New Gen Y Buyer Survey Spells Trouble for Detroit

Auto pricing website TrueCar studied the car buying behaviour of four million Gen Y (18 to 27 year-old) over a twenty-four month period and here’s what they found.

Scion took the crown for top brand, with 37.4% of the market and for top model (the tC coupe), with 21.2%, while second place went to Mitsubishi (32.1%) and their Lancer sedan (20.3%).

Mazda was the third most visited brand for Gen Y buyers, though only 17th in terms of model. The top four vehicle choices were Japanese, with a German in seventh place and a South Korean in ninth.

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Toyota and Honda want to Win Back Sales Share from Hyundai Sonata with New Models

Not too long ago, if someone told you that a South Korean model would challenge America’s best selling sedan, the Toyota Camry, you would have probably laughed in his or her face.

Needless to say, a lot has changed over the past few years with Hyundai and in particular its latest Sonata sedan, not only challenging, but this past May even surpassing the Camry in U.S. sales for the first time in history.

Of course, the fact that Toyota’s production capabilities were seriously affected by the aftermath of the March 11 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster in Japan, played a significant role in Hyundai’s accomplishment.

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2012 Toyota HiLux Pickup Truck gains Refreshed Looks and More Powerful Diesel

Toyota has blessed its European market HiLux pickup truck with a mid-life facelift for the 2012 model year. The cosmetic surgery starts with the exterior that gains a redesigned front end sporting a different grille dressed in chrome, new bonnet, headlamps and front bumper. The changes continue with the redesigned front and rear wings, a new crop of 15- and 17-inch steel and alloy wheels, plus new door mirrors. Read more »

2012 Toyota Yaris: New Gallery with 86 Photos and UK Pricing

Toyota today announced prices for its next generation Yaris hatchback in Europe including the UK where the supermini is available for order now with first customer deliveries to take place in September.

The new Yaris is available in three- and five-door body styles with British buyers offered a choice of four grades (T2, TR, SR and T Spirit) and three engines including 1.0 and 1.33-litre petrol units and a 1.4-litre D-4D turbodiesel. On-the-road prices start from £11,700.

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Mercedes-Benz Tops Secret Shopper Study of U.S. Dealers, Lincoln Places Last in Luxury Segment

Mercedes-Benz dealers were number one for customer treatment in the US according to an independent study by survey company Pied Piper. The California-based company hired 3,524 “secret shoppers” and sent them to US dealerships in order to determine how their salesmen were performing in anything from explaining a car’s features to closing a deal.

This is the third year in a row that Mercedes-Benz, which looks set to top the sales charts this year in the luxury segment, has topped Pied Piper’s study.

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CNN Says Toyota Prius Plug-in will Top Chevy Volt, 12 Months before the Former Goes On Sale

If you are a GM diehard or a Chevy Volt fanboy, I suggest you cover your ears and start humming loudly to yourselves. CNN Money recently featured an article from Fortune magazine’s Motorworld declaring the upcoming Toyota Prius Plug-in hybrid a better buy and a better car than Chevy’s range-extended electric vehicle. Shock, gasp, horror, blasphemy etc.

To quote Motorworld senior editor Alex Taylor III: “[The Prius Plug-in is] more efficient and less expensive than the Volt, and Toyota actually stands the possibility of making a profit on it -- something General Motors concedes it can't do with the Volt.”

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Pickup Trucks Inventories Rising, Manufacturers are Worried

It seems like US carmakers are beginning to worry about the rising inventory of their big pickup trucks. For example, General Motors has an inventory of 122 days (or 4 months) of its Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra according to a report from Reuters, or 50% higher than the typical industry inventory of 80 days.

But GM isn’t the only automaker in distress. Chrysler, Toyota and Ford also are behind their projected sales, with 93 days inventory for the first two makers and 79 days for the third respectively.

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Toyota Forklift Comes to the Rescue of Chevrolet Camaro Stuck on a…Curb

It can’t get more embarrassing than this – well, that is, unless someone has footage showing us how the owner of the blue Chevrolet Camaro got himself in this sticky situation in the underground parking garage in the first place.

In the Youtube clip after the jump, we see the aftermath with a...Toyota-branded forklift trying to free Chevy’s pony car, but without any success. One very strange incident indeed.

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Toyota Says Prius US Sales Will Outperform 2010 despite Earthquake Setback

In spite of the earthquake and Tsunami that devastated Japan last March and which deeply affected the country’s automobile production capabilities, Toyota remains confident that US sales of the Prius will outperform those of 2010.

The lack of inventory, with many dealers reporting as little as one day’s worth of Prius cars on their lots, led to a whopping 61% drop in July sales in the US, which is the lowest since 2004. And that’s significant because the US accounts for almost half of the all Prius models sold worldwide, which makes it Toyota’s most important market for its compact hybrid.

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U.K.’s Auto Industry to Young People: Be an Engineer!

Twenty-three of the U.K.’s car and component factories have opened their doors to teachers and students alike in a renewed bid to entice young people into automotive and manufacturing engineering. At the annual summit of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), Tony Walker – Toyota Motor Manufacturing U.K.’s deputy managing director – said:

“The industry today is hi-tech. There are no oily rags. There are no smoke stacks. It is an inspirational and an aspirational place to be.”

In fact, carmakers are eager to point out just how fun and lucrative engineering can be. It’s all part of the U.K. government’s push to shift its focus away from financial services after the deadly Global Financial Crisis of 2007.

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Monster Toyota Celica Beats F1 Cars and Everything Else at Goodwood Recording the Fastest Hill Climb Time

Over the past weeks we’ve been bombarding you with news about exotic cars such as the Aston Martin Zagato V12 that would participate at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed. The event took place this past weekend and the spectators gathered to marvel at every car enthusiasts dream garage.

But they also came to watch more than 200 production, tuned and racing models including recent Formula 1 cars, race against the clock in the famous 1.6 mile hill-climb. However, much to everybody’s surprise, the winner was not an F1 car but a tuned, 800+ horsepower Toyota Celica that recorded a time of just 48.07 seconds.

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2012 Toyota Camry Revealed in Leaked Presentation Video?

Last week, we told you about Toyota’s national dealer meeting in Las Vegas where the company briefed its associates on the firm’s current and future plans which include the launch of the all-new 2012 Camry sedan.

It appears though that the Japanese company did a bit more than simply brief its dealers on its plans as a video allegedly showing the presentation of the new Camry has made its way on the internet.

While we can’t be 100 percent sure that what we’re seeing in this amateur footage is the new Camry but given that the color of one of the vehicles depicted in the clip as well as the background seem to match the official video showing Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) President Akio Toyoda standing next to the 2012MY mid-size sedan, we wouldn’t be surprised if it is the real thing.

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New Toyota Yaris Wears a Sport Kit for its Australian Debut at the Melbourne Motor Show

After its world premiere in Japan last December as the Vitz, Toyota is gradually introducing the new generation of the Yaris in other markets around the world. Now, with the European version out of the way, it’s time for the Yaris to make its first appearance in Melbourne at this week’s 2011 Australian International Motor Show (AIMS).

Revealed in show car form, the Yaris is fitted with a TRD-like sports kit comprising of a honeycomb grille, a restyled front bumper with larger openings and a chrome trim around the lower grille, side skirts, chunky alloy wheels and a new rear bumper with a diffuser plus a roof spoiler.

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Toyota Sports Up Prius with new PLUS Package from TRD

At last year’s Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show in Las Vegas, Toyota displayed a lightly modified version of the Prius Hybrid to inaugurate its new line of accessories under the PLUS moniker.

Now it’s time for the Japanese automaker to release the production version of its modestly sported up Prius with the commercial launch of the PLUS Performance Package that will be available for order in July in limited numbers.

The package features styling and performance upgrades, and is optionally available on all Prius models with pricing set at $3,699 for the Prius Two, Three, and Four trim levels and $2,999 for the Prius Five.

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All-New 2012 Toyota Camry and Camry Hybrid Coming this Fall

Toyota officially placed the arrival of the all-new 2012 Camry sedan and its hybrid sibling (2010/2011 Camry pictured above) in the U.S. market for this fall during the company’s annual national dealer meeting which took place on Wednesday in Las Vegas.

The Japanese company said that the next generation of its best-selling model will move away from the conservative designs of the past.

“Designed to meet the changing needs of the 21st Century driver, the new Camry will provide technologically advanced features, a contemporary design inside and out, improved performance and refined ride and handling,” Toyota said in a press statement.

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Robocarpocalypse Begins: Nevada Asks DoT to Draw Up Legislation for Driverless Cars

I can’t remember if there were self-driving cars in the third Terminator movie, though frankly I can’t remember anything other than that red leather and vinyl outfit Kristanna Loken was wearing. What were we talking about? Oh, yes, the robocarpocalypse.

With the passing of Assembly Bill 511 in the Nevada Senate, the U.S. Department of Transport will now have to draw up rules governing autonomous vehicles on the state’s roads.

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Toyota and Lexus Hybrids Recalled Over Stalling Issues

A problem with the electronics of the hybrid system, which could cause certain Lexus RX 400h and Toyota Highlander Hybrid SUVs to lose power or stop running, is the reason behind the Japanese carmaker’s latest recall.

Toyota said about 45,500 Highlander Hybrid and 36,700 Lexus RX 400h vehicles from the 2006 and 2007 model years sold in the USA are affected by the voluntary recall.

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Scion Introduces Updated 2012 tC and New tC RS 7.0

It’s only been eight months in the market but Scion has already announced a 2012 model year version of its latest tC sports coupe. Leaving aside the equipment upgrades for the basic model, the most important news for the 2012MY is the launch of the first release series for the second-generation tC sports coupe. Read more »

Aston Martin Rapide Auction Proceeds Given to Toyota to Aid Tsunami Victims

Last month we reported that Aston Martin’s CEO, Dr. Ulrich Bez, announced that he would auction off his company car, a fully-loaded 2009 “Concours Blue” Rapide, during this year’s annual Bonhams event at Newport Pagnell on June 21.

The buyer was furniture designer and Aston Martin enthusiast David Linley, who paid £100,000 ($160,000), which was handed over to Toyota which can better direct it to charities providing aid to victims of the recent earthquakes and Tsunami that devastated Japan.

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Toyota Avensis Tourer to be exported from UK to Japan

Toyota plans to add another country to the 47 that it already exports the Avensis, which is built exclusively at its UK factory in Burnaston, Derbyshire: its own home market, Japan. The company said demand for European styling and engineering from Japanese customers prompted its decision to bring the mid-size model. Read more »