New 2012 Toyota Yaris / Vitz Breaks Cover in Japan [Photos and Video]

The new Toyota Vitz, or as we'll come to know it on both sides of the Atlantic, the third generation Yaris supermini, was unveiled Wednesday in Japan. Even though what you see pictured here is the Japanese domestic market (JDM) version, as was the case with the previous generations of the Vitz, we expect the European and North American Yaris to look more or less the same when it arrives in the market late next year.

Toyota's newcomer has grown 100mm in length and now measures 3,885mm long, but is 30mm lower while keeping the same width as its predecessor. The Japanese carmaker says numerous weight saving measures has shaved off 30kg or 66 pounds, with the car tipping the scales at 1,000kg or 2,204 pounds (depending on the model).

The exterior design of the new Yaris is more sculptured and edgier, borrowing numerous styling cues from the Prius as well as the recently introduced Verso-S, with Toyota claiming a coefficient drag value of 0.285. The Vitz will also be offered with a variety of styling kits and alloy wheel designs, all developed in-house by Toyota.

The subcompact model's interior has been redesigned from the ground up and is said to feature higher quality materials and more personalization options in terms of colors, trim and upholstery.

In Japan, the Vitz will be offered with three petrol engines with a displacement of 1.0-liters (69HP), 1.3-liters (95HP) and 1.5-liters (110HP), the latter powering the sportier RS model.

The 1.3-liter unit can be combined with four-wheel drive as well as with a start-stop system, in which case, fuel consumption drops to 3.8lt/100km or 62.3 mpg US.

The European range will also include a diesel model while Toyota is also planning to introduce a hybrid version of the Yaris within the next couple of years.

Videos: Youtube

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GM CEO Calls the Prius a Geek-Mobile, Wouldn’t be Caught Dead in One

In the grand scheme of things, General Motors is a little late in the purpose-built hybrid range extended electric vehicle game. Toyota has recently launched its third generation Prius and Honda its second generation Insight. At worst, the soon-to-be-released Chevy Volt is a logical move from a marketing perspective; if the consumer wants frumpily styled eco-cars then who are we, the automakers, to say otherwise?

So it’s a little hard to swallow when GM’s current CEO, Dan Akerson, describes the Volt’s major competitor – some may even say raison d’être – as a geek-mobile. Here are his exact words:

“We commonly refer to the geek-mobile as the Prius. And I wouldn't be caught dead in a Prius."

If the Prius is a geek-mobile, what does that make the Volt? Is it a me-too-mobile? And the word “geek” is so muddied in our 21^st century world. In the United States, 74% of the population use the internet, 27% own an Apple iPhone and almost half are on Facebook or MySpace. And Avatar, film widely considered to be the most successful film ever made, is a member of that classic geek genre: science fiction.

Is it any wonder that more than two million Priora have been sold since the nameplate came into existence? In a way, there’s a little geek in all of us. We buy organic, we tune into Lost and we use our Smartphones to text our friends what we’re eating for lunch.

It seems to me that GM wants to distance the Volt as much as possible from its Japanese stablemate. Have you noticed how no one at GM, Chevrolet or in the press calls it a hybrid? It’s a range extended electric vehicle. If that isn’t a geeky euphemism I don’t know what is.

The Volt, which according to Akerson "actually looks good,” compared to the Prius, goes on sale before the end of this year. With a starting price of US$41,000 (€31,016), the Volt will be more expensive than its main rival, though some buyers will be entitled to a US$7,500 (€5,674) federal tax credit.

By Tristan Hankins

Via: USAToday , Sources: Internetworldstats , Computerworld, Blogherald

Daihatsu Launches New Move, Claims Title of Japan's Most Fuel Efficient Non-Hybrid Passenger Car

Toyota Motor Corp's small-car making subsidiary, Daihatsu, has unveiled a new generation of its Move mini in Japan. The five-door hatchback has been redesigned from the ground up and is claimed to be the most fuel efficient, non-hybrid, gasoline passenger car in Japan achieving up to 27.0km/liter, which is equal to 65.5 mpg US and 3.7 lt/100km.

The pint-sized model from Daihatsu measures just 3,395 mm in length (the new Fiat 500 is 3,546mm) with a wheelbase of 2,455 mm. The Japanese maker said it has shaved 35 kg or77 pounds over the previous model through a series of measures such as reducing the weight of instrument panel and door trim as well as CVT unit and other components.

The 2011 Move is offered with a newly developed second-generation KF engine equipped with what Daihatsu describes as the world's first i-EGR system that detects the combustion state using ions as well as Japan's first plastic electronic throttle body. The 0.66-liter unit, which features a start-stop system as well, is rated at 52HP and 60Nm (44.3 lb-ft) of torque, and is linked to a revised CVT.

Daihatsu offers the new Move in both front-wheel drive and all-wheel drive confrontations with retail prices (excluding tax) in Japan ranging from 1.066 million Yen to 1.372 million Yen (US$12,700-16,310) for the standard Move and from 1.247 million Yen to 1.534 million Yen (US$14,830-18,250) for the more hip Move Custom. The automaker said the monthly sales target for Japan is 12,000 units.

Hat tip to Leopaul

Source: Daihatsu, Via: Carview

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