By Julie Wernau
Standing in front of a fast-charging station at the Chicago Auto Show, Gov. Pat Quinn called on automakers to bring electric vehicles to the state in light of charging infrastructure planned for the Chicago area.
“We’re going to have electric vehicles galore in the state of Illinois,” he said. “We want to be the nation’s capital for electric vehicles.”
In announcing that Chicago has signed a contract to have 280 charging stations installed in the area, Quinn said the infrastructure will go a long way toward making the state’s environmental goals a reality. Get the full story »
Feb. 17 at 1:48 p.m.
Filed under:
Autos,
Environment,
Green
By CNN
The Chevrolet Volt didn’t rank as one of the 10 “greenest” cars in America, coming at no. 13, according to the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy’s annual list.
The fully electric Nissan Leaf ranked second among all 2011 model year cars on the list. First place went to the compressed natural gas powered Honda Civic GX. Get the full story »
Feb. 8 at 11:22 a.m.
Filed under:
Autos,
Earnings
By Reuters
Toyota Motor Corp. lifted its annual forecasts beyond market expectations as cost cuts and sales exceeded its plans, but a heavy reliance on exports will keep it a laggard as long as the yen stays strong.
The world’s top automaker posted a smaller-than-expected decline in third-quarter profit and raised its sales forecast for the year to March 31 by 70,000 vehicles to 7.48 million, thanks to better-than-expected sales in Asia, Japan and Russia. Get the full story »
Feb. 8 at 11:13 a.m.
Filed under:
Autos,
Government,
Recalls,
Technology
By Los Angeles Times
An investigation into sudden acceleration in Toyota and Lexus vehicles by the nation’s space agency is expected to report Tuesday that no significant electronic defects have been found, though the issue requires continued monitoring, according to automotive electronics and safety experts.
The NASA report was commissioned by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration after thousands of owners complained that their Toyota Motor Corp. vehicles accelerated unexpectedly, causing dozens of deaths.
The study was launched in March in the wake of three congressional investigations. It is scheduled to be made public at a press conference in Washington.
Feb. 7 at 1:06 p.m.
Filed under:
Autos,
Government,
Investigations,
Recalls
By Associated Press
The government on Tuesday plans to release the findings of its investigation into reports of sudden acceleration in Toyota vehicles.
The Transportation Department and NASA have been studying the safety issues that led Toyota to recall more than 11 million vehicles since the fall of 2009. Get the full story »
Jan. 26 at 5:46 a.m.
Filed under:
Autos,
Recalls
By Reuters
Toyota Motor Corp. said Wednesday that it will recall 1.705 million vehicles worldwide due to faulty parts including defective fuel devices, giving the company’s once-prestigious reputation for quality another black eye.
The Japanese auto maker said that 1.28 million vehicles in Japan and a combined 421,000 vehicles in North America, Europe and other markets, including nearly 245,000 Lexus sedans sold in the U.S. are subject to recall. Get the full story »
Jan. 24 at 6:44 a.m.
Filed under:
Autos,
Recalls
By Associated Press
Toyota sold 8.42 million vehicles globally in 2010, remaining the world’s top automaker for the third year straight despite recall woes in the key North American market.
General Motors also released a new tally Monday for its global 2010 sales, at 8.39 million vehicles, slightly fewer than Toyota’s number, but a dramatic 12 percent rebound from 7.48 million vehicles the year before. Get the full story »
Jan. 19 at 1:21 p.m.
Filed under:
Advertising/Marketing,
Autos,
Sports
By Reuters
The National Football League prodded Toyota Motor Corp. to edit a television commercial, removing an image of a helmet-to-helmet tackle at a time when the effects of concussions have come under heavy scrutiny, representatives of both sides said.
The Japanese automaker, one of the largest corporate advertisers, changed the TV ad after the U.S. sports league complained and warned that the spot would not be allowed to air during its highly watched games. Get the full story »
Jan. 18 at 9:29 a.m.
Filed under:
Autos,
Labor
By Michael Oneal
United Auto Workers President Bob King dialed up the rhetoric this week in his campaign to organize foreign-owned auto plants based in the U.S.
Speaking at the first day of the UAW’s legislative conference in Washington, D.C., King vowed to step up the union’s effort to organize the transplants owned by companies including Toyota, Honda and Nissan and said the union’s future depended on expanding its membership. Get the full story »
Jan. 5 at 3:38 p.m.
Filed under:
Autos,
Investigations,
Litigation
By Associated Press
An arbitrator has awarded Toyota $2.6 million in damages against a former in-house attorney who turned into a whistleblower and sued the automaker.
Jan. 5 at 1:32 p.m.
Filed under:
Autos,
Consumer news
By Reuters
Toyota Motor Corp., faltering from recalls, has fallen into a statistical tie with Ford Motor Co. for tops in U.S. consumer brand perception, influential magazine Consumer Reports said Wednesday.
Toyota retained the top spot by a slim margin over Ford in the Consumer Reports 2011 survey that was conducted last month. Honda Motor Co. placed third and Chevrolet fourth. Get the full story »
Jan. 4 at 1:39 p.m.
Filed under:
Autos
By Dow Jones Newswires
Toyota Motor Corp.’s U.S. auto sales dropped 5.5 percent in December, the seventh monthly drop in 2010, as a decline in car sales again more than offset stronger demand for larger vehicles.
Adding to the woes, Toyota sold 6,554 fewer vehicles in 2010 than a year earlier, coming in at 1.76 million. It was the only major U.S. automaker to report a sales decline for the year, though absent the two fewer selling days in 2010, Toyota reported sales for the year were up 0.3 percent on a daily selling rate. Get the full story »
Jan. 4 at 6:14 a.m.
Filed under:
Autos,
Insurance
By Associated Press
Seven insurance companies have sued Toyota Motor Corp. in an attempt to recover money paid to cover crashes they blame on sudden acceleration.
The insurers cite data that blames 725 crashes on the problem and fault the Japanese automaker for failing to equip its cars with an override system that would cause a car to idle if the brake and gas were deployed simultaneously. They are seeking damages in excess of $230,000 from 14 crashes throughout the United States.
Dec. 22, 2010 at 5:41 a.m.
Filed under:
Autos,
Insurance
By Reuters
Fast growing Korean manufacturer Hyundai Motor and its Kia Motors affiliate shared the top spot for crash safety in a broad review of 2011 models. (See the full list)
Volkswagen and its luxury Audi brand also were among the 66 passenger cars and sport utilities garnering the highest ratings published by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Get the full story »
Dec. 13, 2010 at 11:52 a.m.
Filed under:
Autos
By Associated Press
Toyota says it will recall nearly 100,000 Sienna minivans from the 2011 model year to replace a switch bracket on the brake lamp.
The Japanese automaker says a driver’s foot could hit the switch bracket and deform it while applying the parking brake pedal. Toyota says there have been no accidents or injuries related to this issue. Get the full story »
