Lexus returns to the annual conference of National Police Fleet Managers on 2–3 September with a range of vehicles well equipped to serve the needs of the nation’s law enforcers.

A full line-up of IS, GS, LS and RX models will be on display at Cheltenham Racecourse, demonstrating the strength in depth of the Lexus brand. Hybrid power cars will be to the fore with the RX 400h and GS 450h presented in full police livery, showing how Lexus has succeeded in combining high performance with excellent fuel efficiency and lower CO2 emissions through its world-leading powertrain technology.

After five years generating big headlines and relatively small sales, Toyota’s youth-oriented Scion brand is at a crossroads.

Toyota executives are rethinking some of the basic principles they set out for the brand - how many and what kind of vehicles Scion should sell - as they work to keep it fresh and innovative.

It’s unclear whether they can do it, and some industry observers have begun to ask whether Scion was a misstep by Toyota’s usually sure-footed strategists.

Lee White, president and general manager of Toyota Racing Development released a statement Wednesday concerning the penalties handed down by NASCAR Wednesday against Joe Gibbs Racing.

Toyota Racing Development.gifNASCAR docked drivers Joey Logano and Tony Stewart 150 points each and put both on probation through Dec. 31. Logano, an 18-year old Middletown native, was making his ninth Nationwide Series start at Michigan. NASCAR also fined the crew chiefs for both of the Gibbs Nationwide Series teams $50,000 and suspended both indefinitely while also suspending five other crew members between the two teams.

The Detroit News is reporting group vice president and general manager for Toyota of the Americas, Bob Carter, has confirmed the 2010 Toyota Prius will be debuting at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show and will be joined by a uniquely styled and appointed version for Lexus. The Prius was set to move upmarket relative to its former iterations, but with a Lexus version now on the way, Toyota’s own marketplace may be getting crowded. But the bigger story is how this news makes things far more interesting for January’s Detroit Auto Show.

Canadian drivers are looking for relief at the
gas pumps - and Toyota’s fuel efficient, low-emission vehicles deliver just
that. To dispel common myths and give Canadian drivers first-hand experience,
Toyota Canada Inc. and the Ontario Toyota Dealers Association are pleased to
bring the Toyota Hybrid Tour to Ontario this August.

Hybrid car entrants from Hyundai Motor Company and Japan’s Honda and Toyota will lock horns in the W20-million price range segment (US$1=W1,040) in next year’s second half.

Honda Korea said Sunday it will release its New Insight hybrid at a similar cost to its Civic 1.8 (W25.9 million) in the latter half of next year. The estimated price is comparable to Hyundai’s Avante LPG Hybrid, which will premiere in Korea in July of next year. Toyota’s hybrid Prius will hit Korea in October of next year, likely costing W29 million.

The electricity cost for powering a plug-in hybrid is only about one-quarter of the cost of powering a like-sized gasoline vehicle. Pictured here: a regular Toyota hybrid Prius converted to a 100 miles-per-gallon (avg.) plug-in by the California Cars Initiative, a nonprofit group dedicated to accelerating the availability of the technology. (Photo: jurvetson, courtesy Flickr)

The US auto industry is facing tough times and will not likely recover until 2010, a senior Toyota executive said Thursday.

“We’re in for a rough patch,” Bob Carter, vice president in charge of Toyota’s US sales, told an automotive conference.

Toyota Motor Co. plans to unveil a new Lexus hybrid and the next generation of its hot-selling Prius next year as the company looks to hit the one-million mark in hybrid sales in 2010.
A production version of the Lexus and Prius will be displayed at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit in January, said Bob Carter, group vice president and general manager for the Toyota division at Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. He made the comments during an interview on the sidelines of the Center for Automotive Research management Briefing seminar.

Q. Given the high price of gas, and the gap in price between no-name gas and the big brand names in some areas, can you clarify facts about the downside of buying no-name gas? Will it hurt performance? And, more importantly, will it harm my engine?

A. The federal government requires all gasoline to meet a minimum standard for both octane and quality. Does that mean that brand name gas is the same as no-name gas? Not necessarily. Brand-name gas may have more of the detergent additives that help keep the fuel system clean. So will you harm your car by using generic gasoline? In my opinion, no, although I’m sure I’ll get e-mails to the contrary.