This video is a quick look at a new car and new tracks for Gran Turismo 5, featuring the Toyota FT-86 Concept car. The rear-wheel drive coupe that will be badged as a Toyota was co-developed with Subaru (who provides the engine) and will make its world debut at the 2009 Tokyo Motor Show. The name FT-86 is a nod to the popular RWD Corolla AE86 of the mid-1980s. The production version of the 2+2 FT-86 sports coupe, is due to go on sale towards the end of 2011. The engine is from Subaru and is a front-mounted, 2.0-liter four-cylinder boxer engine, a naturally aspirated version of Subaru’s 2.0-liter flat flour normally found in the Impreza that Toyota will massage to boost output closer to 200 horsepower. This is the same engine that, when turbocharged, cranks out 250HP and is found in Subaru’s much loved WRX.

View the video after the jump

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The on again/off again/on again for real Toyota/Subaru sports coupe is certainly on for real now. Official pics and specs of the upcoming two-company joint venture are out, and it looks to be a pretty impressive car on a number of fronts.

The rear-wheel drive coupe that will be badged as a Toyota was co-developed with Subaru (who provides the engine) and will make its world debut at the Tokyo Motor Show later this month. The name FT-86 is a nod to the popular RWD Corolla AE86 of the mid-1980s. The production version of the 2+2 FT-86 sports coupe, is due to go on sale towards the end of 2011.

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Toyota Cites Stuck Accelerator Risk For Big Recall

Right now Toyota is calling it a “safety advisory”, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) may upgrade this to an official recall. The potential problem lies with unsecured or mismatched floor mats in Toyota vehicles that may interfere with the accelerator pedal. You can read the official statement from Toyota and the list of affected vehicles after the jump.

According to the statement, “A stuck open accelerator pedal may result in very high vehicle speeds and make it difficult to stop the vehicle, which could cause a crash, serious injury or death.”

Until Toyota develops a remedy, Toyota is asking owners of specific Toyota and Lexus models to take out any removable driver’s floor mat and NOT replace it with any other floor mat.

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Toyota’s 4Runner, one of their more popular lines, and also one of their more popular SUVs just got a whole bunch of upgrades for the 2010 model year. The 4Runner shares its platform with the FJ Cruiser, has been completely redesigned for 2010, and it continues to use body-on-frame construction. Toyota says that the new 4Runner is “more rugged than the Highlander and more versatile than the FJ Cruiser”.

The 2010 4Runner it taller, wider and longer than the ‘09 model and offers an optional third-row of seats. Also for 2010, the 4Runner is available in three different trim levels: the first is the SR5, then comes the more luxury oriented and better equipped Limited, and a more “serious” version called Trail.

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Hmmmm, another re-branding effort. I’ve always found that an interesting trend for Japanese car companies. Outside of North America, there is no Acura, for example; everything Honda makes is just a Honda. It looks like Toyota, makers of the world’s best selling hybrid, the Prius, might be spinning off the Prius name into its own brand.

This has been a rumor for quite some time, but recently Toyota made it officially official when they confirmed that there will soon be more Prius models. The announcement came at a Las Vegas gathering of Toyota and Lexus dealers (see, Lexus as separate brand). According to sources, Toyota execs were careful to point out that the future Prius range will not be a full-fledged brand like Lexus or Scion.

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The Toyota Land Cruiser, the first real response to the Jeep, and the first ride out there that showed that someone besides Americans could make decent off road trucks. That was back in the dark ages though, before SUVs were everywhere and soccer moms and flat screens for the kids in back were even a consideration.

And now, here we are, it’s nearly 2010, and Toyota has just released the info on the latest iteration of its venerable Land Cruiser. Premiering at the Frankfurt Motor Show, the all-new 2010 Toyota Land Cruiser, will go on sale in Europe and other international markets before the end of fall 2009. The sixth-generation Land Cruiser, which will also have a Lexus-badged version in North American, gets all new sheetmetal and a completely overhauled interior.

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Reviews by community members are the foundation of CarReview.com. Share your experience with other car owners by writing reviews for your cars, aftermarket parts, and car audio components. You don’t have to be an expert - everyone’s opinion counts.

Featured Review: 2007 Toyota Prius

by Mark Lindsey

Price Paid: $25000.00 from Wilde Toyota-West Al
Review Date: September 15, 2007
Overall Rating: 5 of 5
Value Rating: 3 of 5
Used product for: Less than 1 month

Year / Model Reviewed:
2007 Prius

Summary:
May be the best vehicle I have ever owned. So far has surpassed my high expectations. If you are looking for a car that is embedded with the industry’s finest technology, engineering, AND the best fuel economy, then this car is for you.

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By Derek Mau and Melody C. Yang

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Pros

• Better fuel economy than most V6 engines in its class
• Comfortable ride and responsive handling makes you forget that you’re driving a truck
• Intelligent shift patterns from the 5-speed gearbox account for smooth performance

Cons

• Interior is overdue for a makeover
• Third rowing seating suitable only for munchkins, yoga masters, or inflicting torture upon backseat drivers who need a timeout

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From the ‘Well duh, why shouldn’t they’ department comes word (just rumors at the moment) that Toyota, the worlds largest car company, is thinking of making a Prius minivan.

Or to be more accurate, it would be a minivan based on the Prius platform. Now, a Prius isn’t a very big car to begin with, but we’ve seen the right platforms stretched and widened and bent into all sorts of useful shapes. Also, something else to consider is that perhaps Toyota is not thinking of making a van the size of a Chrysler, but perhaps something smaller. There are, after all, a whole bunch of little box vans running all over Japan. So perhaps making a one-box design, slightly longer and wider than a Prius wouldn’t be that much of a stretch AND serve a certain market segment here in the U.S.

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By Derek Mau

Pros

• Passengers get their own door and ample leg room
• Versatile split rear folding seats
• Spirited cornering
• Excellent value

Cons

• Engine is tuned for economy, not performance
• Thin sheetmetal designed to save weight

The Toyota 5-door Yaris looks and feels about right as the utility vehicle for the new economy. It is cheap, roomy, economical and versatile. And it accomplishes all of this with a bit of style and flare. Its EPA numbers of 29 City/35 Highway is not quite at the level of the tiny Smart Fortwo’s mpg of 33/41. But we believe the Yaris is a better car in every respect and it is the smarter choice.

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Here’s some solid evidence that Toyota’s Scion brand sure knows it’s market: The 2010 version of the quite popular xB is getting a new and better audio system, and the prices for the car aren’t going up a cent. The 2010 xB which is exactly the same vehicle as the 2009, apart from the all-new, and standard 160-watt Pioneer audio system, and the car’s base price that remains at $15,750 (MSRP) when equipped with a five-speed manual transmission, and $16,700 for the four-speed automatic with sequential shifting.

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Review and photos by Derek Mau

Highs

• Toyota quality and ergonomics
• Lots of space for people and their stuff
• Very good fuel economy for an SUV
• Star Safety System™

Lows

• 4-speed automatic transmission
• Optional side-step rails only work for small feet or loading the roof rack
• Standard audio system is weak sounding

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Here’s something that had never occurred to me: There is no airbag for the rear, center seat passenger. Turn out this fact DID occur to the bright sparks at Toyota, and they have decided to address the issue by making the world’s first rear seat center airbag. This is, by and large, a pretty good idea. Sure, very rarely are cars fully stuffed with people and in need of airbags, but sort of like a motorcycle helmet, when you need a rear seat center airbag you’re sure glad it’s there.

Airbags are one of the few, if not the only safety device currently on cars that were not first developed for racing se. This hindrance aside, they have proven in most cases to be a Godsend. Not only have they saved countless lives in frontal impacts, but the advent of side curtain airbags have done wonders in helping people survive side impact crashes. Recently several manufacturers have started including airbags for rear seat passengers mounted into the seatbacks of the front seats. So, the last man left alone, so to speak, was the person in the center rear seat.

Enter Toyota, whose new Supplemental Restraint System (SRS) airbag is fitted in a large, fixed, rear-seat center console in the roof, and will make its debut in an unnamed Toyota model to be launched in Japan later this year. OK then, everyone is now, er soon, covered.

Source: CarScoop

The momentary dip in gas prices has caused Americans to gravitate away from buying hybrids in droves, at least for now. I predicted that this would happen. We have very short memories in this country, and I figured we’d go back to gas-only vehicles as soon as the gas crunch subsided. But before I started calling American car buyers short sighted and overly gas-dependent, I looked at the reasons for the sluggish hybrid sales.

Nationally, Toyota Prius sales dropped 30.8 percent last month, compared with February 2007. Toyota Camry Hybrid sales were off for the month by 47.4 percent, Honda’s Civic Hybrid sales were off 21.5 percent, the Toyota Highlander Hybrid sales were off 48.6 percent, according to CleanMpg.com, which tracks sales of “green” cars

People are still skeptical about hybrids. They’re worried they won’t hold up or that the battery packs will fail, which basically totals out a hybrid. They can also purchase gas vehicles right now that get mileage comparable to what hybrids get. And overall, hybrids cost more than their non-hybrid counterparts.

Fro example, a hybrid Honda Accord costs about $3,800 more than the comparable non-hybrid version, including purchase, maintenance and insurance costs. Over five years, assuming 15,000 miles of driving per year, you’ll make up that cost in gasoline money if the price of gas goes up immediately to $9.20 a gallon and averages that for the whole period.

Is the hybrid really the answer to our environmental concerns? Are all the green hybrid owners out there going to be green with envy in a couple of years when there are better, more fuel-efficient cars on the market and they can’t sell their used hybrids? Will another type of planet-friendly transportation catch the public’s attention and leave the hybrid behind on the green technology highway?

Stay tuned. There will be a ton of new hybrids on car lots within the next year and we’ll see then just how hybrid-hungry we really are.