A Toyota Camry was seen in Dubai and sporting more then it should in gold trimming. It is not unusual for owners of the Camry to place the gold trimming on the car in place of the chrome detailing - but this one also sported badges, side mirrors, grilles, and wheels.
If this somehow strikes you as a good idea, it can be yours for only 135,000 Dollars. Thankfully those are Arab Emirate Dollars, worth about $37 grand in American greenbacks.
Toyota has plans to start production of the next-generation Prius and it has plans to produce it with even more factory space then usual. It will be built with better fuel efficiency and they have plans to produce 480,000 units per year.
The Japan-based Tsutsumi factory, which currently builds five different vehicles, will stop making the JDM Wish minivan to allow for more Priuses. Even more Prius capacity will be available beginning in 2010, when the Japanese automaker’s new Mississippi plant comes online and begins to produce more of the hybrid.
Toyota announced this week that they will be cancelling the Avalon and the Lexus SC 430. Sales for the entry-level Avalon luxury sedan and the Lexus SC have slowed almost to a stand still. Neither models have been able to fit into a particular niche.
The Lexus was unable to compete well as a luxury level car and keep up with the competition that automakers like Porsche and Jaguar boasted. Through the first six months of this year, Lexus sold only 1,230 SC’s, down 40% from last year.
Toyota has plans for the 2010 Toyota Prius hybrid. They are taking the technology used for cars one step further and bringing the green name to the forefront by adding solar panels to the roof of the car.
The point of this is to increase the car’s electric motor - but whether or not this will actually work is something that many people are speculating about. We couldn’t see it being enough power to operate the car’s engine - but maybe the radio or air conditioning.
Toyota has stated that they will be producing a lithium ion powered plug-in Prius – which will be planned for 2010. However, those of you who were getting excited to see some spectacular cars coming out will be disappointed due to the statements that they released today.
Toyota Advanced Technology manager Bill Reinert spoke in Washington yesterday at a plug-in conference and said that real-world driving conditions will make 100 mpg unattainable for many drivers. While plugging in more powerful batteries will give drivers a full battery and greater EV range, hard acceleration could limit electric-only driving to well under 40 miles.
Toyota is making plans to produce lithium-ion batteries for their new high-mileage hybrid cars. They are working on finishing production of the new hybrid batteries next year. They are trying to stay above the competition. Most automakers are trying to push out more hybrid cars in order to help consumers who are suffering from the rising gas prices.
They will be moving into full-scale production of lithium-ion batteries in 2010. Toyota said it would also step up efforts to development a next-generation battery that can outperform lithium-ion batteries.
Spy shots have revealed pictures of the new RWD Subaru/Toyota coupe all decked out in camouflage and body panels that look similar to the current Legacy. It also has a pair of Recaro buckets that inside and trunk that is much smaller than usual. This is definitely a much better sedan than what we are used to seeing.
Toyota created the 1280×480 LCD panel mounted right above the steering wheel in the dash calling it the ‘Night View’. It is used to improve the safety of driving at night through the use of night vision and is one of the few gadgets that we think is actually worth having.
Toyota has gone a step further by adding human recognition to the Crown hybrid. The technology currently only works when the vehicle is being driven between 15-60km/h, or about 10-40 miles per hour. Certain conditions, like rain, can also sometimes force the system to shut down.
Toyota is one of the few automakers that has given itself a good reputation for producing fuel-efficient vehicles. They only have two cars that have not yet caught up with the times and have always kept them from truly becoming successful – they are the Sequoia and the Tundra.
In order to change things around for consumers engineers have been working overtime to produce a 4.5 liter clean-diesel powerplant that will help to improve the fuel economy for the trucks. They have plans to introduce the 4.5 liter engine in the United States by 2010.
Toyota stated this week that they have not yet decided on whether or not they will join teams with General Motors to produce the Prius hybrid cars. They haven’t completely ruled the idea out. They said that they are still in talks at producing the cars at their U.S. joint venture’s factory in California.
“Nothing has been decided on production of Prius at the joint venture New United Motor Manufacturing Inc., even though Toyota is always seeking ways to build the most appropriate production system,” said Toyota’s spokesperson.