May 2016

Toyota and Uber explore ride-sharing collaboration

(May 25, 2016) TOYOTA CITY, Japan — Toyota Motor Corporation and Uber, a ride-sharing company, are announcing a partnership. The companies have entered into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to explore collaboration, starting with trials, in the world of ride-sharing in countries where ride-sharing is expanding, taking various factors into account such as regulations, business conditions, and customer needs.

As part of the partnership, Toyota Financial Services Corporation and Mirai Creation Investment Limited Partnership are making a strategic investment in Uber.
 

Rick Hendrick takes delivery of first-off-the-line Acura NSX

(May 25, 2016) MARYSVILLE, Ohio — Acura on Tuesday celebrated the highly anticipated line-off of the first serial production 2017 Acura NSX at the new Performance Manufacturing Center (PMC) in Marysville, Ohio. The PMC is the exclusive manufacturing home to Acura's next-generation NSX, the only supercar made in America.

Toyota expands Takata air bag recall — 1.5 million more vehicles

(May 24, 2016) TORRANCE, Calif. — Toyota today announced that, based on recent information from Takata and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration,  it is expanding its recalls involving Takata front passenger air bag inflators. The involved vehicles are equipped with a particular type of Takata inflator. 

Cadillac to open 'Cadillac House' in New York

(May 24, 2016) NEW YORK — Daring has a new home. Cadillac today announced plans to launch Cadillac House, a physical manifestation of the brand’s cultural world, located on the ground floor of the company’s global headquarters in New York City. This 12,000 square foot permanent space will open to the public June 2 and will serve as a rotating location for events, vehicle exhibitions and collaborative partnerships with pioneering organizations, such as the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) and Visionaire.

Toyota, DEKA join forces to complete development of iBOT wheelchair

(May 24, 2016) JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Toyota Motor North America is joining forces with DEKA Research and Development, the company founded by legendary inventor Dean Kamen, to support mobility solutions for the disabled community. This agreement will help DEKA to proceed with plans to complete the development and launch the next generation iBOT motorized wheelchair.
 

Iconic Escort named Britain's favorite classic Ford

(May 23, 2016) The iconic Escort has been named the favorite Ford of all time by fans of the UK’s best-selling car brand. Launched in 1968, the Escort was sold in six generations and enjoyed an impressive 32-year production run, with the final hatchback model rolling off the production line at Halewood, Liverpool, in July 2000, although the Escort van remained on sale until 2002.

In total, over three million Escorts were sold in Britain, making it one of the country’s best selling cars of all-time.

Ford GT carbon-fiber wheels showcase advantages of innovative material

(May 23, 2016) DEARBORN, Mich. — The carbon-fiber-bodied Ford GT will also offer an all-new carbon-fiber wheel, further improving the drive and handling characteristics of Ford’s all-new supercar. Ford GT is the second Ford Performance vehicle to offer carbon fiber wheels — following the world’s first mass-produced carbon fiber wheel application that debuted as standard equipment on the 2015 Shelby GT350R Mustang.

FCA invests $12.2 million in new Mopar parts distribution center

(May 23, 2016) AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — Fiat Chrysler Automobiles has started preliminary work on a new Mopar Parts Distribution Center (PDC) in Winchester, Va. The 400,000-plus square-foot facility, scheduled to open in the fourth quarter of 2016, expands the Mopar North American footprint to 22 PDCs.

Worldwide sales of Toyota hybrids surpass 9 million units

(May 21, 2016) TOYOTA CITY, Japan — Toyota Motor Corporation has announced that the cumulative figures for global sales of its hybrid vehicles reached 9.014 million units as of April 30, achieving the mark just nine months after it had hit the 8 million mark last year. Helping to mitigate the environmental effects of automobiles is a priority for Toyota. Based on the stance that eco-friendly vehicles can only truly have a significant positive impact if they are widely used, Toyota has endeavored to encourage the mass-market adoption of hybrid vehicles across the globe.

2016 Chrysler 200 LX Touring: Time to deal?

By Christopher A. Sawyer
The Virtual Driver

(May 22, 2016) I’ve driven a lot of vehicles in the past 30 years, but none has been more perplexing than the Chrysler 200. Sleek, but bordering on too subtle, Chrysler’s mid-size sedan has not set the sales charts on fire since its 2015 launch. Then in January, the 200 took a broadside from Fiat Chrysler Automobile (FCA) CEO Sergio Marchionne when he said both it and its smaller Dodge Dart sister would be killed off and replaced by more desirable crossovers with higher profit margins.