News Service

Toyota recall: Safety research firm reports 275 crashes, 18 deaths in 11 years from faulty acceleration in suspended models

USA Today reported in its January 28 edition, that Safety Research and Strategies, a Massachusetts-based safety research firm, said it has found 2,274 incidents of sudden unintended acceleration in Toyota vehicles causing 275 crashes and at least 18 fatalities since 1999. Toyota‘s most recent problems became public last September. In a statement, Toyota disclosed it had investigated isolated reports of sticking accelerator pedal mechanisms in some models without the presence of floor mats. “There is a possibility that certain accelerator pedal mechanisms may, in rare instances, mechanically stick in a partly depressed position or return slowly to the idle position,” the company added. Toyota‘s first problem with various models occurred last September. Designated as a “Safety Improvement Campaign,” Toyota posted

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Toyota recall: Tips for owners of Camry, Corolla, Matrix, other suspended cars

When the sale and production of the Toyota Corolla, the biggest selling car in history, and the Toyota Camry, the top-selling passenger in the United Sates the past seven years, comes to a sudden halt, something is obviously wrong Toyota Motor Co., confronted the problem with a sudden and unprecedented announcement. Sales of several years of the Corolla and Camry models as well as six other Toyota models have ceased. Likewise, a temporary production halt of the same eight models from numerous North American production plants has been announced. The models which will no longer be sold and which will stop production in early February include: 2009-10 RAV4, 2009-10 Corolla, 2009-10 Matrix, 2005-10 Avalon, 2007-10 Camry, 2010 Highlander, 2007-10 Tundra,

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Toyota recall: Camry, Corolla, Matrix among eight models suspended

Toyota Motor Corp., has announced it will suspend the sale and production of eight models, including the top-selling Camry, at production plants throughout the United States and Canada. The halt, which will begin in the first week of February, comes in the aftermath last week of the second recall of various Toyota models with potentially faulty accelerator pedals. The Camry has been Toyota‘s top-selling vehicle every year since 2007.  The Toyota Corolla is the best-selling car in automotive history. The suspension and production halt also includes: RAV4, Corolla and Matrix (2009-2010); Sequoia (2008-2010); Tundra (2007-2010); Avalon (2005-2010); Highlander (2010). Production plants involved in the suspension are located in Indiana, where the manufacturers has two facilities, as well as one location

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Spyker buys Saab in last-minute deal from GM for a reported $400 million

Saab owner General Motors announced the deal without financial details. Several Internet reports, without quoting sources, said the purchase price for Spyker was $400 million, with $74 million in cash. The remainder of the purchase is reportedly in deferred stock shares. Saab is seeking to borrow $564 million from the European Investment Bank, a loan that Sweden announced it will guarantee. Sweden said the EIB and European Commission were still reviewing the loan. Despite a loyal following appreciative of its distinctive style reminiscent of the Jets the manufacturer original made more than 50 years ago, the Swedish carmaker has failed to make money for about two decades. General Motors, which originally purchased half of Saab in 1989, was unable to

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2011 Ford Explorer: Revamped SUV plans helps manufacturer create 1,200 jobs in Chicago

Providing another key example of the rebounding automotive industry, Ford Motor Company will create 1,200 jobs in its Chicago, Ill., plant to help facilitate the production later this year of the revamped 2011 Ford Explorer. “Tomorrow, in one day, we’re going to get 1,200 new jobs for Illinois,” Illinois Governor Pat Quinn told the Associated Press. According to several news reports, Ford wants the new Explorer to become “greener.” The fuel economy of the Explorer will increase and CO2 emissions should be reduced by as much as 25 percent. The Explorer is an integral part of Ford’s lineup. But it’s no longer the sales magnet of yesteryear. During the SUV boom in 2000, the Explorer had sales of 445,000, and

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Mattel will debut a Hot Wheels first — pocket-sized Stealth Riders

“Containing a fully functioning vehicle . . . kids can play anywhere, anytime,” said Geoff Walker, senior vice president with Mattel Brands, in an interview on www.CNNMoney.com  “The vehicles provide a unique and cool level of play experience that was not previously possible.” According to the report, the new Hot Wheels model is the size of a credit card and has about the thickness of a cell phone. But it’s also 3D operates, and the features works with the push of a button. When the button is engaged, the flat car expands into a remote-controlled vehicle. The Stealth Riders model Hot Wheels will including two cars, two tanks and a “Batmobile Tumbler.” The toymaker will debut the models next month

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Tesla Motors receives $465 million DOE government loan

The Palo Alto facility will assemble electric vehicle battery packs, electric motors, and related electric vehicle control equipment, both for Tesla’s own electric vehicles and for sale to other automobile manufacturers. The agreement was negotiated and signed by the Department’s Loan Programs Office, which supports the development of innovative, advanced vehicle technologies to create thousands of clean energy jobs while helping reduce the nation’s dependence on foreign oil. Tesla’s planned Model S will consume no gasoline and will not produce any tailpipe emissions. It is being designed to offer a variety of range options depending on the battery pack used, from 160 to 300 miles on a single charge. Volume production of the Model S is planned to begin in

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Chevrolet expands Volt initial debut distribution to Washington, D.C.

On the eve of the Washington Auto Show, Chevrolet said it will deliver more than 100 Volts to several utilities across the U.S. – including Pepco and Dominion, which serve Washington D.C. and its suburbs – as part of an extended demonstration program. The overall program includes 500 charging stations that will be installed for residential, business and public use. They will be used to learn more about the installation process, vehicle charging and to gauge customer feedback. The program is made possible with a grant of more than $30 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds from the Transportation Electrification Initiative administered by the U.S. Department of Energy. The Chevrolet Volt is designed to drive up to 40

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AMC Pacer gets dubious honor: ugliest car ever built

What’s the ugliest car ever made? It’s all subjective, of course. But more than 2,000 specialty car collectors were recently asked to select the choices for the dubious honor. And the winner (loser?), at least according to one national poll, is the AMC Pacer. Hagerty Insurance, located in Traverse City, Mich., conducted the survey. It tallied nearly 2,500 votes and the Pacer, a small hatchback that was introduced in 1975, was one of three AMC vehicles on the list. The Pacer only lasted until 1980, but it’s not alone among AMC vehicles receiving ugly awards. The AMC Gremlin and Matador station wagon also made the ugliest list. According to the survey, one respondent said: “AMC’s only conceivable excuse for this

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Honda, Lamborghini selected as cleanest, dirtiest cars by 'Green' environmental non-profit agency

A Washington, D.C.-based, non-profit research group, Greenercars.org, is dedicated to advancing energy efficiency as a means of protecting the environment and strengthening the economy. The clean and dirtiest designation are part of ACEEE’s Green Book, a unique consumer resource website providing Green Scores rating the environmental friendliness of every vehicle on market. ACEEE, ranked the cars by their gas mileage  and assigned the cars a green car score. Here are the top-three in the best and worst categories: Cleanest — Honda Civic GX, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic Hybrid; Dirtiest — Lamborghini Murcielago/Murcielago Roadster, Bugatti Roadster, Bentley Azure/Brooklands. To read the complete list, visit: greencars.org. James RaiaA sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James has written the

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Toyota announces another massive recall following runaway acceleration car deaths

Four people died Dec. 26 in Southlake, Texas, a suburb of Dallas, when a 2008 Toyota sped off the road, through a fence and landed upside down in a pond. The car’s floor mats were found in the trunk of the car, where owners had been advised to put them as part of the first recall. Although local and federal investigators are still trying to determine why the car went out of control, one possible cause has been definitively ruled out — floor mats. The floor mats were found in the car’s trunk, leading police to speculate that they were removed when the driver was notified by Toyota of the floor mat recall in November, 2009. In the ABC News

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Nissan will join crowded India car market with July debut

“We are well on track to open the new factory in March,” Production will start in May and the first hatchback on the V platform will be sold from July,” Kiminobu Tokuyama, the Nissan Motors India managing director, told Dow Jones Newswires. Annual auto sales are expected to triple in India by 2016. Two-thirds of the cars sold will be small cars. Nissan will join Ford Motor Co., General Motors Co. and Toyota Motor Co. in the assault for part of the share of the small-car market. Suzuki Motor Co. currently sells more than half of the cars in India. Tata Motors, which now has its Tata Nano available only in India as the world’s cheapest car, has already capitalized

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Ferrari, Corvette and Tata Nano share in demand premium price status — really?

That’s a far higher percentage than premiums for Ferrari, Corvette and likely any other car. Several top-of-the-industry publications’ web sites, including Motor Trend and Drive are reporting the alarming statistics. The demand for the Nano, which costs an estimated $2,500 (depending upon the exchange of the rupee) is due to simple supply and demand — and greed. India had a lottery system for the first 100,000 Tata Nanos distributed to dealers, not all of which will be delivered to customers until the end of 2010. Estimates vary, but there were at least 100,000 willing potential buyers for the first allotment of the car. But Arif Fazulbhoy, a car salesman in Mumbai, India, said in an article in Drive that wealthy

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Chrysler, other automakers on the offensive with return to Super Bowl

In addition to Chrysler, Hyundai, Bridgestone GoDaddy.com, Anheuser-Busch, Cars.com, Honda and Audi have all purchased commercial time during the Feb. 7 game schedule in Miami, Fla. Chrysler will showcase its Dodge brand in a 60-second ad in the first half of the game. Chrysler spokeswoman Dianna Gutierrez said the company wants to let Americans know it has emerged from bankruptcy protection. Italian automaker Fiat took control of Chrysler after it emerged from Chapter 11 reorganization in June. Chrysler LLC received about $15.5 billion in U.S. government aid. The government owns nearly 10 percent of the company. James RaiaA sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James has written the new car review column The Weekly Driver since

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China zooms past U.S. in yearly auto sales in 2009, an industry first

China’s target sales for 2009 was 1o million units. The 2009 annual sales in United States was 10.4 million cars and light trucks. It was in lowest level in the U.S. in 27 years. The Chinese tally also included 650,000 in large trucks sales. According to automotive analysts in China, demand is so high, many buyers having to wait at least several weeks to get their purchases. The top-10 selling cars in China in 2009: 1. Buick Excelle; 2. New Hyundai Elantra; 3. Volkswagen Jetta; 4. BYD F3; 5. Volkswagen Santana; 6. Old Hyundia Elantra; 7. Chery QQ; 8. Xia Li; 9. Honda Accord; 10. Toyota Camry. Top-10 selling in the United States in 2009: 1. Ford F-Series; 2. Toyota

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Audi R8, Hyundai Genesis Coupe, Volkswagen GTI among Market Watch cars of the year

Ron Amadon, an auto writer and morning news anchor on the MarketWatch Radio Network based in Washington, D.C., has just published his best-of-the-end-of-the-decade list. Details of how he selected his list aren’t provided, except the reviews are for the calendar year, not model year. Fun to drive is also a high priority. Best sports car: Audi R8. Simply the best Audi ever. Biggest surprise: Kia Soul, Nissan Cube. Auto styling goes cubist. Cars of the year: Hyundai Genesis Coupe and Volkswagen GTI. Best sedan: Hyundai Genesis. Smooth and solid at a good price. Best family value: Volvo XC60. Nowhere will you find a smoother, more refined ride. Best gas sipper: VW Jetta TDI. You will never know it is a

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