First off, it's not very big. Measuring less than 10 feet long and weighing just over a ton, the iQ is Smart-sized. Unlike the two-seat Daimler product, the Toyota boasts a rear seat. Maybe "boasts" isn't the best word choice. ToMoCo is calling it a "three and a half seater." Ouch. Automotive News [sub] reports the iQ will also feature the thriftiest fuel economy of any Toyota product, save the Prius. Other pertinent info includes a diff in front of the axles to allow a relatively long wheelbase (79 inches) to create more interior space; a flat, underseat gas tank to cut down on the rear overhang, a longer steering column that lets the engine sit closer to the vehicle's front and high-tensile steel to create thinner seats. A legroom allowing flat-bottom steering wheel, too. Additionally, Toyota might sell the car in the US. Subjectively speaking, the iQ does bear a resemblance to both the Smart and Tata Nano. However, I find it much tougher looking. More sporting than either micro-car, too. Plus, unlike the ruthlessly decontented Nano, the iQ will be trying to pull off an upscale persona. Engines include a 1.4-liter oil-burner for Europe (natch) and 1.3 and 1.0-liter gas mills for other markets. No word on when the iQ is going on sale. But when it does it (maybe) could be yours for just a toro roll under $10,000.

The Wall Street Journal carries a rare interview with Honda CEO Takeo Fukui. Ever the cagey character, Fukui claims to be completely uninterested in the fact that his company just passed Chrysler for the number four slot in the U.S. sales race. "It doesn't really matter if you come in fourth or fifth or first. What's important for us is that our production is going at full capacity and production is balanced with sales." Yeah right, the former Honda motorcycle race team manager doesn't care about the score. When the subject is the delicate matter of how Toyota pulled the green carpet out from under Honda's environmental image, Fukui turns a bit more… combative. "Honda's image was better but has evened out with [Toyota] because of the strong image of one single model, the Prius, which Honda feels is a problem. Next year, we will come up with a dedicated hybrid vehicle. We feel this model will have to overwhelm and overtake Prius. That is key for us." (The hyrdogen fuel cell-powered Clarity? Not so much.) Ladies and gentlemen, start your electric engines! 

At some point in our recent automotive history, all wheel-drive (AWD) replaced front wheel-drive as the paranoid consumer's drivetrain of choice. The safety advantages of high quality snow tires (as needed) and a low center of gravity (in all cases) got lost in translation. Ready to capitalize on the AWD's popularity: the economy-oriented Toyota Matrix and the Subaru Impreza. Both diminutive scramblers aren't nearly as cheap or efficient as their front-wheel-drive cousins, and they won't off-road, tow a boat or carry seven passengers. Still, both cars offer a [potential] extra safety margin and [potentially] better handling. So if you had to choose one…

Tony Posawatz is the corporate QB looking to deliver GM’s Volt-shaped Hail Mary. In a pre-game chinwag with Reuters, the senior engineering executive sheds some light on GM’s playbook. Production will be ramped up slowly “to make sure everything [the battery pack] is bulletproof.” Meanwhile, GM will be lobbying utilities to offer rebates or cheaper off-rate charging rates, and other forms of tax relief. GM is also planning on selling used battery packs to utilities as power storage systems. Posawatz acknowledges that financial losses are inevitable: “to make this thing a sustainable business, we have to drive it to volume.” So, a low price then? “The nature of this technology is that it’s going to be expensive, and we will not underprice this vehicle.” Ah, BUT– GM is may build a 20-mile range version as “part of an effort to cut the cost of such vehicles by half or more.” Translation: the 40 mile-range Volt will be an expensive ($45k and up) low-volume “halo” vehicle for GM’s bragging rights. It will take several more years of cost (and range) cutting before something resembling an actual Prius competitor hits the streets. The loyal cheerleaders at Volt-nation are apoplectic, calling for Posawatz’s head. Their hopes for GM’s populist electric Model T are fading as fast as GM’s cash reserves.

The AP reports America's second largest automotive hauler is giving up. Thanks to a Teamster's strike, Performance Transportation Services (PTS) is calling it quits. PTS was already operating under Chapter 11 reorganization caused by the double whammy of imploding demand and skyrocketing fuel costs. Perhaps the fact that PTS was not a participant in the "national car haulers contract" with the Teamsters are negotiating with other major suppliers had something to do with what went down. CEO Jeff Cornish concluded that "the leadership of the union had a different agenda [other than PTS' workers' paychecks]." Oh well. The company that "delivered more than 4 million new and used cars annually from 24 facilities nationwide with its fleet of 1,800 trucks" is now gone for good. Expect to see more cars on freight trains. Or maybe Toyota wants to mop-up some of it's extra cash and put 1800 rolling billboards on the highway with it's own-branded delivery fleet. The four Horsemen of the Apocalypse continue to gallop through the American automotive industry's supplier base.

Few things in this world are as dramatic as the start of a NASCAR race. War, for instance. Or the launch of a Saturn V rocket. The crowd rises from their seats in anticipation. The starter stands in his box with flag in hand as the bestickered phalanx of cars rounds turn four. After the pace car scurries from view into pit lane the violence of dozens of highly tuned V8 engines is unleashed in unison. You can sense the invisible force of the sound approaching.  Like others, I reverently remove my radio headphones so that I can fully ingest the aural assault. I feel the high frequency vibration in the aluminum stadium seats beneath my feet. And then it hits – a sound so big I hear it with my entire body. You don’t get that on TV.

These starts, which are repeated after every caution, are like hits of crack to NASCAR addicts. Add the excitement of aggressive bump-n-grind driving, a few spectacular crashes, and a dramatic finish, and the crowd could care less that the racers only turn left.

My latest foray into NASCAR society occurred at the Craftsman Truck Series Sam’s Town 400 at the Texas Motor Speedway (TMS) with my youngest son. Forget every exaggerated stereotype you might have of NASCAR fans. Real Truck Series fans outdo them all. A regular NASCAR car event looks like an NAACP convention compared to the gene pond from whence Truck Series fans hail. Equally homogeneous: the choice of vehicle that they drive to the stadium. That would be pickups.

TMS speakers blared alternative metal music while fifty-one thousand patrons found their seats. I don’t guess that many in the crowd have songs by Disturbed, Slipknot, or Mastodon on their iPods at home, but somehow the music is an appropriate prelude to thirty-five 700 horsepower 358 cu-in pushrod V8 engines screaming at full voice.

As second hand cigarette smoke wafted all about us, my host, a longtime Texas Motor Speedway season ticket holder, commented, “I know I need to lose a few pounds but in this crowd I feel skinny.” I don’t mean to disparage my fellow racing fans. They are what they are and proud of it. They’re knowledgeable of the sport and quite hospitable– that is unless your last name is Busch (Bush is okay). As in Kyle Busch, the most hated man in North Texas.

Busch is vilified as a dirty, nay evil, driver. Boos erupted as the man sporting a black cowboy hat was introduced. The NASCAR points leader was set to start in last position because he was a late driver change for the #51 Miccosukee Resorts truck. He was also in the midst of a very busy weekend, attempting to win a trifecta of races in three different classes at three different tracks on the same weekend. Pre-race gossip centered on the scandalous prediction that the bad boy had made before the race; that he would break into the top ten within the first fifty laps.

NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series pickups share little in common with the Chevy Silverado, Ford F-150, Dodge Ram and Toyota Tundra pickups that share their names. Sponsors such as Lumber Liquidators, Construction Corps, Power Stroke Diesel by International, Road Loans, and, my favorite, GunBroker.com, reflect the rural working class values. 

Pole position went to newcomer, Justin Marks. After the first dozen laps, five trucks withdrew due to mechanical problems. The race fell into a predictable rhythm: race for about twenty laps (until tires become worn), crash, pit under a caution flag, cleanup, lather, rinse, repeat.

Ron Hornaday Jr. in the #33 Camping World Chevrolet emerged early in what appeared to be the fasted truck in the field. True to his word, Kyle Busch made quick work of the rest of the field. By lap 55, Busch was in the number nine spot. From that point forward he seemed content to lurk between fifth and seventh place without pressing the leaders.  But every spectator knew where he was at all times and that he could surge to the top at will.

With eleven laps to go, Busch leapfrogged into second place. Tension built for an epic battle. Concerned fans held three fingers high with both hands in support of #33 Hornaday. This night good triumphed over evil. Hornaday’s car was just too fast; reaching the green-white-checkered flag 0.283 seconds ahead of Busch.

As for my son and me, we had a great time. And although our seats were nestled in the shade beneath the luxury boxes I think my neck turned a little bit red.

When the going gets tough, the tough amp-up the ads. As the Detroit News reports, that's certainly the philosophy behind GM and Toyota's increased ad spend. In the teeth of the perfect storm (or dead calm) afflicting new car and truck sales, the automakers upped their first quarter ad budget by 13 and 8.4 percent respectively. That's a not-inconsiderable additional $535m for The General and $291m for the world's largest automaker. On the uh-oh side, cash-strapped Chrysler decreased their ad spend by a full 42 percent (-$186 million) while Ford sliced their ad outlay by 31 percent (-$292m). Ford mouthpiece Jim Cain provided the necessary piercing glimpse into the obvious: "The economy and vehicle sales do affect total spending." However, the DetN points out that "Ad expenses also fluctuate depending on when the Dearborn, Michigan-based company is introducing new and redesigned models." So the fact that Ford's launching the Flex in the first quarter means… what? Meanwhile, once again, Chrysler says… nothing.

First and foremost, in terms of Nissan, four times more EV range equals 250 miles. This according to Mitsuhiko Yamashita, Nissan's executive VP of R&D. That's slightly more distance than the all-new Toyota Land Cruiser can cover with a single tank of gas. Nissan's first-generation lithium ion packs are good for just 75 miles. The second-gen batteries will arrive in that most magical of years (2010) to propel an unspecified vehicle a bit over 100 miles. Third-gen lithiums will show-up right when the Mayan calendar ends (2012), and propel a car 185 miles on a charge. As AutoblogGreen's Dom Yoney points out, it's best not to compare these (hypothetical) numbers to the Tesla Roadster's (hypothetical) numbers. Apparently there's a metric called "watt hours per kilogram" involved, but my brain is too small and lizard-like to comprehend. Nissan lithium ion battery production will begin in earnest next year at 13k units before ramping-up to a 65k units. Eventually. 

Toyota recently declared that it would begin building Camry Hybrids in Melbourne, potentially reversing the industry's decades-long decline. The announcement vindicated the Australian government's half-billion dollar initiative to encourage local production of full-sized eco-friendly cars. PM Kevin Rudd and the Victoria provincial government each cut a $35m check to Toyota in return for its promise to build 10k Camry Hybrids per year. Win-win for all concerned, right? And then Toyota Australia spokesman Mike Breen opened his big mouth. Breen told The Australian an inconvenient truth: Toyota would have built Camry hybrids in Melbourne with or without the taxpayer-funded incentives. This prompted howls of outrage from the opposition, claiming the handout "amounts to nothing more than a $35m photo opportunity for the prime minister." Of course, Toyota has since backpedaled, disingenuously demurring that "Toyota's decision to build a hybrid Camry in Australia was based on various business considerations… however, the Governments' support was a critical factor in securing local production." Ford and GM reps are sure to learn the lesson when they meet with Australian Industry Minister Kim Carr this week; there's still $465m in taxpayer dross to be hustled Down Under.

With the autoblogosphere going ape over Toyota's hybrid three-fer, ToMoCo reps are tamping down the hype. Advanced Technology Group guru Bill Reinert tells Automotive News [sub] to chillax on the mpgs. "When we see the (claims of) 100 mile-per-gallon stuff, not everybody's going to get 100 miles per gallon." Toyota isn't backing away from its 40-mile, EV-only range for its forthcoming plug-in hybrids. But Reinert warns "the demands of real-world driving, such as rapid acceleration on freeway entrances, could dramatically reduce the all-electric range of plug-ins… just as some consumers have been disappointed by the real-world mileage of regular hybrids, plug-ins may not live up to those high hopes." Meanwhile, GM's "moon shot" plug-in electric – gas hybrid Hail Mary appears to run solely on media attention. In Jonathan Rauch's feature in the Atlantic Monthly, GM PR maven Steve Harris reveals that the Volt project came about because "The PR guys want something more sexy and dramatic, a singular point for our message. This issue of the environmental image was hurting the company substantially." Which will be as nothing compared to the hit to GM's rep if or when the Volt fails to meet its expected launch date or [as yet unspecified] price point.

Two new hybrids to be precise, in addition to a redesigned Prius. Automotive News [sub] reports that all three vehicles will debut at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show. One of the new mystery hybrids will be a Toyota and the other will be a Lexus. We'll go ahead and speculate that the Toyota will in fact be a production version of the FT-HS sports car hybrid we saw at last year's Detroit spectacle. As for the Lexus, we're stumped. Maybe an IS variant? The massively anticipated third-gen Prius will soldier on with the same old nickel-metal hydride batteries for now. But come the hyper-magical automotive year 2010, the Prius will switch to lithium ion batteries. Panasonic — they build ToMoCo's batteries — will start whipping-up the lithium ion electro-juice containers in 2009. Cars powered by the same tech in your cell phone should hit dealers you know when (2010). Not to be outdone, Honda has promised four all-new hybrids by 2015 (guess they didn't get the 2010 memo). Nissan's gone on record promising to begin making lithium ions next year. Discounting GM and Chrysler's two-mode hybrid behemoths and The General's belt-assisted has-beens, and the Ford Escape Hybrid, it's up to the Hail Mary Chevrolet Volt to meet the hybrid onslaught. What are the chances?

May was a disaster for American new car sales. Practically every player in the U.S. market ended-up the month trailing last May's totals, many by a significant margin. Perhaps the most damning indicator of the industry's general direction: the F-150's sudden and precipitous drop from the top sales spot. Ford's full-size pickup wasn't just edged out; it was defenestrated by four different cars. The Civic, Camry, Accord and Corolla all mounted the Mother of All Palace Coups. With gas prices singing "the only way is up," clearly, May is only the start of a long, hot, bloody summer.

Trucks

Overall light truck sales fell 24.5 percent from last May. The Chevrolet Silverado* led the drop in pickup truck sales, down 42 percent in May, down 25.9 percent year-to-date (YTD).  The Dodge Ram slid by 37 percent for the month, 26.8 percent drop on the year. Ford's F-Series' tumble from the top of the U.S. sales chart was appropriately dramatic: down 30.6 percent in May and 18.7 percent from the first five months of last year. The Toyota Tundra turned-in its first negative month last month. May saw no respite (obviously); ToMoCo's full-sizer finished the month down 31.5 percent. Strong sales earlier in the year have kept it above the red line year to date; sales are still 8.5 percent ahead of last year.

Truck-Based SUVs

Traditional SUVs are dying, with one notable exception. Chevy's Tahoe* continues its fall from grace, dropping 39.7 percent in May, 29.9 percent YTD. The Dodge Durango has just about disappeared from view, "boasting" a 68.8 percent drop in May, down 44.2 percent for the year. The once all-conquering Ford Explorer is barely selling. Sales are down 41.2 percent in May, negative 28.7 percent for the year. Interestingly, the Toyota Sequoia is up 81.7 percent compared to last May, up 29.4 percent TYD. It's already outselling the Durango. If these trends continue, by the end of summer, Sequoia sales could easily eclipse the Explorer and Tahoe.

Crossovers

Here's news: buyers abandoning pickups and SUVs seem to be skipping CUVs and going directly to cars. The GMC Acadia lost the big Mo; sales fell for the second straight month vs. last year. Sales cratered 27.6 percent in May; excellent sales for the first three months have kept it  20.5 percent ahead for the year, though. For the first time, The Ford Edge dropped below the previous year's sales, down 2.6 percent in May. Like the Acadia, robust sales earlier this year have kept the annual sales up; the Edge finished May 26.8 percent ahead of the first five months last year. The Toyota Highlander* and Honda Pilot both finished May below May '07, down 9.6 percent and 16.5 percent respectively. The Highlander is still 1.9 percent up on last year, but so far, the Pilot is 14.4 percent below 2007.

Family Cars

The year of the car is finally here. Almost every mainstream passenger car showed increases in May. Chevy's Malibu* fell slightly from last month, but still ended up 39.1 percent ahead of May '07, up 25.7 percent YTD. The Chrysler 300 was the exception that proved the rule, finishing May down 52.9 percent, 30.7 percent YTD. (Chrysler attributed the drop to decreased fleet and rental sales.)  Ford Fusion sales were up 26.7 percent in May, up 10.5 percent YTD. May was the Toyota Camry's best month in 2007. May 2008 saw a 2.3 percent increase on that high water mark; annual sales rose 2.3 percent. The Honda Accord continued its trajectory, rising 37 percent in May, 8.3 percent YTD.

Compacts

Chrysler's bright spot: the Dodge Caliber. Sales were up 6.7 percent in May, 9.2 percent YTD. The redesigned Focus was Ford's biggest grower, jumping  53.2 percent in May, running 35.7 percent ahead of last year. Chevy's Cobalt continued its sales climb, rising 19.2 percent in May, 17.8 percent YTD. The best selling vehicle in May was… the Honda Civic*.  Civic sales were up 33.3 percent in May, 20.2 percent YTD. The Nissan Sentra finishes its third straight month of sales increases with a 9.6 percent jump May, 6.9 percent YTD.  Toyota's Corolla also had a good showing in May: up 16.8 percent. A slow start on the year means the Corolla's still trailing last year by 8.1 percent YTD.

Subcompacts

Chevy's Aveo sales dipped drastically in February and March but they've increased steadily ever since. It's up 44.3 percent from last May, up 2.3 percent YTD.  The Honda Fit made a huge jump, up 53 percent for May and 64 percent YTD. Nissan's Versa rose 14.8 percent from May 07, up 21.5 percent YTD. Toyota Yaris' sales rose 31.5 percent in May and 50.4 percent for the year to date.

Prius

The Toyota Prius turned in a shocking performance in May. In spite of soaring gas prices and consumers' increasingly "green" mindset, sales dropped 37.5 percent in May. Toyota [credibly] blames a shortage of cars on the ground. Regardless, sales are still up 3.8 percent YTD.

By Manufacturer

GM finished May 27.5 percent below last May, down 15.9 percent YTD. Chrysler was down 25.4 percent on the month, 19.3 percent on the year. Ford fared better, with "only" a 15.9 percent drop for the month, 11.2 percent drop for the year. For the fourth month this year, Toyota turned in a sales performance below the same month last year . This time, ToMoCo was off 4.3 percent for the month. They remain 3.5 percent below 2007 YTD. Honda was the only one of the "top five" automakers to finish both the month and year in the black. HoMoCo was up 15.6 percent on the month and, up 4.8 percent on the year.

Total Sales

GM, Ford, Chrysler and Toyota are closing truck plants and scrambling to convert truck lines to build cars– now that they've finally realized that truck sales aren't going to improve any time soon. As the model year starts winding down, you can count on even bigger incentives on trucks and SUVS as manufacturers try to clear out their inventories and make room for the cars everyone wants. Will they all make it to the end of the summer? Good question.

*Sales numbers include hybrid models

As GM’s FastLane and GMNext blogs have demonstrated, the U.S. automobile industry has fully embraced the concept of blogging– as press release. Toyota, of course, has entered the e-fray. Their Open Road blog may do little (as in nothing) to stretch the boundaries of Web 2.0-itude, but it offers the usual insight into the corporate culture from which it sprang. ToMoCo’s plugging the new Venza crossover, designed to fill the gaping hole in their lineup between the Camry, RAV4, Highlander, FJ Cruiser, 4Runner and Sienna. Into the depths we descend…

As you might expect, we keep close track of the search terms and key words that people use to get onto the Open Road.
You're shitting me.

You may be interested to learn that the Number 1 search word is "Venza."
If "Venza" is the number one search word bringing people to the Open Road blog, then you're not managing your website correctly. When people search for Venza, you should be sending them directly to the Venza microsite, not to the lame "Open Road Blog."

You remember Venza, right?
Honestly, I try not to. There are already plenty of crossovers out there.

It's a stylish car
Uh, if you say so. I'd go with "vehicle-ish vehicle." But we've already discussed the weird styling.

that was designed
by a monkey?

to capture the best characteristics of both the  roomy SUV and the efficient sedan.
Like a car, but with a hatch on the back. We could call it a "hatch back." Or maybe station wagon.

But the worst part about the Venza is that the exterior is bigger than it needed to be. A sedan, wagon, or hatch can be just as roomy as an SUV. It's the raised ride height that they have brought in from an SUV here, and they should be up front about it. There are benefits to it – SUVs can be easier to step into from the ground. But it also trades off a huge part of the efficiency, in size and weight.

Just sayin’…

We unveiled the Venza in January at the Detroit Auto Show, and we posted it here on Open  Road on January 15.
Please come Monday for the next meeting of History 204: Recent Toyota Marketing

You can go to our Jan. 15 post by clicking here.
You're on the Internet. You probably love five month-old news.

Now the real deal is coming in a few months, and since there's been so much interest,
Bullshit. This isn't the Camaro or the new Camry or a new Evo.

we wanted to provide a way for you to see the vehicle, and to learn more about it.
It's a public service, really. Thank you notes can be sent to: Toyota HQ, Snorefest, Ohio. 11101.

It's the Venza minisite at Toyota.com, which you can access by clicking here.
We did a press release a week or so ago, but why not plug it again?

What you'll find when you get there include, naturally, photos of the car.
I'd post them here, but then you wouldn't visit the microsite. Go to the microsite. It's like a site, but micro. As opposed to this site, which is not micro. Big site here. Plenty of space for pictures, like of the Venza. Oh crap.

But there's also an interview with its designer,
Nobody cares. Consumers don't give a crap about this. But hey, Toyota needed content to put on the microsite. Did you hear they have a microsite?

a list of specifications and features,
But not the gas mileage, which is the only reason this vehicle is significant. The whole point of the Venza is "crossover space, Camry mileage." So what's the mileage estimated to be? And what's the horsepower output and 0 – 60 time of the four-cylinder engine?

and a couple of interesting videos that detail the design process
Nobody cares. Consumers still don't give a crap about this.

and tell us some interesting stuff about the car's optional V6 engine.
Interesting stuff? Wow, that sounds amazing. I better rush over to the microsite. Microsite!

Oh and by the way, unless it's gas mileage or horsepower numbers, most consumers don't care. They began this blog post talking about how they're getting people from search engine results. You think those people are interested in the optional V6's variable valve timing?

There's also a place for you to sign up for updates on the vehicle,
Really? I love marketing mail. I want to hear more "interesting stuff."

which is set to make its sales debut later this year.
I'm sweating with excitement.

So go ahead, take a look.
I have permission? NICE! I'm going right now. Screw work.

Then tell us what you think.
We care. We're people people, damn it. Can't you people understand that?

Kia is one of the only car brands sold in America that's never built an enthusiast's car. Sensible Swedish Saab offered the 900. Before their core clientele started losing their pulse, Buick ran the Grand National. Saturn looked to the Sky for salvation. GMC got caught up in a Typhoon. Even Hyundai has the Tiburon circling its enthusiast oriented customers. Kia? Nothing but cheap. Or… maybe not. "Being practical doesn't mean you have to take the joy out of life," their web copy proclaims. "That's the thinking behind the Rio. It's affordable and likes a good time as much as you do." What exactly does THAT mean?

The Detroit Free Press reports that Toyota has finally responded to months-old accusations that its Tacoma pickup suffers from "unintended acceleration." Reading ToMoCo's letter to ToMoCo tells the National Highway Transport Safety Administration (NHTSA), it's clear they're treating them with all the contempt engendered by the Audi 500 debacle. "Toyota believes that it is likely that many of the consumer complaints about the general issue of unwanted acceleration… as well as many of the complaints about this subject that have been received by Toyota, were inspired by publicity… Even taking (the accusations) at face value, it is clear that the majority of the complaints are related to minor drivability issues and are not indicative of a safety-related defect." NHTSA has been investigating some 32 complaints of the deus-ex-machina defect in 2004 – 08 Tacomas. Toyota held its own investigation of 12 pickups that had supposedly suffered from unintended acceleration back in October, concluding that the machines harbored "no mysterious brake-circumventing defects." In fact, having prepared for this possibility, Toyota programmed its drive-by-wire system to report an error in case the accelerator pedal and throttle are mismatched. And no such error codes have not been found on any Tacomas reported to have driven themselves into stationary objects.