Board games aren’t popular like they used to be, thanks to the wealth of electronic entertainment available today. Still, many of us probably remember the Game of Life which is probably what Toyota is banking on with their new ad campaign for the Prius c. Targeted towards first-time car buyers, Toyota leveraged its partnership with...
Continue Reading...
For the ninth month in a row, the top-selling car in Japan is the Toyota Prius, helping hybrids make up more than 20-percent of all auto sales in Japan. In February, Toyota sold 35,875 Prius hybrids, while the Honda Fit came in second place with 24,973 units sold. That’s quite the gap, especially considering third...
Continue Reading...
Toyota worked hard to bring the Prius nameplate from obscurity to common parlance, whether its loved by save-the-planet tree huggers or hated by gas-wasting macho men, few can feign ignorance to the world’s most iconic hybrid. “With the four cars, you’re seeing the entire Prius family short-term. For the long term, we continue to evaluate...
Continue Reading...
Toyota confirmed today that the 2012 Prius Plug-In has been approved for the State of California’s Clean Vehicle Rebate Program (CVRP). The CVRP is a consumer incentive made available in addition to the $2,500 Federal Tax credit for qualified vehicles. The 2012 Prius Plug-In has started to arrive at dealerships, and will also be eligible...
Continue Reading...
You may love that new car smell, but don’t breathe in too deep – it could make you sick. Automakers sometimes use volatile chemicals in its cars’ interiors and there’s a study out from the Ecology Center that lists the worst offenders and the safest bets. The problem with that “new car smell” is that...
Continue Reading...
J.D. Power and Associates released their annual vehicle dependability study today, something consumers and manufacturers pay close attention to. “Despite facing immense challenges in 2009, automakers placed a keen focus on delivering outstanding levels of quality, which they understood would be essential to their long-term success,” said David Sargent, vice president of global automotive at...
Continue Reading...
About two months ago we reported a collection of luxurious and exotic machines that were involved in a bizarre accident in Japan that claimed at least eight Ferraris, three Mercedes-Benzes, a Lamborghini, a Nissan Skyline and a Toyota Prius. The exotic car crash occurred on the Chugoku Expressway out in the Yamaguchi Prefecture and fortunately...
Continue Reading...
We might become cautiously optimistic about Toyota if these reported order numbers continue to grow exponentially. It was just the end of December that we got reports that the Toyota Prius c in Japan (known as the Toyota Aqua) had reached 60,000 orders; and now just a little over a month later, they have reached 120,000...
Continue Reading...
You would probably expect a Berlin police officer to go out and patrol in an Audi, a Mercedes, an Opel, or even a VW, but how about a Toyota Prius? The Berlin government calls it “Initiative 120”, an effort to sport an eco-friendly fleet of police vehicles that will all have emissions outputs of less...
Continue Reading...
We’ve seen a lot of strange things come out of Japan’s aftermarket over the years, but this might be the most ridiculous thing yet. Relax Cabin, a Japanese aftermarket company, specializes in camper conversions and apparently thought Toyota Prius owners would have a demand for such a thing. We guess there’s a remote possibility that...
Continue Reading...
Google’s mission towards to mass market autonomous vehicles took another step forward this week when they were granted a patent for a method of controlling the self-driving car. The patent details how the vehicle can transition from being human-driven to autonomous mode. The technology raises an interesting thought, where the car could transition to autonomous...
Continue Reading...
Out in Germany, a new vehicle must be inspected after three years by the TÜV, similar to America’s state-level emissions and inspection process (albeit much more rigorous). After that, residents of Germany then have to get their vehicles inspected every two years and each visit involves an extremely thorough inspection of your vehicle. Failing the...
Continue Reading...
Toyota is looking to ride their successful Prius wave to the future, hoping to revive its US sales that has taken a hit thanks to heavy recalls and the tragic earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan. With two new Prius models on the horizon, Toyota also announced they’ll be entering new market segments with hybrids,...
Continue Reading...
Subaru‘s BRZ GT300 race car is looking fabulous on the track, but we couldn’t help but wonder where Toyota‘s GT 86 race car was at the Tokyo Motor Show. Apparently nowhere, maybe not even on the minds of Toyota engineers responsible for their GT300 race car. Rather than usher in a new era of racing...
Continue Reading...
An bizarre accident over the weekend in Japan severely damaged 14 cars, eight of which were Ferraris. The other vehicles involved in the smash-up include three Mercedes-Benzes, a Lamborghini, a Nissan Skyline and a poor little Toyota Prius. According to the news report, a caravan of foreign car enthusiasts were heading from Hiroshima to Kyushu...
Continue Reading...
The head of Toyota‘s Prius program thinks that Toyota will be able to sell as many as 1 million hybrids anually by 2015. Satoshi Ogiso, who was responsible for developing the original Prius, said that hybrids could sell as many as 2 million units by 2020. Toyota Hybrid sales topped out at 690,000 in 2010,...
Continue Reading...
Toyota is banking on its plug-in Prius hybrid and other new models to help bring their sales numbers back to pre-2008 status, where Toyota had no trouble grabbing the global sales crown each year. Currently Toyota is poised to lose that trophy to General Motors, undoubtedly due to the earthquake in March in Japan and...
Continue Reading...
The Top 10 Most Fuel Efficient cars have been named for 2012 by the Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA (those guys that come up with the official ratings for cars) has compiled the list, which is dominated by Japanese automakers. Those remaining two are domestic vehicles, although with one being a commercial van, it almost...
Continue Reading...
Toyota will add another vehicle to the Prius lineup shortly, with the upcoming Prius c subcompact. Intended to be the entry point into the Prius range, the Prius c will supposedly get over 50 mpg in the city. Technology will also be at the forefront of the Prius c, which comes with an integrated app...
Continue Reading...
Toyota‘s leadership in the hybrid car category has reflected extremely highly on its perception as a “green” automaker. And for good reason, with two-thirds of all hybrids currently on the road being Toyota brand products. Much of that success can be given to the Prius, with more models sold than all other hybrids combined, totaling...
Continue Reading...
Although our German isn’t too great, Auto Motor und Sport, the automotive publication of record in Germany, is reporting that the Hyundai i30, also known as the Elantra Touring, will get a plug-in hybrid version in 2013. Hyundai has hinted at a competitor to the Toyota Prius before, and the i30, designed with the ultra-competitive...
Continue Reading...
Toyota‘s new styling chief, Dezi Nagaya, wants to abandon the company’s previous conservative design language for a new direction that is “…more dynamic, more masculine, sportier, with a more obvious design theme and a face to represent the company and the brand.” Nagaya’s challenge comes with creating a unified styling language that can span everything...
Continue Reading...
There’s a huge list of reasons why anyone would want to buy a Toyota Prius these days. But despite its decent cargo space once the rear seats are folded down, the Prius has its limitations when it comes to really transporting anything of significance. So clearly the owner of this Prius loved the fuel economy...
Continue Reading...
The idea is to see that, when the vehicles intervene, either to swerve or brake to avoid an accident, how those traveling in them, react. Automakers participating in the US program include Ford, General Motors, Honda, Hyundai, Toyota and Volkswagen.
Continue Reading...
sidebar...
