Toyota raises the curtain on 2020 Corolla Nightshade Editions
The 2020 Toyota Corolla SE sedan and hatchback with a CVT (continuously variable transmission) will be available in Nightshade Editions, joining four other vehicles in the lineup with the blacked-out trim option. For 2020, the Toyota 4Runner, Camry, Highlander, and Sienna also feature Nightshade Editions.
Toyota’s futuristic golf cart will transport people around at the 2020 Olympics
Toyota is reinventing the golf cart for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. The company designed a vehicle named the Accessible People Mover (APM) that will transport visitors, athletes, and staff members from venue to venue. Fully electric, the APM has a top speed of 11 mph and a 60-mile range.
Prepare to procrastinate: The 2020 Toyota Supra online configurator is now live
The Toyota Supra is back, and even if you can't afford one, you can still design your ideal version of the reborn sports car in Toyota's online configurator. The 2020 Toyota Supra is available in Launch Edition, 3.0, and 3.0 Premium trim levels, all with the same BMW-sourced engine.
Toyota covers a Prius in solar cells to boost its range by 27 miles
Toyota is still exploring how to use solar cells to partially power its Prius. A partnership with Sharp has yielded some interesting results, with the automaker about to start testing a car with highly efficient solar panels. Current data suggests the design could give the plug-in hybrid an extra 27 miles of range.
BMW may finally be ready to sell hydrogen fuel cell cars to the public
BMW will reportedly launch a hydrogen fuel cell version of its X5 SUV in the early 2020s. The X5 will test the waters for a higher-volume BMW fuel-cell car, co-developed with Toyota. BMW will reportedly launch the higher-volume fuel cell model in 2025.
Subaru and Mazda join Toyota’s self-driving car development venture
Five Japanese automakers -- including Subaru and Mazda -- will each invest in a self-driving car joint venture started by Toyota and SoftBank. The goal of the venture, dubbed Monet, is to develop mobility services around self-driving cars. Other new investors include Suzuki, Isuzu, and Daihatsu.
After years of Le Mans misfortune, Toyota becomes impossible to beat
Toyota scored a one-two finish at the 2019 24 Hours of Le Mans, its second win a row at the legendary French race. Toyota is the first Japanese automaker to win Le Mans twice, but its wins came without any real competition. The two Toyota TS050 hybrid race cars traded the lead throughout the race.
New Toyota tech will automatically shut off engines, apply parking brakes
Toyota is launching two new safety features for the 2020 model year. One will automatically shut off a car's engine when stationary, and the other will automatically shift into park and apply the parking brake to prevent rollaways. Toyota has not specified which vehicles will get the new features.
Toyota and Subaru are expecting again, but this time it’s not a sports car
Toyota and Subaru are joining forces again, but they're not interested in creating another sports car -- at least not for now. Instead, they're pooling their resources to design a platform capable of underpinning electric sedans, crossovers, and SUVs. The two firms will also jointly design a battery-powered crossover.
Toyota pushes ahead with solid-state batteries for future electric cars
Toyota is working on potentially game-changing solid-state batteries, and they may arrive sooner than expected. The Japanese automaker's R&D boss said Toyota hopes to unveil the batteries in 2020, two years ahead of schedule. Toyota plans to introduce more electric cars to its lineup.
Toyota’s Corolla Touring Sports Wagon proves that hatchbacks can be pretty, too
Toyota recently revealed a new form of its popular and worldly Corolla model on the web. It’s called the Corolla Touring Sports, and it's basically a full five-door wagon version of the Corolla. It adds itself as the third variant to the twelfth generation of Corolla, next to the five-door hatch and sedan.
Toyota’s Century luxury sedan costs as much as two Lexuses
Toyota's most luxurious sedan isn't for sale in the U.S. The 2018 Toyota Century is sold only in Japan in limited quantities. The 2018 Century is built for VIPs who sit in back having their legs massaged while a chauffeur does the driving.
The new Toyota Supra will go racing … but not where anyone expected
The Toyota Supra will make an unexpected return to racing next year. Toyota will run the highly anticipated sports car in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, which is just about the last place diehard fans would ever expect to see it. The Supra is slated to make its NASCAR debut next year at Daytona.
For 2020, Toyota is finally fixing the Prius Prime’s two biggest downsides
The Toyota Prius is our favorite hybrid car, but it's not perfect by any means. For the 2020 model year, Toyota is fixing two of its biggest downsides by adding a fifth seat, and by making Apple CarPlay standard. There are no mechanical or visual changes to report, so the polarizing Prius still has a 640-mile range.
Toyota AI Ventures doubles down with a second $100 million for mobility startups
Toyota AI Ventures (TAIV) announced a second $100 million investment commitment - Toyota AI Ventures Fund II - dedicated to supporting early-stage autonomous mobility and robotics startups. Toyota uses TAIV to stay ahead as the world of mobility changes, with hopes the startups will add to Toyota's mobility portfolio.
Drywall or kayaks? The 2020 Toyota Highlander is ready for your weekend plans
Toyota introduced the 2020 Highlander ahead of its public debut at the 2019 New York Auto Show. The fourth-generation Highlander is bigger than its predecessor, and it comes with more tech features, including Android Auto and Apple CarPlay compatibility. It will begin arriving in showrooms in December 2019.
The 2020 Toyota Yaris offers big car tech in a small, Mazda-flavored package
Toyota resurrected the Yaris nameplate with a little bit of help from Mazda. Closely related to the Mazda2 sold overseas, the hatchback now stands out with a sharper design than before, and tech features normally found on bigger, more expensive cars. The 2020 Toyota Yaris will go on sale by the end of 2019.
Toyota offers automakers free access to 24,000 of its hybrid-vehicle patents
Toyota announced this week it’s offering royalty-free access to almost 24,000 patents related mainly to its hybrid-vehicle technology. The Japanese automaker says it hopes the move will boost the market and ultimately help countries around the world to meet their emissions goals.
Toyota shoots for the moon with its new lunar rover concept
Toyota announced it will be teaming up with the Japanese space agency to design and built a lunar rover. The two organizations aim to create a manned, pressurized rover suitable for mobility on the moon, using efficient fuel cells that would allow the rover to cruise more than 10,000 kilometers
The 2019 Toyota C-HR gains a popular tech feature as its price comes down
Toyota has updated the C-HR, its entry-level crossover, by adding an entry-level trim level to the lineup. Every model regardless of price also comes standard with an 8.0-inch touchscreen compatible with Apple CarPlay. Android users are currently out of luck, but that could change in the coming years.
Toyota’s aging Sequoia gets a shot of adrenaline with TRD Pro off-road model
The 2020 Toyota Sequoia TRD Pro is the latest model in Toyota's TRD Pro line of off-roaders. The Sequoia gets upgraded suspension, and all TRD Pro models get new infotainment systems for 2020. The 2020 Toyota Sequoia TRD Pro debuts at the 2019 Chicago Auto Show.
Toyota aims to turn its grocery-getter RAV4 into a genuine off-roader
Debuting at the 2019 Chicago Auto Show, the 2020 Toyota RAV4 TRD Off-Road boasts rally-developed suspension and more aggressive styling. But does that make it a true off-road vehicle? Toyota is trying to emphasize off-road capability with the latest RAV4, despite it being a car-based crossover.
Caving to buyer demand, Toyota finally begins adding Android Auto to its cars
For years, Toyota refused to offer Android Auto due to valid privacy and security concerns. That's finally changing for the 2020 model year. The 4Runner, the Tacoma, the Sequoia, and the Tundra will all come standard with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay compatibility. Other models will presumably follow.
Robot assistants from Toyota and Panasonic gear up for the Tokyo Olympics
As you might expect with a country like Japan, the nation plans to use next year’s Tokyo Olympics to showcase a range of its advanced technologies. Sponsors Toyota and Panasonic are already getting in on the act, recently unveiling several robotic designs that they intend to deploy at the event.
All U.S. 2020 Toyotas will have a trial subscription to SiriusXM satellite radio
This fall, with the introduction of the 2020 model year vehicles, all Toyotas sold in the continental U.S. will include SiriusXM satellite radio installed, SiriusXM and Toyota announced in a press release. A free three-month trial subscription to SiriusXM All Access will be standard.
Toyota teases new TRD Pro ‘off-road beast’ for Chicago Auto Show
Toyota will add a new model to its TRD Pro lineup of off-road vehicles at the 2019 Chicago Auto Show. The automaker already sells TRD Pro versions of the Tacoma, Tundra, and 4Runner. The 2020 Tacoma and Land Cruiser Heritage Edition models are also slated to debut in Chicago.
Sibling rivalry: 2019 BMW Z4 takes on the 2020 Toyota Supra
BMW and Toyota formed an unlikely partnership to develop a sports car platform. BMW's variant made its debut as the Z4; Toyota used the architecture to build the fifth-gen Supra. Here, we're looking at performance, design, tech, and pricing to spot the differences and the similarities between the two.
Toyota recalls another 1.3 million vehicles in U.S. over Takata airbags
Toyota is recalling another 1.7 million vehicles globally as part of the ongoing Takata airbag replacement program, with around 1.3 million U.S.-based vehicles affected. The work will be carried out free of charge and Toyota said it will start contacting those affected later this month.
Toyota rolls out an updated autonomous car prototype for CES 2019
Toyota's latest autonomous-driving test car, dubbed Platform 4.0 (or P4 for short) is based on the latest Lexus LS luxury sedan. It also features more sensors and greater computing power than its predecessor. The car debuts at CES 2019 and enters Toyota's test fleet later this year.
Toyota’s Guardian system aims to help human drivers, not replace them
Toyota believes self-driving cars could still use a human touch. At CES 2019, the Japanese automaker offered more details on its Guardian system, which is designed to assist human drivers. Toyota plans to develop Guardian in parallel with a fully autonomous system called Chauffeur.
2020 Toyota Corolla Hybrid delivers 50 mpg in a compact package
The 2020 Toyota Corolla Hybrid marks the first time a hybrid powertrain has been offered in Toyota's compact car over its 52-year history. The hybrid model is based on the updated 2020 Corolla sedan. Both new 2020 Toyota Corolla models debut at the 2018 Los Angeles Auto Show.
Thanks to all-wheel drive, the 2019 Toyota Prius is ready for winter
The 2019 Toyota Prius adds all-wheel drive as an option for the first time, which should expand the appeal of this quintessential hybrid car. But the updates may not extend far enough. The 2019 Toyota Prius makes its public debut at the 2018 Los Angeles Auto Show, which begins on November 30.
2020 Toyota Corolla sedan aims to offer sharper handling, better tech
The 2020 Toyota Corolla sedan gets the same upgrades as the recently-introduced Corolla hatchback, including a firmer foundation, new engine, and more tech features. Will that be enough to keep the long-lived Corolla nameplate relevant? Like other sedans, the Corolla is in a battle with crossovers.
Toyota extends a lifeline to Uber’s troubled self-driving car program
Toyota will invest $500 million in Uber, and partner with the ride-sharing company on a new fleet of prototype self-driving cars. The Sienna minivans will use both Toyota and Uber tech, and will be deployed in pilot ridesharing services beginning in 2021, Toyota said in a statement.