Toyota unveils its answer to the Honda Insight, a cheaper and improved version of its originally dispatched Toyota Prius. Toyota has set the new price to be at $21,600 and has made a yearly sales quota milestone between 300,000 to 400,000 for the new version. For the still available previous versions, Toyota will reported slash the prices despite the new batch’s arrival.

Toyota seems to be preparing for the Honda Insight’s rampage as it not only offers an affordable but sensible car in the making. The market that Toyota is aiming to penetrate are the car rentals and corporate customers aside from the usual private sector car buyers.

Toyota – which also makes the Camry sedan and Lexus luxury models – has long been the leader in the hybrid market, having sold a cumulative 1.256 million Prius cars in more than 40 countries and regions, making the model the top-seller among hybrids.

(Source) Press

Tags: Camry, car buyers, car rentals, Cars, corporate customers, Honda, honda insight, hybrids, Lexus, luxury models, previous versions, prius toyota, private sector, sales quota, sensible car, toyota prius

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If reports hold true, we may be seeing the official demise of the Pontiac. General Motors has reportedly decided to pull the plug on the classic vehicle line, a sign which clearly shows that GM is in a deep hole. General Motors is preparing to announce that the Pontiac car brand, once marketed as GM’s “Excitement division,” will be killed off, according to a source familiar with the decision.

An official announcement is expected Monday. GM spokesman Jim Hopson declined to comment on Pontiac’s fate, saying the automaker has no announcements to make at this time.

In its most recent “viability plan” – which will be updated to reflect this new brand cut – Pontiac was not named as one of GM’s four “core brands.” Those are Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac. But Pontiac was also not to be killed or sold off, as were Saturn, Saab and Hummer. Instead Pontiac was to continue on as a “niche brand” focusing on just a few models.

That was already a step down for Pontiac which, in 2008, was the third-best selling brand behind Chevrolet and GMC. That year the brand sold more than Cadillac and twice as many vehicles as Buick. Cadillac is a high-profile – and high profit – luxury brand while Buick is a hugely popular brand in China and is seen as seen as resurgent in the U.S.

Today’s Pontiac is part of GM’s Buick-Pontiac-GMC brand channel, created in 2002, with the plan being that all three brands would be sold in combined dealerships. GMC would, as always, sell trucks and SUVs, Buick would sell value-oriented luxury models and Pontiac would sell less expensive, fun-to-drive cars.

(Source) CNN

Tags: automaker, buick cadillac, buick gmc, buick pontiac, car brand, chevrolet buick, classic vehicle, gm spokesman, jim hopson, luxury brand, luxury models, pontiac car, pontiac general motors, pontiac gmc

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A steering wheel issue has forced Japan car manufacturer giant Toyota to pull out approximately close to 120,000 cars for brands that was divided between new model cars Reiz, Crown sedans and Lexus Luxury models.

Cars that were manufactured back in February, 2005 until October, 2006 seems to be the ones affected, owing to a probable defect that came about in their tie up with the FAW group during this period.

Considering the number of cars being recalled, that is indeed a lot. Just some days back, Toyota was announcing that it would be incurring its first-ever annual operating loss. With this recall, this is bound to toggle the figures more to the red.

Source

Tags: car manufacturer, february 2005, giant, japan car, Lexus, luxury models, model cars, new model, sedans, steering wheel, Toyota

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