Toyota sold more than 3 million hybrids so far and thinks that they are slowly having an impact.
In August 1997, Toyota rolled out their “Coaster Hybrid EV” bus, followed by the Prius in December of the same year. 300 vehicles were sold in the first year. In 2010, Toyota sold 16 hybrid models in approximately 80 countries. Last year, Toyota moved 690,000 hybrids worldwide, 9 percent of Toyota’s worldwide output (ex Daihatsu and Hino). The 3 million mark was broken some time in February this year. Read More >
Take that, China. Japanese ingenuity has devised a way around the rare earth stranglehold the wicked Chinese use to stall worldwide progress of electric vehicles. A team of researchers from Japan’s Toda Kogyo and Tohoku University succeeded in making a magnetic material without rare-earth metals, The Nikkei [sub] says. Read More >
We momentarily interrupt our recall-fatigue induced editorial policy. This one is too good to pass up. Mazda has developed a clinical case of arachnophobia, and is recalling 65,000 cars. Cheiracanthium inclusum, the yellow sac spider, has developed a liking for Mazdas and decided to move in. Let’s check the calendar first. No, it’s not the first day of April. Read More >
What was the problem of EVs again? It’s the battery. Too expensive. Empty too fast. Also known as price and range.
Japan’s Sumitomo Electric thinks they have a solution, in the true sense of the word. Their molten salt battery is said to cost about 10 percent of the price of lithium ion batteries. It also holds twice the charge. Read More >
It’s that time of the month again. Super-efficient Japan traditionally is first out of the gate with previous month sales numbers. Lately, there have been some who regret that efficiency. For the sixth straight month in a row, the Japanese new car market is tired, down, worn-out. Read More >
Toyota appears to be serious about offering their long awaited new generation FT-86 by the end of 2011 – barely. They are egging on the public by showing an “FT-86 II concept” in Geneva. A Toyota press release promises that “the production model based on the FT-86 II concept is scheduled to make its world premier at the 42nd Tokyo Motor Show 2011.“ Which is in December. Read More >
Despite the strong yen, Japanese auto exports rose 7.3 percent in January to 365,288 vehicles, that’s up for the 13th straight month, reports The Nikkei [sub]. Exports weren’t strong enough to out-balance the Japanese car market that contracted 21.5 percent in January. As a result, domestic production in Japan dropped 6.3 percent to 706,107 units in January. This is the fourth straight month of decline, the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association reported today.
A lot of executives at Japanese carmakers wish they would be doitsu, or German. Read More >
Developing a new car with traditional technology costs an arm and a leg. Add future technology, and you are starting to talk real money. You need to spread the R&D costs across a lot of cars. The trouble is, massive sales of EVs are still just a dream. What to do in such a dicey situation? You look for partners. Renault and Daimler hammered out a new agreement. “Renault will supply the electric motors for the Smart and Twingo, we develop and make the batteries for both models,” Daimler’s head of research and development Thomas Weber told his hometown paper Stuttgarter Zeitung in an interview that will appear today in the print edition. Read More >
In January, car imports to Japan shot up 53 percent, reports Automotive News’ [sub]Asia Editor Hans Greimel from Tokyo. Quick, who do you think takes top honors? Read More >
Toyota Motor Corporation released global production, domestic sales and export results for January. Two words: Not good. While Toyota’s global peers can boast of surprising numbers for January, TMC’s worldwide production dropped by 3.9 percent across Toyota, Daihatsu and Hino. The Toyota brand has even less to show: Minus 4.7 percent. And this while the competition is busy dethroning the leader of the pack. Read More >
What ever happened to the fabled Japanese job security? Instead of kaizen (continuous improvement), there is continuous change. A week ago, The Nikkei [sub] predicted that Toyota will cut its sprawling board from 27 members down to a more manageable 10-15. The announcement will most likely come at a press conference on March 9. The announcement hasn’t even been made, and Honda is already following suit by reducing its number if suits. Read More >
“Kyo no asa nikkei wo yomimashitaka?” – did you read this morning’s Nikkei?
Today, this is the most uttered sentence in the Japanese auto industry. Under the headline “fast action needed to revamp carmakers”, Japan’s leading business daily rips its own carmakers several new orifices. The editorial doesn’t mince words:
“Japanese automakers lack the momentum of their South Korean and German rivals and may find themselves losing out big on the global stage unless they rethink their strategies.”
As far as the Nikkei is concerned, Japanese carmakers messed up big-time. Let’s start where it counts, at the bottom line: Read More >
If you only get excited by the sausage of a car and not by the sausage making of a car factory, hop on to the next article, because this will utterly bore you. Everybody gone? Alright, talking to myself again. We’ve always said, not really in jest, that two industries profit the most from just in time manufacturing: The real estate industry and the trucking industry. Honda wants some of that money. Read More >
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