Introducing a variant of the Dutro hybrid to North America is part of Hino’s goal to quadruple sales in our market, to approximately 140,000 units annually by 2015.
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When Toyota‘s Prius Plug-in Hybrid Vehicle finally makes it to market next year it will come with two new features that weren’t on the prototype we first drove last October. The first of the tech additions will be a driver-selectable EV mode, while the second will be a full regenerative braking system. Allow us to...
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Infiniti’s Performance Line (IPL) seems to be a little bit underwhelming right now, but it looks like the luxury car manufacturer is continuing to push forward to prove their IPL G37 Coupe can be a total blast to drive. By teaming up with Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull’s Formula One defending champion, Infiniti is planning to...
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Mazda has confirmed the Minagi-inspired CX-5 will be sold in North America and execs have also revealed that in the future the company will sell a diesel-powered model on our shores. Are these two announcements one in the same? We’ll have to wait and see. Regardless of what package it comes in, details of Mazda’s...
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When Honda officially debuted the new 2012 Civic lineup at this year’s New York Auto Show, the Japanese automaker may have held back a little. Sure there was the Civic Coupe and Sedan, the Si, Hybrid and even a high fuel efficiency HF model, but now it appears as though the big H is preparing...
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Mazda has announced a recall for its Mazda3 model, which is also sold under the name Axela in Japan. The recall affects 494,500 units globally with roughly 157,700 in North America. The recall surrounds an electronic problem that could prevent the windshield wipers from working. Affected vehicles include those between the 2008 and 2010 model...
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Nissan has released full details on its 2012 Altima lineup with the Altima Hybrid notably absent. The Altima Hybrid officially launched in 2007 and featured Nissan’s first gas-electric engine, thanks to technology licensed from Toyota. It was able to achieve 33 mpg (7.1 L/100 km), which is still a respectable number. However, the Altima was...
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Toyota will begin its first trial related to its sudden-acceleration issues in February 2013, says a U.S. District judge. The first of the lawsuits will happen in federal court, and will pertain to a 2010 crash that killed two people in a 2008 Camry. The families of the victims are suing Toyota, alleging that a...
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The Scion brand is still in its infancy in Canada and as with all things, getting the word out can be tough. If you’re in the marketing business, the perfect situation would be a captive and receptive audience; and one you can reach for very few dollars spent. With that in mind, Scion Canada’s marketing...
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Ryan Reynolds, star of the upcoming movie “Green Lantern,” and the Nissan Leaf, the environmentally friendly electric car, are partnering in a new ad campaign that will be more green than Kermit the Frog eating a salad on St. Patrick’s Day. The campaign is called “Innovation for Endurance,” and consists of a fitness regimen to...
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Suzuki cars might not be the strongest selling product in North America, but that might just change if and when they introduce the Swift PHEV. This Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) is planned to go into production in 2013 for the Japanese market, and rumors suggest it will be on sale in North America also,...
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In an official press release, the Renault-Nissan Alliance stated that the office will “build staff organically,” to focus on specific projects and business developments as they emerge.”
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Nissan has officially announced, that sales of the updated 2012 Leaf will start in the fall of 2012. The 2012 Leaf will include the addition of a standard heater, heated outside mirrors, heated steering wheel, heated front and rear seats and a rear HVAC duct. A quick charge port has also been added as standard...
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According to Eric Nobel, of the Orange, California based consulting firm The Car Lab, both Honda and Toyota are losing ground because their products haven’t been competitive in crucial market segments since the first half of the last decade.
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With the first photos of the Mugen-tuned CR-Z hitting the net a few weeks ago, the European division of the famed Honda tuner has now released a short video profiling the concept car. While it doesn’t have the K24 many a Honda fanboy had been begging for, its powerplant might just be better, with a...
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Rotaries may seem like a thing of the past these days, especially with Mazda preparing to retire the RX-8. But the Wankel-powered sports car won’t be the last Mazda to get the odd powerplant, thanks in part to a recent breakthrough. A recently big step forward for Mazda’s engineers is a newly developed laser ignition...
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Mazda has given a facelift to the Mazda2 including a minor facelift and the first production application of the automaker’s direct-injection, 1.3-liter SkyActiv gasoline engine. This very fuel-efficient engine has a compression ratio of 14.0:1 and an intelligent start/stop system that requires less fuel to re-initiate the combustion cycle, making the Mazda2 capable of achieving 58.8...
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After a few years of Suzuki offering a portable nav unit in its SX4 hatchback, the comapny announced it would offer an integrated, in-dash system, however the U.S won’t get the system. Suzuki has decided to keep the portable unit in all U.S spec models but the rest of the world will receive an in-dash...
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The news is welcome relief for dealers, whose supply of smaller cars was running desperately low in some cases, nevertheless, Mendel re-iterated that dealers still needed to be aggressive on the sales and marketing front to move metal, even if stockpiles are returning to normal levels.
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Nevertheless, Toyota is trying to be optimistic about the future. In Tokyo today, the company’s Chief Financial Officer, Satoshi Ozawa, said “Toyota will do it’s best to recover from the delays in delivery.”
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Believe it or not, they still build the Toyota Tacoma. And like other formerly-compact compact trucks, it’s been neglected for some time now: 2005 was the last major redesign. But according to Ward’s Automotive, Marty McFly can lust after a new Toyota truck as soon as this year. Toyota division chief Bob Carter told Ward’s Auto...
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In a report released today by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, drivers of sport-utility vehicles, had the highest instances of death in crashes because of rollovers, however they are now those with the highest probability of survival. In fact, drivers of Nissan’s 350Z sports car and the Titan pickup as well as GM’s Chevrolet...
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Honda is truly out to prove a point that CR-Z owners can have their cake and eat it too. This isn’t the first time we’ve spotted Honda’s CR-Z Racer, created by Honda Performance Development (HPD). The vehicle debuted at SEMA 2010 and hit the track at the Thunderhill 25 Hours. And now it’ll show its...
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A report on Inside Line states that Mazda engineers have been saddled with the substantial task of shedding 720 pounds from the current curb weight of the Mazda MX-5, as development of the 4th generation car nears completion. The current MX-5 weighs just under 2,500 pounds, and the new target of around 1,780 pounds would...
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