Probably the only race that Buick and Jaguar would finish in a tie is the J.D. Power and Associates 2009 Vehicle Dependability StudySM (VDS), but both are on the top of the leader board this week. Each rank highest in vehicle dependability in a tie. Buick improves from a sixth-place ranking in 2008, while Jaguar improves from 10th place. Following in the top-five rankings this year are Lexus, Toyota and Mercury.
Toyota garners five segment awards for the Highlander, Prius, Sequoia, Solara, and Tundra. Lexus follows with four segment awards for the ES 330 (in a tie with the Acura RL), GX 470, LS 430, and SC 430. Lincoln captures two awards for the Mark LT and Zephyr. Models by Acura, Buick, Dodge, Ford, Honda, Mazda, Mercury, Nissan, and Scion each rank highest in one segment.
The Buick LaCrosse was also ranked first in the midsize car segment, beating the Toyota Camry, while the Buick Lucerne came in second in the large car segment.
In addition to a host of debatably better chassis modifications, 2009 Formula 1 cars now have regenerative brakes.
But don't think these cars will be using the stored energy to improve gas mileage. Although officials have been paying lip service about improving the environmentally-friendliness of the sport, this expensive (and potentially dangerous) advancement will most likely improve audience appeal. ... Read more
GAMAGORI, Japan -- With steely stares and clenched hands, the drivers peer from their crash helmets as the race marshal slowly raises the green flag. Then the flag drops.
And they're off! But with deafening silence and snaillike lethargy. The field of Prius hybrids inches from the line to start the race.
No roaring engines, no squealing tires -- and no wonder. The so-called Prius Cup pits Japan's Toyota dealerships against one another in a contest of gas mileage and crew service -- not speed.
The Prius Cup pits Japan's Toyota dealerships against one another in crew service and mileage, but not speed.
(Credit: HANS GREIMEL/Automotive News)The circuit is Toyota Motor Corp.'s latest tool for promoting its popular hybrid, sharpening dealer familiarity with the product and creating buzz before the new-generation Prius debuts this year. The sixth running of the Prius Cup, outside Nagoya in December, drew 22 dealer teams from central Japan.
"Through this race, our teammates will understand exactly how these cars work, and I think this will benefit all my associates," says Kazuo Oguri, executive vice president of Nagoya Toyopet Corp., one of Japan's biggest Toyota dealers with 70 stores in Aichi prefecture.
Dealers don't have to participate in the Prius Cup, but most want to.
"It's better than playing golf," Oguri says.
... Read moreDETROIT -- Toyota Priuses with plug-in hybrid technology are averaging 65 mpg in combined gasoline and electric-mode testing.
"That is real-world driving," said Bill Reinert, Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A.'s national alternative-fuel vehicle manager. "I ask my guys to drive them as you drive your normal Prius."
By comparison, the redesigned 2010 Prius, a parallel hybrid with nickel-metal hydride batteries, will have an estimated 50 mpg rating.
U.S. sales of a Toyota plug-in hybrid will begin sometime after 2010.
"It would make sense that we would do it with a Prius, but we haven't announced anything as to which vehicles" will offer plug-in technology, said John Hanson, a Toyota spokesman. But any hybrid model is a possible candidate, he said.
Reinert said fuel economy for plug-in hybrids depends on the battery pack's capacity and how the car is driven. Both factors determine how many miles can be driven in electric mode.
At the Detroit auto show last month, Reinert said: "How hard do you drive it? How fast do you drive it? When the hybrids first came out, there was a huge variance in gas fuel economy, depending on your right foot and other conditions.
"That difference is just magnified, supercharged, turbocharged with a plug-in electric because how fast you go really pulls the current out of the battery. It is a big deal."
Toyota will import 150 Prius plug-in hybrids late this year for testing by universities, commercial fleets and individuals.
The vehicles will test several lithium-ion battery packs that will be teamed with a 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine.
(Source: Automotive News)
Toyota gives the third generation Prius a face-lift that even Joan Rivers would find daunting. This new model features larger dimensions, more fuel economy, and a few new safety and efficiency tricks, but did they get it right?
(Credit:
Sarah Tew/CBS Interactive)
(Credit:
Sarah Tew/CBS Interactive)
Honda generated a lot of excitement last year when it announced the 2010 Insight, a new dedicated hybrid. Could it unseat Toyota's Prius from the hybrid throne? But Toyota wasn't about to let this upstart go unchallenged, announcing an update to the current generation Prius, which has been in production since 2004. We got to see both production vehicles at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show, and set them against each other in a series of photos. Will the Insight bring fresh thinking to the hybrid space? Will Toyota sit on its laurels, or give the Prius the update it so urgently needs?
See photos of the 2010 Honda Insight and the 2010 Toyota Prius at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show.
Toyota Motor Sales announced an expanded commitment to electric vehicles on Saturday, disclosing plans to manufacture an all-electric city car by 2012 and a wider fleet of gas-electric hybrids.
At the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit, Toyota showed off a concept car called the FT-EV, a battery-powered four-seat compact car. Although it's concept car, Toyota said it will release an "urban commuter" electric car in 2012.
Based on an existing car sold in Japan called the iQ, the FT-EV runs entirely on batteries and has a range of about 50 miles. Like many all-electric cars planned for release in the next few years, the FT-EV is designed for commutes and short trips, potentially as a second car.
In a statement, Toyota Motor Sales' group vice president of environmental and public affairs Irv Miller said that even though gasoline prices have dipped substantially in the past half year, the auto industry should focus on fuel-efficiency.
"We must address the inevitability of peak oil by developing vehicles powered by alternatives to liquid-oil fuel, as well as new concepts, like the iQ, that are lighter in weight and smaller in size. This kind of vehicle, electrified or not, is where our industry must focus its creativity," he said.
A number of auto companies, including Mitsubishi, Nissan, and Think, plan to bring out small all-electric cars in the next two years. The commitment of Toyota--maker of the iconic Prius hybrid car--adds more validity to the small electric commuter car category.
Toyota's FT-EV, a concept car that will be the basis for an all-electric commuter car due in 2012.
(Credit: Toyota)Still, Toyota said the the gas-electric powertrain of the Prius represents its "core" technology because it can be used with larger vehicles.
On Sunday, the company said that it will move up its previously announced plan to test plug-in hybrid cars using lithium-ion batteries. Current Priuses use Nickel-metal hydride technology but most auto makers are pursuing lithium-ion chemistry for an upcoming wave of electric cars.
At the end of 2009, it will begin testing a fleet of plug-in electric Priuses using lithium-ion batteries. Of the 500, 150 will be made available to U.S. customers for lease.
Toyota's goal is to sell one million gas-electric hybrids a year in the early 2010s. It will have 10 new hybrid models in that time, including the third-generation Prius and the Lexus HS250h, both of which it introduced this week in Detroit at the NAIAS.
Hyundai protects buyers who lose their jobs; December's another disaster for car sales; "solar Prius" may be a crock; and sit down for a beer with Wayne, Antuan, and Brian.
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SHOW NOTES
• Ford Park Assist: See it in action.
• CNET's Tech Car of the Year announcement is imminent
A solar-paneled Prius done by Solar Electric Vehicles.
(Credit: SEV)Toyota is developing a solar-powered Prius, the Nikkei newspaper has reported yet again.
It was interesting when we heard about this in July.
But it seems to us that someone over at Toyota has now been fake-leaking/hinting news about a solar-powered Prius in one form or another for at least the last year.
This wonder-car-in-the-making has gone from being a Toyota Prius that uses solar roof panels from Kyocera to power its air conditioning unit, to "a vehicle that will be powered solely by solar energy" to quote one recent Associated Press article.
You may find it interesting that this rumor always comes floating by on the heels of bad news from Toyota.
In July, it accompanied news of a series of Toyota plant closings/reorganizations in the U.S.
This latest rumor seems to be timed to follow Toyota's December news that it, too, has succumbed to the world auto industry slump, reporting its first annual operating loss in 70 years, and a series of consolidations and changes in its organizational structure.
Of course, there is already an available solar option for some Toyota owners in the U.S.
Solar Electrical Vehicles (SEV) has been offering an after-market Prius solar overhaul since June 2007. It includes a customized solar panel for a Prius roof that can improve the car's efficiency by about 29 percent. SEV also offers kits for the Toyota Highlander, Rav4 EV, and Ford Escape Hybrid.
For those who just like reading about the idea of a solar car, Canadian engineer Marcelo da Luz and his team have been blogging about their attempt to set the world long-distance record for a solar-powered car with the Power of One (Xof1) vehicle.
(Credit:
Corinne Schulze/CBS Interactive)
The drive toward electric vehicles is gaining momentum as people realize the undeniable benefits to the economy, the environment, and foreign relations. CNET green reporter Martin LaMonica attended the Electric Drive Transportation Association Conference & Exposition, and got a chance to look at a number of working or concept electric vehicles all in one place. These aren't far-flung ideas that will never leave the drawing board, but real vehicles either undergoing testing or already on the roads. Among the vehicles on display were the Chevy Volt, the Think City, and a plug-in Prius.
See photos of electric vehicles on display at the Exposition.
