. A single database of internal and external vehicle quality discussions is also being put together to make Toyota’s reaction more nimble.

There are critics of the efforts. Clarence Ditlow of the Center for Auto Safety doesn’t find a new attitude in Toyota’s response to quality complaints much of a departure from the past, calling it “pretty much the same-old, same-old.” Sean Kane of Safety Research & Strategies opines that Toyota is “biding their time” and still tends to blame the victims rather than solve issues like the ones recently plaguing the company.

Whether Toyota’s reactions are percieved critically or complimentary, there is at least the indication of a desire to rectify a damaging situation, and you can now be sure that many engineering mules are undergoing strange experiments deep in the bowels of some Toyota R&D bunker to quantify the effects of ECU pins shorted by a french fry.

Source:Autoblog

Toyota recalls 245,000 Lexus sedans in U.S., 1.7 million cars globally

We won’t blame you for reading this headline and thinking, “Oh great, another Toyota recall.” After all, the Japanese automaker dominated headlines in 2010 by recalling every single model in its then-current product portfolio, including the massive sticky pedal and unintended acceleration recalls that took place in the first half of last year.

Now, Toyota has issued a voluntary recall on about 245,000Lexus sedans here in the United States and an additional 1.5 million vehicles around the world. Here in the U.S., the 2006-2007 Lexus GS 300 and GS 350, 2006-2009 Lexus IS 250 and 2006-2008 Lexus IS 350 sedans are being recalled due to faulty installation of fuel pressure sensors. If this sensor has not been fastened tightly enough, fuel has the potential to leak between the gasket that connects it to the fuel delivery pipes. Including these North American vehicles, the fuel sensor recall affects 354,524 vehicles around the world, with Automotive News citing that the Toyota Crown and Mark X sedans are being recalled in the automaker’s home market.

Toyota’s other global recall involves faulty fuel pipes and fuel check valves, though none of the 1.34 million vehicles affected by this one are in North America. In Japan, the RAV4 crossover, Voxy and Noah minivans are being recalled, as well as the Avensis sedan and wagon sold in Europe.

For full details on Toyota’s recall here in the States, follow the jump for the automaker’s official press release.

 

Toyota teases FT-86 II concept for Geneva

 

Subaru has already confirmed that it’s sports car being jointly developed with Toyota is coming to the 2011 Geneva Motor Show. Now Toyota is getting into the action by announcing today that its version of the jointly developed sports car, the FT-86, will be there… and it will be an evolution of the concept shown back in 2009 at the Tokyo Motor Show. The updated version is called the Toyota FT-86 II and promises to be our clearest view yet of what the production vehicle will look like.

Toyota is also going so far as to say that the FT-86 II will prove the automaker has a “reborn passion for sports car driving.” If the FT-86 II can evoke memories of Celicas, Supras and even a hint of the legendary 2000GT, then we say build it as fast as you can.

Toyota-based Subaru Trezia hatchback headed to Europe

When we think about Toyota-Subaru collaboration, the first thing that comes to mind is the highly anticipated rear-wheel-drive “Toyobaru” project. But while the FT-86 and its Subie sibling are first in our thoughts, it wasn’t number one to market.

Automotive News reports that Subaru is set to unveil the Trezia hatchback in March at the Geneva Auto Show. The roomy five-door, which closely mirrors the Honda Fit in most every measurement, will be a near spot-on match of the Toyota Verso it’s based on, but with an Impreza-style grille slapped on the front clip and some Subaru badging sprinkled throughought. Both the Toyota Verso (named Ractis for JDM consumption) and Subaru Trezia are being sold in Japan now, and both vehicles are destined for Euro showrooms this spring.

In Japan, the Trezia is powered by a choice of 1.3-liter and 1.5-liter inline-four cylinder gasoline engines mated to a CVT, but in Europe the 1.5 will be replaced with a 1.4-liter diesel. In Japan, the Trezia can be had with all-wheel-drive provided car buyers check off the box for the more powerful engine, which will likely be the turbodiesel in Europe.

With its roomy interior and diminutive footprint, the Trezia will likely do well overseas. But will we ever see Subaru’s Fit-fighter in North America? With gas prices once again on the rise, it might not be a bad idea.

Toyota remains world’s largest automaker for third year in a row despite troubles

Despite weathering a rocky 2010 marked by repeated recalls, Toyota managed to remain the world’s largest automaker last year. According to Bloomberg, the Japanese manufacturer saw its sales rise by eight percent to 8.42 million units if you include Lexus, Hino and Daihatsu. That figure beat out General Motors, which saw its sales increase by 12 percent with 8.39 million units sold.

While Toyota’s sales in the U.S. market dropped by 0.4 percent due to safety concerns, the automaker saw large increases in China. The company’s sales in the People’s Republic jumped by 19 percent, though General Motors saw its Chinese sales increase by 29 percent.

Volkswagen, meanwhile, managed to move 7.14 million vehicles during 2010, cementing its place as the third-largest automaker in the world. That figure marks a 14 percent increase over 2009, and VW says that it fully expects to see sales increase by five percent in 2011.

Toyota is forecasting its sales to hit 8.6 million vehicles in 2011.

Toyota concept is the FT-86′s little sister

We’ve been clamoring for a date with the production version of the Toyota FT-86 for longer than we care to remember, but we officially have a new infatuation. Meet the boxer coupe’s younger sister – the TES T-Sport Concept. If our Google Translator is to be believed, the car supposedly originated from an inner-company survey that asked what type of cars Toyota engineers would most like to see built. Apparently the overwhelming answer was a fun-to-drive, affordable sports car.

Color us stunned.

From there, the Toyota Engineering Society set about crafting their vision of a low buck machine that could still slather a smile on your face. Power comes courtesy of a 1.3-liter four-cylinder engine with around 110 horsepower, and this thing hits the scales at less than 2,000 pounds. That sounds like a winning combination to us. The T-Sport Concept wears some plenty funky styling, but we certainly wouldn’t hold that against a would-be Mazda MX-5 competitor. As with most things awesome that hail from auto shows, there’s little likelihood that the T-Sport will ever see production. Head over to AutoGuide to get a closer look at the two-seater.

Dana coughs up $25M to Toyota over rusty Tacoma frames

When an automaker is forced to issue a recall, the defective part or feature is generally the fault of the automaker or of an OEM supplier it contracted to. In the case of the Toyota Tacoma – part of a 110,000-unit recall in 2009 – the problem appears to have been traced back to the supplier. And now the supplier is forced to pay for its mistakes.

The company in question, according to reports, is Dana, the Ohio-based OEM contractor supplying (among other components) axles and driveshafts for automobiles, commercial trucks and heavy equipment. In this case, it supplied the frames for the Tacoma pickup which were found to rust when exposed to road salt.

Although in 2010 Dana sold the plant that manufactures the frame to Mexican conglomerate Grupo Porza’s Metalsa subsidiary, since the component in question was built prior to the sale (from 1995 to 2000), Dana has reportedly been forced to shell out $25 million to Toyota over the issue.

Sport Cars of Toyota Supra

Sport Cars of Toyota Supra were originally produced by the Toyota Motor Company from the years of 1979 to 2010, making it one of the older models with the longest value of production in the Toyota line. The style was originally derived from one of its predecessors, the Toyota Celica; however, it was specifically fashioned to be both wider and longer so that it would be a sturdier car than the Toyota Celica. However, the designers were able to maintain the original speed in the vehicle, despite its larger size than its cousin, the Toyota Celica.

Sport Cars of Toyota Supra also trace many of its roots back to the Toyota 2000GT with the original insistence of the 2000GT being the motor used for the car. During the first three generations of the line, a direct descendent engine of the Toyota 2000GT, the M engine was used. All four of the Toyota Supra’s have sported and produced an incline 6 cylinder engine with most of the engine specs being almost identical except for a few choice technological innovations. The aspects of the interior have also been quite similar through all four generations. The engine is relatively powerful, but lacks a certain get up to the acceleration. However, this is made up for in luxury as well as overall power.

This particular car also gained its own logo after it broke out from the shadow of the Toyota Celica. However, it did derive from the original Celica logo; it still remains somewhat unique, as the car was proven unique. The logo looks very similar to the Celica logo, but it is blue instead of being orange and has several other altercations to it. This logo was used until around 1986 during the second generation right before the Toyota Supra MKIII was released. A brand new logo came along with this new title. It was similar in size but has orange writing and a reddish background and did not have the dragon design as it formerly did. This logo was used on the Toyota Supra until around 1991 when it was switched to the current logo, which is in the shape of a oval.

Toyota discontinued the sale in 1999 and officially stopped production the New Era 2010 in Japan. The Sport Cars of Toyota Supra are an iconic sports cars that has been used in numerous video games and movies for its look as well as its notoriety for power and speed.

Toyota and Lexus show off at Tokyo Auto Salon

You’ve seen the Toyota GRMN iQ Racing Concept (lucky you!), and now it’s time to divert your attention towards the rest of the Japanese automaker’s wares being shown off at the Tokyo Auto Salon.

First up is the Toyota Prius G Sports Concept, which features the kind of gaping maw only the Mama Cylon could love. Rounding out Toyota’s offerings is the TRD Auris GT Concept, which we think actually looks kinda nifty with its subdued body kit and blindingly bright yellow paint.

Lexus wasn’t left out of the proceedings either, and its machines are arguably more interesting than its mothership’s. There’s the F-Sport CT 200h (a future production model) taking center stage with its unique alloy wheels, body kit and Recaro seats, which is joined by the IS F Club Circuit Sports Racer and a set of Club Performance Accessories for the IS F that include front and rear spoilers and a carbon fiber hood.

Last but certainly not least is the Gazoo Racing Lexus LFA supercar that raced at last year’s Nürburgring 24 Hours race. See both sets of vehicular craziness in our high-res image galleries below, then check out all the details in the press releases after the break.