Toyota launches updated Verso-S in Europe

Globally, the Toyota Yaris has bred more variants than we can shake a stick at. It's been known in different markets as the Vitz, the Platz, the Bella, the Vios and, to us, as the Echo. The first-generation model bred a small cargo van called the Yaris Verso - a mini minivan riding on the shortest wheelbase in its class - which was renamed the Verso-S for Europe and alternatively known as the Space Verso, the Ractis, the Ractis Verso and even the Subaru Trezia in certain markets. And now Toyota has launched a revised version of its Verso-S in Europe.

Arriving as a mid-life facelift after three years on the market, the new Toyota Verso-S has been reinterpreted through the "Keen Look" design language that's been distinguishing the latest generation of Toyotas, particularly in the European market. That means new projector-beam headlights and LED daytime running lights, a reshaped grille with chrome surround, more LEDs around back, a fresh set of 16-inch alloys and new color options.

The interior has likewise been spruced up with new trim and color choices, as well as a tire pressure monitor fitted as standard. There's a new touchscreen display with more connectivity options, upgraded nav and a rearview camera as well. Since Toyota's made no mention of engine upgrades, until we hear back, we have to assume the 1.3-liter inline-four and 1.4-liter diesel engines carry over unchanged with the buyer's choice of either a six-speed manual or continuously variable transmission.
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Tesla pulling plug on Toyota RAV4 EV battery deal

The future of the Toyota RAV4 EV appears to be in doubt. Tesla supplies the EVs battery packs, and it says that production ends later this year.

"Toyota is expected to end the current RAV4 EV model this year," Tesla said in its quarterly financial filing obtained by Bloomberg. "Our production activities under this program are expected to end in 2014," the company said.

This timeline fits closely with the original production plans for the RAV4 EV. When the $100-million project was first announced, Tesla said that it expected to supply battery packs for the vehicle from 2012 to 2014. Building components for the Japanese automaker continues to bring in money, though. In the company's Q1 2014 letter to shareholders, it said: "Automotive revenue included $15 million of Toyota powertrain sales." According to Bloomberg, Toyota has sold just 1,594 RAV4 EV models from 2012 through April 2014. Initially, the business had estimated that it would sell 2,600 units of the electrified crossover.

Toyota has not officially said that it plans to end production of the RAV4 EV yet. Of course, doing so wouldn't really come as a shock, since the vehicle is still based on a previous generation platform. Toyota is also known to be readying its FCV Concept hydrogen vehicle for production in 2015. The cutting-edge model might appeal to a different market, but it will still help the Japanese automaker maintain its leadership in electric propulsion.

Autoblog has reached out to Toyota asking for comments on the future of its RAV4 EV and will update this story if we learn more.
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Tier 1 suppliers call GM the worst OEM to work with

Among automakers with a big US presence, General Motors is the worst to work for, according to a new survey from Tier 1 automotive suppliers, conducted by Planning Perspectives, Inc.

The Detroit-based manufacturer, which has been under fire following the ignition switch recall and its accompanying scandal, finished behind six other automakers with big US manufacturing operations. Suppliers had issues with trust and communications, as well as intellectual property protection. GM was also the least likely to allow suppliers to raise their prices in the face of unexpected increases in material cost, all of which contributed to 55 percent of suppliers saying their relationship with GM was "poor to very poor."

GM's cross-town competitors didn't fare much better. Chrysler finished in fifth place, ahead of GM and behind Dearborn-based Ford, which was passed for third place this year by Nissan. Toyota took the top marks, while Honda captured second place.

PPI also surveyed suppliers of Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes-Benz, each of which has considerably smaller manufacturing presence relative to the American and Japanese brands (there are only three US factories between the three of them). Mercedes and VW were ranked behind GM, while BMW would have been just behind Toyota.

According to Reuters, this survey serves to illustrate a big issue facing American manufacturers - Japanese brands aren't just on good terms with suppliers, but their relations are actually improving. PPI boss John Henke said the popularity of Toyota and Nissan among suppliers increased considerably, indicating that we "could be entering an era in supplier relations that doesn't bode well for the US Big Three."
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Tesla pulling plug on Toyota RAV4 EV battery deal

The future of the Toyota RAV4 EV appears to be in doubt. Tesla supplies the EVs battery packs, and it says that production ends later this year.

"Toyota is expected to end the current RAV4 EV model this year," Tesla said in its quarterly financial filing obtained by Bloomberg. "Our production activities under this program are expected to end in 2014," the company said.

This timeline fits closely with the original production plans for the RAV4 EV. When the $100-million project was first announced, Tesla said that it expected to supply battery packs for the vehicle from 2012 to 2014. Building components for the Japanese automaker continues to bring in money, though. In the company's Q1 2014 letter to shareholders, it said: "Automotive revenue included $15 million of Toyota powertrain sales." According to Bloomberg, Toyota has sold just 1,594 RAV4 EV models from 2012 through April 2014. Initially, the business had estimated that it would sell 2,600 units of the electrified crossover.

Toyota has not officially said that it plans to end production of the RAV4 EV yet. Of course, doing so wouldn't really come as a shock, since the vehicle is still based on a previous generation platform. Toyota is also known to be readying its FCV Concept hydrogen vehicle for production in 2015. The cutting-edge model might appeal to a different market, but it will still help the Japanese automaker maintain its leadership in electric propulsion.

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Subaru to stop building Camry for Toyota in the US

It was back in 2007 that Subaru of Indiana Automotive, under contract from Subaru minority shareholder Toyota, built the first Toyota Camry at its plant in Lafayette, Indiana. Rumblings of the end of that contract work have been around for a while, as Subaru talked of expanding capacity to build more units and add a line for the Impreza, and Toyota talked of moving Camry production to its Georgetown, KY plant. The news was official internally last November when SIA Executive Vice President Tom Easterday told the Louisville Courier-Journal that Camry production would end. Now, Automotive News reports that both automakers have admitted publicly that the end will come in 2016.

SIA currently has a 170,000-unit capacity devoted to the home-brand Legacy and Outback models, while a $400-million expansion increases that to 300,000 units to prepare the facility for Impreza production in two years. Freeing up the 100,000 units of production devoted to the Camry means a 400,000-unit capability, which is far more than Subaru needs at the moment, but the Toyota exit will allow it to expand any way it sees fit. Subaru has said it will absorb the workers on the Camry line and no jobs will be lost, the mayor of Lafayette saying the development could change the timetable for the expansion.
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2014 Toyota 4Runner Limited

What would you say if we told you that outside of Jeep and Land Rover, the best brand for those who want to go off road is Toyota? Sounds remarkable, eh? But the truth is, Toyota's history of providing vehicles for the rougher bits of our blue marble dates back to 1950, barely a decade after Willys built the first Jeeps and only a few years after Land Rover made its big debut with the iconic Series I.

In fact, Toyota's start in off-roaders was with a small contract for providing the US Army with vehicles, during the Korean War. From that, the BJ was spawned. This Jeep-like vehicle evolved into the 20 Series and then into the iconic 40 Series Land Cruiser in the 1960s.

So yes, Toyota knows its way around the trails. While the Land Cruiser, deservedly, gets all the attention thanks to its impressive longevity, we're partial to the 4Runner, which is a far more affordable entry that serves as Toyota's challenger to the Jeep Grand Cherokee.

For 2014, Toyota issued a light refresh of the fifth-generation 4Runner, which originally arrived back in 2009. You'll recall that we already have a test of the off-road-oriented Trail trim level, thanks to our man Michael Harley. For this test, we're driving the top-of-the-line Limited model.
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How Charlotte lost to Plano without even knowing it was dealing with Toyota

With Toyota set to relocate its North American headquarters to the Dallas, TX suburb of Plano following a top-secret, 100-city search, the cities that missed out can now begin asking themselves what happened during a process they apparently knew little about.

That's a particularly brutal task for Charlotte, which, according to North Carolina's Secretary of Commerce, Sharon Decker, finished second to Plano. While Toyota has been fairly open about what it was looking for in a new headquarters city - direct flights to Japan, proximity to its US production facilities, a lower cost of living, high-quality educational facilities and finding a neutral site suitable to the California, Kentucky and New York-based employees that would be relocated - it's been less open about how the finalist cities, which also included Atlanta and Denver, stacked up against each other.

The Charlotte Observer has a few ideas. Part of the problem is the distinct lack of direct flights between Charlotte and Asia. US Airways, which operates a hub at Charlotte/Douglas International Airport, doesn't fly to Asia.

Toyota, for its part, seems to be placing most of the blame on location.

"With manufacturing locations in many US states, Canada and Mexico, we chose a location that better supports our diverse geographic footprint, in a time zone that allows us to communicate better with most of our operations, and has direct flights to all our North American operations and Japan," Mike Michels, Toyota's VP of product communications, told The Observer via email.
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Toyota GT 86 Ready to Have Fun in China

One cheap-ish Japanese import that should go some way towards improving public sentiment in China is the GT 86 sports coupe. Launched last year across most of the world, the car is the smallest 2+2 coupe that you can go sideways in.

Chinese petrol heads will be treated to a sweet naturally aspirated 2.0-liter boxer engine that produces 200 horsepower to the rear wheels. Despite the heavy import taxes, the GT 86 is quite cheap at CNY269,000 ($43,250 at the current exchange rate) for the base manual, which means Toyota want people's perceptions to change in the people's republic.

To find out more about the GT 86, read our Test Drive, check out all the photos and enjoy. If you're sold, just head over to your local FAW-Toyota dealer and place that order.

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Subaru BRZ Also Coming to China

We've just told you that Toyota's GT 86 sports coupe is available in China for CNY269,000 ($43,250 at the current exchange rate), a very decent price for what is undoubtably a cult car of the moment. The 86 was designed in partnership with Subaru and is actually built by Fuji Heavy Industries on the same line as the BRZ.

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Video: Toyota releases teaser for Kaley Cuoco Super Bowl ad

Toyota has released a 35-second teaser video for its upcoming Super Bowl spot staring Kaley Cuoco, the actress best known for her role as object-of-nerd-affection Penny on The Big Bang Theory. The real star of the ad, however, is its soundtrack, the 1995 hit "I Wish" by rapper Skee-Lo that will have your mind cashing nostalgia checks the moment it hits your ears.

We still don't know much about the content, plot or story of this Super Bowl commercial, though we can say that its object of promotion is likely the new RAV4 we see Ms. Cuoco driving in it. The rest of the time she's walking the street in a purple get-up granting wishes like Robin Williams on a Disney sound stage. And then the Easter Bunny and a chihuahua enter the picture and we get lost. Clint Eastwood under a bridge this is not.

But hey, Super Bowl ads cost millions and millions of dollars to produce and air, so we trust that Toyota spent its money wisely and will have us ROFLing on game day.

News Source: Toyota via YouTube

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Toyota close to licensing deal with BMW for fuel cell technology

For over a year now, we've been hearing about a potential partnership between Toyota and BMW on everything from sports cars to lithium-ion batteries, but one of the first cooperative projects between these two automakers could bring Toyota's hydrogen fuel cell technology to a BMW vehicle. Reuters is reporting that an announcement is likely to be made as soon as later this week regarding a BMW fuel cell vehicle that could be in production by 2020 with a prototype running around by 2015.

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Toyota Prius Is California's Best Selling Car in 2012

California's love affair with Toyota's Prius is well-known, and the fact that it is the US state's best selling car in 2012 really comes as no surprise. Still, it is impressive how a 'green' vehicle has become the best selling anything, anywhere - a rare feat, as such vehicles are still struggling for acceptance elsewhere.

WIth a total of 60,668 units shifted through 2012, the Prius just managed to etch ahead of the Toyota Camry, which sold 57,124 units. The third best-seller in California is the Honda Accord, with 49,420 sales in 2012.

Total registrations (retail and fleets) increased by 25% in 2011, from 1,290,920 units up to 1,617,103 units.

According to the chairman of the California New Car Dealers Association (CNCDA), Darryl Holter, “With California’s economy on the rebound, consumers feel confident again about buying a new car, and there has never been a wider selection of models to choose from.”

Also, lead vehicle analyst for the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE), Shruti Vaidyanathan was quoted as saying: “The vehicles at the top of this year’s rankings are proof that automakers are really ramping up their offerings. There are more hybrid and electric options on the market this year than ever before and the race for a spot on the Greenest list is increasingly competitive.”

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Lexus to Show Sub-RX Small SUV at 2013 Tokyo Motor Show

The small SUV/crossover craze has finally caught up with Lexus, and the premium Japanese automaker has announced that it will be bringing a special concept to the 2013 Tokyo Motor Show. It previews a production vehicle, which will sit below the RX in the Lexus range, and it will be a rival for the likes of the Audi Q5, Mercedes-Benz GLK and, of course, the BMW X3.

The information comes courtesy of drive.com.au, who spoke to the executive vice president of Lexus International, Kazuo Ohara. He said that a small sub-RX SUV is under 'serious consideration'.

"Yes, we believe there is a need [ . . . ] Smaller than the RX – a smaller SUV is going to be a promising option for the global market [ . . . ] So we are looking into it," he concluded.

When it comes to the new vehicle's underpinnings, the running gear of the all-new Toyota RAV4 is a promising start, but the chassis of a regular hatchback or sedan can be raised up and do an adequate job, as well. It will also get styling inspired by the all-new IS sedan, which is a good thing, as the new 3-Series rival is a looker.

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Toyota settles first wrongful death suit related to unintended acceleration

Toyota's sales seem to have rebounded from the unintended acceleration issues from 2009 and 2010, but the automaker is far from done dealing with this situation. Following a settlement worth up to $1.4 billion for economic loss to affected vehicle owners, Toyota has settled rather than going to trial in a wrongful death lawsuit stemming from an accident in Utah in 2010 that left two passengers dead. This isn't the first case in which Toyota has settled, but it was the first among a consolidated group of cases being held in Santa Ana, CA.

According to The Detroit News, this case was scheduled to take place next month, and it was for a November 2010 incident in which Paul Van Alfen and Charlene James Lloyd were killed in a Camry when, based on findings by the Utah Highway Patrol, the accelerator got stuck causing the car to speed out of control and hit a wall; the terms of the settlement were not announced.

The article says that while Toyota will settle on some cases, it doesn't plan on settling on all of them as it still wants to be able to "defend [its] product at trial." This will probably be the case in suits claiming that software for the drive-by-wire accelerator was the cause of an accident in a Toyota or Lexus vehicle. The question of whether or not the electronic accelerator played any role in this problem has been a hot-button topic since the beginning. Toyota has issued recalls in the past to attempt to prevent unintended acceleration caused by trapped floor mats and faulty accelerator pedals, but it also says driver error was to blame in some instances.

News Source: The Detroit News

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1967 Toyota 2000GT Solar Electric Vehicle

Q may have packed James Bond's cars with plenty of killer tech (get it?), but the 1967 Toyota 2000GT you see above has got it's own bad boy secrets. Well, if bad boys like zero-emission electric vehicles.

Weighing just 1,460 kilograms (3,218 pounds), this modified 2000GT is all-electric under the skin – and on the skin in some areas. A high-performance solar panel embedded into the hood and a transmission solar panel sits in place of the rear glass. These feed energy into to a 345-volt, 40-kWh lithium-ion battery which, in turn, powers a 120-kW electric motor. Together in the stylish 2000GT, this powertrain is good for a top speed of over 200 kilometers an hour (124 miles per hour).

The car is on display at the Detroit Auto Show this week, but we fist caught wind of it a year ago when a video popped up showing the work of Japan's Crazy Car Project.

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Toyota Shows New Photo of Upcoming Furia Concept

Toyota revealed several photos and a short but not very revealing video of an all-new concept, which is set to debut at the 2013 Detroit Auto Show. It is called the Furia, and it’s a modern-looking sedan about which they have not said a thing, since the photos first came out, around the middle of December 2012.

Now, they have revealed another cropped and equally unrevealing photo, this time showing the concept’s rear light, in detail. Still, aside from the fact that it will be revealed in Detroit, one more detail was given - the fact that the car would be revealed using 46-inch transparent LCD screens, made by Samsung, being the first automaker to do so in a major presentation.

Still, the important question remains: Why is Toyota making such a big fuss about this? They have already shown two teasers, and have announced a grand unveiling, so it must be somehow important for the Japanese company. It could preview the next Corolla, or it could show the direction Toyota’s design is going in.

Expect the concept to debut on January 14, in Detroit.

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Toyota GT86 Set for March Debut in China

China is the last great untapped resource for the Toyota GT86, which will undoubtedly attract a large following once it gets launched. So far there has been little talk about the GT86 and the Chinese market, in the same sentence, but we were always curious as to why.

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Armored Toyota is a pleasure palace in disguise

We've seen our fair share of kitted out armored vehicles, from bullet-proof BMW models to Land Rover SUVs that can take a land mine. But Lexani Motorcars has recently put its armored car experience to work on a Toyota Sequoia. Why? The company isn't saying, but we imagine a Toyota is somewhat less conspicuous than a high-dollar German sedan. With sufficient armoring on five sides to protect the machine from 7.62x51 mm rifle rounds and under body plating stout enough to keep the occupants safe from both grenades and land mines.

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Toyota tops 2012 recalls in volume, Ford in number of campaigns

Toyota dominated new car sales last year, with its Camry topping out at just over 400,000 units, but the automaker also led a much less desirable category in 2012: recalls. According to The Detroit News, Toyota's 5.3 million recalled units was enough to give it the highest recall volume last year in the US, giving the brand this unfortunate distinction for the third time in the last four years. Overall, 16.2 million vehicles (including RVs and motorcycles) were recalled last year with the oversight of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration marking an increase of 4.5 percent over 2011. By volume, Toyota, Honda and the Detroit Three accounted for the vast majority of all recalls tallied last year with a combined total of almost 13 million recalled vehicles.

Looking at the total number of vehicles that were recalled, Toyota and Honda each had more than double of any other automaker, but when it came to the total number of individual recall campaigns, Ford had the most with 24 separate recalls issued. The report offers an interesting breakdown of different recall data from last year including a graphic that puts it all into perspective, so be sure to head on over to The Detroit News for the full report.

News Source: The Detroit News

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2013 Toyota Yaris Updates for UK Market

The Toyota Yaris was launched back in 2011 and is among the newest superminis available in Europe. Yet because of the strong competition, the Japanese car company has decided the best thing to do was to update the car with what supermini buyers actually want: more features instead of new styling.

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