toyota

Earlier this year, I spent a week driving a preproduction Prius Plug-in hybrid, but little did I realize that Toyota was using me and the other people who got to drive the car as guinea pigs, test subjects to help further refine the car for a 2012 production model. Toyota recently put me behind the wheel of a substantially tweaked Prius Plug-in, this one the result of everything learned from the earlier drive program. Still billed as preproduction, this latest Prius Plug-in boasted enhancements over the previous car, along with a full-blown marketing strategy.

In typical Toyota fashion, this new preproduction car was not radically different than the one I drove previously. And I confess to a lack of enthusiasm over this new driving opportunity. Despite that you can plug it in, it is still just a Prius. … Read more

Toyota detailed pricing for two new members of its hybrid Prius family, including a plug-in Prius which will cost less than $30,000 after a federal tax credit.

The base price of the 2012 Prius Plug-in Hybrid is $32,000 and a higher-end Advanced trim will cost $39,525. The plug-in will be eligible for a $2,500 federal tax credit, which is calculated by the size of the battery.

Toyota also announced the Prius V, a larger crossover version of the Prius, will cost between $26,400 and $29,990 depending on the model. Mileage for the Prius V … Read more

Drag Racing for Android puts you in the driver's seat of your favorite street racer. With more than 50 real cars to choose from, dozens of upgrades, and a nearly unlimited pool of opponents, don't be surprised to find yourself behind the wheel for hours at a time.

The game offers four racing modes to choose from. You can Race Offline against the computer, Quick Race one-on-one against an online opponent, join the Pro League against a group of online competitors, or race against Friends. Also, you can choose either quarter-mile or half-mile races, with the shorter distance … Read more

Toyota today announced the unveiling of several new and revamped models at the 2011 Frankfurt International Motor Show, which runs Sept. 13 to 25.

Toyota plans to roll out the 2012 Avensis, the updated Prius and the Prius Plug-in and Prius+, as well as the 2012 Hilux.

According to Toyota, changes to the British-built Avensis sedan will "include revised exterior styling, incorporating a frontal treatment that follows Toyota's new design language." These changes are the largest midlife investment the company has made for any model, the company said in a press release.

The new Prius family of … Read more

In the U.S., cars like the Camry tend to make Toyota seem boring. But there is another side to the company, the Toyota Motorsports Group (TMG), a division focused on making cars go fast. And this group just set a record lap time on the Nürburgring Nordschleife for an electric vehicle.

TMG built its EV P001 car especially for the record attempt. At just over 2,100 pounds, the EV P001 is heavy for a race car, but 770 pounds of that weight is a lithium ion ceramic battery pack, rated at 41.5 kilowatt hours. That … Read more

Ford and Toyota team on car tech, Audi announces plug ins & hybrids, In-car internet radio explodes, and we take you - but just one of you - for a ride in the Scion iQ.

• Ford and Toyota team on hybrids for trucks, SUVs

• GM teams with LG to develop electric vehicles

• Audi plug-in hybrid rumored to be coming in 2014

• BMW to integrate MOG app

• Cadillac drops the cloth and top on new Ciel concept

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it." That must have been Toyota's mantra when approaching the redesigned 2012 Camry, because the broad strokes haven't changed much for this generation. However, for prospective Camry owners, that's a good thing. The Camry's strong points--comfort, safety, and reliability--appear to have been left intact. But the areas in which the previous generation of the Camry could use a bit of improvement--cabin technology, fuel economy, and that awful interior design--have been massaged and tweaked.

We took a ride in the 2012 Toyota Camry Hybrid XLE to get … Read more

It's not just hybrid power trains for SUVs and pickups that Ford and Toyota will join forces on: the two mainstream car makers will also be collaborating on telematics.

In a taped video news release, Derrick Kuzak, group vice president of Global Product Development for Ford, said that by working with Toyota, Ford will be able to make in-vehicle telematics more affordable to consumers, and help bring new features to market. The two companies will be working together on Bluetooth and Wi-Fi standards in vehicles, and will also standardize on chipsets to lower volume pricing. However, Kuzak said that … Read more

Too busy to keep up with the tech news? Here are some of the more interesting stories from CNET for Monday, August 22.

• Netflix's stock fell nearly $100 from $300 per share, after the company announced it would raise prices. The entire stock market has taken a tumble, but that still doesn't explain Netflix's stock plummet.

• WebOS is the mobile operating system that Hewlett-Packard discontinued last week. Devices that run the system are selling like hot cakes. However, as CNET's Brian Tong found out, his order of the TouchPad didn't go though after all.

• Ford … Read more