TOKYO--Sanyo Electric Co., already one of the world's largest makers of batteries for hybrid vehicles, sees rapid expansion next year after a $1 billion investment in green technology. It may start assembling battery systems in North America, Europe, and China as early as 2012.
The Japanese company brings its first lithium ion battery plant online in western Japan later this month to supply 15,000 to 25,000 Audi hybrid vehicles a year. It will add another lithium ion plant by the end of next year to manufacture more powerful batteries for plug-in hybrids.
At least two carmakers have lined up for the plug-in batteries. Spokesman Hiroyuki Okamoto declined to name them. "We are now in the final negotiations," Okamoto told Automotive News.
News reports in Japan indicate that one is Toyota Motor Corp., which will use the power packs in its plug-in Prius hybrid.
Sanyo can expect a lift from its impending acquisition by former rival Panasonic Corp. Panasonic's public offer to buy Sanyo shares closes Dec. 9. If the sale goes through, Sanyo will become a subsidiary of Panasonic in January, Okamoto said.
... Read moreWe take a look at the coolest, and nutties cars from the LA Auto Show and give you the long and short of that Toyota gas pedal issue. Also, Audi wants drivers to scribble on their dashboard. Have you seen the latest in high tech auto seats? We also go for a ride in the Lincoln MKT.
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EPISODE 147
SHOW NOTES• CNET's L.A. auto show coverage
• Audi intros in-dash handwriting recognition
• CNET's review of the 2010 Mazda6
The Sienna's Dual View display seems a bit wide for single source viewing, but dual source may be OK.
(Credit: Toyota)
Maybe they should call it a Van-za...
(Credit: Josh P. Miller/CNET)This week the 2011 Toyota Sienna debuted at the LA Auto Show and while the minivan's new Venza-esque aesthetic, 3.5- and 2.7-liter power trains, and available all-wheel drive are, well, kind of interesting, we're most intrigued by the new Dual View rear seat entertainment system.
Folding down from its hiding place in the Sienna's ceiling, the Dual View display appears to be a superwide 16.4-inch display. However, it is actually two smaller displays seamlessly butted against each other in one frame.
When watching a single source, the Dual View displays a single image. Choose two video sources (such as a DVD and the RCA inputs) and the two Dual View system switches to a split screen mode, displaying the two images side-by-side.
The rest of the Sienna's cabin tech package consists of the same DVD-based navigation system that Toyota's been using since forever, Bluetooth connectivity for calls and audio streaming, USB and iPod compatibility, and an 180-degree Panorama Camera rear monitor.
Check out our photos of the 2011 Sienna from the floor of the 2009 LA Auto Show.
LOS ANGELES -- The launch advertising declared the Honda Insight "the hybrid for everyone."
"We don't want a car for a sliver of the market," Steve Center, Honda vice president of advertising and public relations, said at the launch in March.
And in a transparent dig at the Toyota Prius, he added, "This is going to be a populist's car, not an elitist's car."
But so far, the Insight's sales look like a sliver.
Honda's initial 90,000-unit U.S. sales goal was revised to 60,000 because of the weak economy. But sales of the Insight since its March launch total just 17,530, for an annual sales rate of about 25,000, according to the Automotive News Data Center.
The conclusion after eight months: The Insight badly trails the segment-leading Prius, although the Insight is selling better than other rival hybrids.
... Read more
The Toyota 4Runner Trail is aimed at drivers with off-road ambitions, while the Limited increases its on-road capabilities.
(Credit: Toyota)When we last discussed Toyota's 2010 4Runner, I was nitpicking a very silly gimmick called "Party Mode." Since then, the new model has been released and is available.
Starting with the basic SR5 model, the 4Runner's upper trim levels (Limited and Trail) head in two very different directions with two very different sets of suspension technologies.
The Limited features X-REAS, a sort of pneumatic sway bar system that links the dampers of each front wheel with the rear wheel on the opposite side of the vehicle. When the left side of the vehicle is compressed during, for example, a hard right turn, the X-REAS system exerts a downward force on the right wheels, keeping them in contact with the pavement and increasing overall traction. Because this is a cross-vehicle system, X-REAS also works to counteract lift and dive weight transfer during hard acceleration and braking.
Instead of the on-road only X-REAS technology, the off-road capable Trail-trim level gets a very different suspension tech cocktail. In addition to a lever-actuated 4x4 system, front and rear skid plates, and a rocker panel deletion that increases center ground clearance, the 4Runner Trail is the only trim level that features the Kinetic Dynamic Suspension System (KDSS). Essentially, KDSS replaces the vehicle's standard sway bars with beefier units that are pneumatically linked on one end.
During regular on-road driving, the KDSS works like a regular sway bar, linking the left and right suspension components and increasing traction. However, when driving off-road, the pneumatic link of the KDSS loosens up, allowing the wheels to move more independently. This increased wheel articulation allows the wheels to maintain better contact with uneven surfaces encountered during, for example, rock crawling, where a vehicle with a fixed sway bar would lose contact with the ground.
Other new features that cross trim levels include available third-row seating, DVD-based navigation with XM satellite radio and traffic, and available iPod and Bluetooth connectivity. Check out our gallery for more photos and details.
TOKYO--A senior Toyota executive last week denied statements by U.S. safety authorities that the company issued "inaccurate and misleading information" about a safety recall.
Toyota's recall of 3.8 million vehicles in the United States advised drivers to remove floor mats that may jam the gas pedal and cause unintended acceleration.
In a statement last week, Toyota said the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found "no defect exists in vehicles with properly installed floor mats." In fact, NHTSA said, Toyota vehicles have a "very serious defect."
Toyota Executive Vice President Yukitoshi Funo denied that the automaker tried to sidestep engineering or design defects. He said the company is working closely with NHTSA to pinpoint the cause of the problem.
"It is not a part of Toyota's culture and the Toyota Way to cover up anything, and we are proceeding with open and frank discussions with NHTSA," Funo said.
According to a NHTSA statement, the accelerator and floor design of the vehicles create "the potential for entrapment of the accelerator by floor mats." The statement said removing the floor mats is only an interim solution that does not correct the underlying defect.
Funo said Toyota had "no disagreement on this issue."
The floor mat recall was prompted by an August 28 accident involving a runaway Lexus ES 350 in San Diego that killed four people.
The company has said it would begin sending letters to owners urging them to remove the floor mats from their cars while the company considers what to do about the problem.
(Source: Automotive News)
Japanese auto companies are bailing out of international motorsports, trying to save money during the global auto crunch.
Last week Toyota dropped out of Formula One racing, two days after tire supplier Bridgestone did, too. Honda quit the series last December. No Japanese teams remain in F1.
At the end of 2008, Subaru maker Fuji Heavy Industries and Suzuki withdrew from the FIA World Rally Championship. And in July, Fuji International Speedway, owned by Toyota, surrendered hosting rights for the Japanese Grand Prix in 2010 and beyond.
The moves reflect the absence of auto profits. When Honda pulled out of F1 racing, it estimated the move could save nearly $1 billion.
Toyota didn't divulge its annual F1 budget, but some think it's around $300 million. That was a tidy sum for a carmaker that posted losses last year--both in its financials and on the track. Since joining Formula One in 2002, Toyota hasn't won a single race.
(Source: Automotive News)
This last week saw yet another big auto show in the form of the 2009 SEMA Show at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The show ran from November 2 to Friday November 6, and boy, was there a ton of eye candy for us car enthusiasts. However, the SEMA Show was not open to the public--only auto industry insiders were allowed inside these doors full of what SEMA refers to as "automotive specialty products." This video is a teaser of some of the many automotive delights that were on display at this year's event.
Here we go with another quality highlight video from the folks at Inside Line courtesy of Edmunds.com. This highlight reel features Camaros galore, plenty of Ford mods, and the stateside debut of the $375,000 Lexus LFA. Other notable vehicles include the Hyundai Genesis (with the midcar engine), Kia's first foray into racecars, and the Brooks & Dunn sponsored Toyota Tundra with an onboard barbecue grill--yummy.
TOKYO -- Denso Corp., the world's No. 2 auto parts supplier, aims for a bigger stake of the global hybrid car market by standardizing its electric-gasoline drive train technology for sale to automakers other than Toyota Motor Corp. It also may begin production of lithium ion batteries.
Denso is a leader in supplying inverters, battery and engine control units, sensors and electric compressors for hybrids. Most of those sales go to Toyota, the Japanese supplier's top customer and biggest shareholder, with a 23 percent stake in Denso.
"We would like to supply our components to all customers," said Hiromi Tokuda, executive vice president in charge of R&D. The products would share underpinnings with the components made for Toyota but be tailored to the specifications of carmakers.
Batteries, too
Denso also may start making lithium ion batteries for use in hybrid or electric vehicles. Denso has been working on lithium technology for 15 years, originally for mobile phones. It continues development for in-house testing of its other hybrid system components.
... Read more
Badge of death?
(Credit: Josh Miller/CNET)A tide of Toyota owners report incidents of sudden, unintended acceleration, according to a story by ABC News. Toyota attributes these incidents to improperly installed or wrong-sized floor mats jamming the accelerator down, but the ABC story cites owners' fears of electronic throttle controls. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has investigated and discounted problems with electronic throttle control.
The ABC story includes harrowing accounts from owners. One driver claims her Prius "suddenly shot up to 90 miles an hour." Given the Prius' acceleration, she would have had plenty of time to react. The proper thing to do under these circumstances is put the car in neutral.
When Consumer Reports tested how different cars coped with sudden acceleration problems, it found that some European automakers install a nifty little mechanism that idles the throttle when the brake is depressed, something Toyota should look into--if for no other reason than to allay future fears.
