Car Blog

Twenty five years ago, ground was broken on a 1,300-acre tract of farmland in Scott County that now is home to Toyota’s largest manufacturing facility outside of Japan – employing nearly 7,000 team members.

In recognition of the milestone, Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Kentucky, Inc. (TMMK) will host a celebration tomorrow at Keeneland Race Course that features Fujio Cho, chairman of Toyota Motor Corp. and past president of the TMMK operation, former Gov. Martha Layne Collins, and state and community leadership.  In addition, team members will mark the anniversary at a private function at Rupp Arena.

In 1986, TMMK broke ground on its Georgetown plant site.  In all, the company has invested $5.4 billion in the operation, which has seen several expansions, including two new plants.  Today, TMMK produces Camry, Avalon and Venza vehicles, plus 4 cylinder and V6 engines, as well as several other components.

“It’s hard to believe that it has been 25 years since we began our journey here,” said Cho, president of the plant from 1988 to 1994.  ”I remember when we built the first Camry.  Despite the uncertain future, we were excited to make Kentucky our first home for a Toyota vehicle plant in the U.S.” Read the rest of this entry »

Ford Motor Company and Toyota Motor Corporation — the world’s two leading manufacturers of hybrid vehicles — today announced they will equally collaborate on the development of an advanced new hybrid system for light truck and SUV customers.

Ford and Toyota have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the product development collaboration, with the formal agreement expected by next year.

Both companies have been working independently on their own future-generation rear-wheel drive hybrid systems. The two now have committed to collaborate as equal partners on a new hybrid system for light trucks and SUVs. This new hybrid powertrain will bring the full hybrid experience of greater fuel efficiency to a new group of truck and SUV customers without compromising the capability they require in their vehicles.  Ford and Toyota believe that their collaboration will allow them to bring these hybrid technologies to customers sooner and more affordably than either company could have accomplished alone.

“This agreement brings together the capability of two global leaders in hybrid vehicles and hybrid technology to develop a better solution more quickly and affordably for our customers,” said Derrick Kuzak, Ford group vice president, Global Product Development. “Ford achieved a breakthrough with the Ford Fusion Hybrid, and we intend to do this again for a new group of truck and SUV buyers — customers we know very well.” Read the rest of this entry »

Separately, Toyota will recall 50 Venza AWD and Sienna AWD vehicles to replace the front right-hand driveshaft

Toyota Motor Sales, USA announced that it will conduct a voluntary safety recall involving approximately 52,000 2001 through 2003 Prius vehicles sold in the U.S. to replace the electric power steering pinion shaft attachment nuts.  This announcement is for U.S. vehicles included in Toyota Motor Corporation’s global recall of 106,000 vehicles.

If the steering wheel is repeatedly and strongly turned to the full-lock position, there is a possibility the nuts securing the pinion shaft in the steering gear box assembly may become loose.  If the vehicle is continuously operated in this condition, over time, the customer will gradually notice significant increased steering effort when making a left turn.

Toyota dealers will install improved nuts that secure the pinion shaft at no charge to the vehicle owner.  The repair will take approximately 4 hours depending upon the dealer’s work schedule.

Owner notification letters by first class mail will begin in early July, 2011.

The separate recall announced by TMS involves 34 Venza AWD and 16 Sienna AWD vehicles to replace an insufficiently heat treated front right-hand driveshaft.  All of these vehicles are recently produced 2011 model year.  Only 38 are expected to have an insufficiently heat-treated driveshaft.

Due to insufficient heat treatment, there is a possibility that the front right-hand driveshaft may break.  If this occurs, engine power will not be transmitted to the wheels and the vehicle will coast to a stop.

No other Toyota or Lexus vehicles are involved in these recalls and the driveshaft recall only involves vehicles in the U.S. and Canada.

Owner notification letters by first class mail will begin in mid June, 2011.

Detailed information and answers to questions are available to customers at www.toyota.com/recall and the Toyota Customer Experience Center at 1-800-331-4331.

The newest entrant in a growing Prius family of hybrid vehicles, the Prius v delivers an unparalleled blend of versatility and fuel efficiency in a comfortable, mid-size package.  A new evolution in hybrid vehicles with excellent cargo space and Prius’ heritage of environmental performance and fuel economy, the 2012 Prius v will go on sale in Fall 2011.

The new Prius v, with “v” expressing the vehicle’s versatility, will meet the needs of growing families with active lifestyles while providing the same attributes traditionally found in the Prius DNA.  Despite the spaciousness of a family friendly midsize vehicle, the Prius v will deliver estimated EPA fuel economy ratings of 44 mpg city, 40 mpg highway and 42 mpg combined.

“The Prius v brings leading-edge hybrid technology to customers who need more room and provides more cargo space than 80 percent of all small SUVs,” said Toyota Division Group Vice President and General Manager Bob Carter. “And because it’s a Prius, it produces 66 percent fewer smog-forming emissions than the average new vehicle and will have the best mileage ratings of any SUV, crossover, or wagon sold in America.  We think that’s a win-win for everybody.”

The Prius v will be utilizing the same proven Hybrid Synergy Drive system as the third-generation Prius, with the advantages of high mileage, low emissions, and never needing to be recharged.

A product of the same culture of innovation that spawned the original Prius 14 years and two-million units ago, the Prius v follows family tradition with new technologies and equipment advances that continues to raise the bar on the cutting edge automotive science. Read the rest of this entry »

Toyota Motor Sales (TMS), U.S.A announced the one-millionth sale of the Toyota Prius, the world’s first mass-produced hybrid gas-electric vehicle, in the United States.  It is the third milestone for Toyota’s hybrid lineup in the last six months that started with the announcement of worldwide Toyota Prius sales topping two million in October 2010 and overall global Toyota hybrid sales passing three million last month.

“Since the Prius went on sale eleven years ago not a year has gone by when it hasn’t been the number one selling hybrid vehicle in the U.S.,” said Bob Carter, Toyota Division group vice president and general manager. “Prius has become synonymous with the word hybrid and as we see fuel prices starting to rise again, it has accounted for more than 60 percent of hybrid passenger car sales so far this year.  Prius paved the way for hybrids and while it is still the hybrid leader in sales and fuel economy, I’m proud to say that since its introduction, 13 other auto brands have seen the benefits of hybrid technology and joined the hybrid market.”

The third-generation Prius topped the EPA’s list of the Most Fuel Efficient Vehicles for 2011. It has been named the Best Overall Value of the Year for the last nine years in a row by IntelliChoice, and has the highest owner loyalty of any mid-size vehicle for four of the last five years according to R.L. Polk.  More than 97 percent of all Toyota Prii sold since 2000 are still on the road.

Since it was introduced in the U.S. in 2000, Prius, when compared to the average car, has saved American consumers more than an estimated 881 million gallons of gas, $2.19 billion in fuel costs, and 12.4 million tons of CO2 emissions.

In January 2011 at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Toyota debuted the Prius v, the first vehicle to be debuted as part of the Prius family marketing strategy. Prius v, which goes on sale in third quarter of 2011, is a mid-size vehicle that provides more than 50 percent additional interior cargo space than the current Prius.  In early 2012 Prius will launch two more Prius family members – the Prius c compact hybrid vehicle and the Prius Plug-in Hybrid vehicle.

Toyota will launch a new advertising campaign on Monday highlighting the brand’s leadership position as the best-selling retail brand in America. The “#1 For A Reason” campaign will remind people why Toyota continues to be the top brand consumers turn to when buying a new vehicle.

“For three consecutive years, people have purchased more Toyota vehicles than any other brand,” said Bob Carter, group vice president and general manager of Toyota Division for Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc. “We look forward to maintaining this momentum in 2011 as we continue to focus on fuel efficiency, value, quality and safety.”

The “#1 For A Reason” campaign will highlight some of the sales accomplishments Toyota vehicles have achieved throughout the years, as well bring attention to some of the notable third-party awards Toyota has received for its leadership in safety and overall value. Featured in the commercials will be Toyota’s segment leading products—Camry, Corolla, Prius, RAV4 and Tacoma.

With a full lineup of passenger cars, SUVs and trucks, the Toyota brand offers something for everyone, including Camry, the number-one selling car in America. Camry has retained its sales leadership crown for nine straight years, with more than 90 percent of Camrys sold over the past 15 years still on the road today.

The mid-size Corolla sedan holds the title of best-selling car of all time with more than 8.6 million sold in the U.S. since it launched in 1968. Equipped standard with the advanced safety features of the STAR Safety System, Corolla and four other Toyota vehicles, including Avalon, Venza, Highlander and Sienna, were named as Top Safety Picks by the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety for 2011.

With more hybrids on the road than all other manufacturers combined, Toyota is no stranger to fuel efficiency. The best-selling hybrid in the world, the Toyota Prius, achieves an average of 50 miles per gallon, helping make Toyota the most fuel-efficient lineup of any full-line manufacturer.

For consumers that need cargo and towing capacity, Toyota also offers the best-selling compact truck, Tacoma. IntelliChoice named Tacoma the Best Overall Value in its segment for 2011 along with six other Toyota vehicles, including Tundra, 4Runner, RAV4, Sienna, Prius and Avalon.

The “#1 For A Reason” campaign will begin running at the end of the holiday weekend and continue throughout the month of March. Broadcast commercials and online media will roll out nationally on February 21, with print ads beginning in March. Regional-specific broadcast spots will also run during the same timing and will call out some of the special interest rates and zero-percent financing offers customers can take advantage of throughout the month.