Production of the Toyota Yaris has begun in the Japanese automaker’s French factory, which will export the subcompact to the North American market.
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Toyota announced updates for its sub-compact 2013 Yaris, which will be offered in three- and five-door liftback models.
For 2013, the Toyota Yaris subcompact will get a short list of upgrades and a mild price hike that ranges from $80 to $330 depending on the trim level.
This year, Toyota celebrated its 55 years of motorsport heritage by making a return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans with the hybrid TS030 race car. The automaker is now hinting its future motorsports plan, releasing a video that highlights its storied history on the track.
These photos of an aggressive-looking three-door Toyota Yaris have just surfaced in the Chinese media. Continue Reading…
Starting in May 2013, The Toyota Yaris will be imported to North American markets from a factory in France.
Excitement gathered around Toyota as the company announced a factory-backed return to Le Mans in the LMP1 category. Now, it seems like Toyota will be taking its racing efforts to a new level.
During its glory days, Toyota enjoyed 43 victories as well as seven FIA world rally titles. From 1973 through 1999, Toyota was a fixture in the sport.
Now, a report from the FIA World Rally Championship website revealed that Toyota has built a regulation 1.6-liter turbocharged powerplant, which meets the WRC Global Race Engine technical regulations, and is currently performing a series tests at Toyota Motorsport GmbH in Cologne. According to a spokesman from Toyota Motorsport, “We’re leaning towards an S2000-style of car which would be available for customers first. This is a development project, but it’s very early days – the engine only fired up for the first time a few weeks ago- at the very earliest, a car won’t be available until next year. Obviously, this being a Global Race Engine, it could go in any car, but the Yaris seems to make sense.”
According to the anonymous spokesman, participation in rallying is a part of the automaker’s medium-term future goals. What’s more, a Super 2000 category vehicle may also suggest new plans for World Touring Car Championship, as the S2000 specification is split to cover both rally and touring car racing regulations.
[Source: WRC.com]
The 2013 Toyota Yaris Hybrid will be revealed at the Geneva Motor Show in just a few hours, but the Japanese automaker has announced specifications and pricing ahead of time.
The base Yaris Hybrid will be the cheapest hybrid model on the market in Germany, with a price tag of about $22,410 (€16950). Powered by a 1.5L, VVT-i engine combined with an electric motor, the Yaris Hybrid will have 98-hp similar to the American market Prius c (read our review here). It will also be the most fuel efficient vehicle with a combustion engine in the German market.
A “Life” trim line will be available for $23,675 (€17900) and adds Toyota Touch multimedia audio system, ECO-Drive monitor, rearview camera, Bluetooth, steering wheel controls, aux and USB input with iPod control. Interior upgrades for the “Life” model includes a leather steering wheel and shift knob, two-way adjustable luggage compartment floor, while the rear taillights get LEDs.
At the top of the list is the “Club” model which will come with 16-inch wheels, engine start/stop, fog lights, roof spoiler, heated mirrors, electric rear windows, glove compartment with cooling function, and a height adjustable front seat. Pricing for that starts at about $25,400 (€19200).
Toyota of Germany will begin taking orders on the Yaris Hybrid starting on June 16th.
With the Prius c set to hit Toyota dealers in North America soon, the Yaris Hybrid is not expected to be offered here.
GALLERY: 2013 Toyota Yaris Hybrid
Toyota is giving college students a sweet graduation present – a $1,000 rebate off a new car.
This rebate will come in handy, especially now that you have all those student loans to pay off. Running through Jan. 2, 2013, the rebate program will be available to students that meet certain education requirements. Open to recent college graduates and students who have graduated in the past two years, you’ll need proof of your college status to get that grand back.
As well as a diploma or degree, you’ll also need proof of employment. It does make sense… you do need to pay for that new ride. We’re not sure if your head fryer position at McDonald’s counts as steady full-time employment.
If you’ve got all that going for you, it’s time to pick your car. Grads will have their choice of the Toyota Camry (gas only), Corolla, Matrix, RAV4, Tacoma, Yaris, and all of the Scion models.
There’s one more thing – even if you qualify for the rebate, you’ll have to buy your new Toyota from one the 175 Toyota dealers serviced by Southeast Toyota Finance in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina.
You can check out all of the requirements in full detail at the Southeast Toyota Finance website.
[Source: The Car Connection]
The Toyota Yaris gets a remake for 2012, and a sports version that will tide us over until the Scion FR-S comes.
The entire Yaris range gets a longer wheelbase by two inches, and an overall increase in length by three inches. Even though it’s only taller by 0.6 inches, somehow Toyota engineers found an additional 68% more cargo space inside, possibly stealing some technology from Doctor Who’s TARDIS. The front facelift gets a more peaky bulldog-like nose, in line with the rest of Toyota’s lineup, while the back bumper gets aggressive cutouts and no-nonsense white and red tailights.
Engine choices stay the same, at a 106-horsepower inline-four with 1.5 liters and Toyota’s VVT-i valve timing technology. But the engine is bolted to a new four-speed automatic transmission that’s smaller and lighter than the outgoing slushbox. A five-speed manual is still available. Toyota has yet to release complete fuel economy specs, but does say the Yaris will achieve 38-mpg on the highway – two ticks short of the 2012 Hyundai Accent.
The SE model is Toyota’s version of a hot hatch: it gets larger tires and disc brakes, quicker steering, a differently-tuned MacPherson-strut suspension, and a snazzier interior. But all models come with air conditioning, six cupholders, power everything, and a whopping nine airbags to make you feel like you’re being bear-hugged by the Michelin Man.
All this for only a moderate increase in base price: from $13,155 to $14,115 for the base L three-door with a manual transmission. This still undercuts the Honda Fit by about $1000 and the Mazda2 by exactly $65, which still makes for good advertising. Altogether, the Yaris tops out at $17,200 for the top-of-the-line SE five-door with an automatic.
GALLERY: 2012 Toyota Yaris
The all new stylish 2012 Toyota Vitz model, sold here as the Yaris, appears to have new photos, that is if these pics from a Hungarian Toyota dealership’s Facebook page are anything to go by.
In an age where fuel economy is a major selling aspect, the subcompact B-segment is more important than ever, and the new Yaris fits the description.
The new Yaris functionally has gained some size. In total, the Yaris grows 100mm from end to end, with half of that between the wheelbase for more interior room. The car has also grown 20mm shorter overall, probably to lower the center of gravity and improve handling. The new model in Japan has a range of small four cylinder engines, but we should expect a 1.5L version as the sole option.
Stay tuned for more details!
GALLERY: 2012 Toyota Yaris
[Source: Autoblog]
The Toyota Yaris was voted as the 2010 Best Overall Value of the Year. V-A-L-U-E, not F-U-N. But hey, who is to stop crazy enthusiasts from turning it into fun? Much like the Honda Civic Hatchback from say 1995, the Yaris wasn’t meant to be turbocharged, or taken down the quarter mile. It was meant to be a nice, cost-effective and fuel-efficient vehicle that could get you from point A to point B without looking too funny. But now we’re staring at a 12-second Toyota Yaris that boasts over 350-hp. Say what?
According to its spec sheet, the motor has been bored and sleeved to approximately 1.6-liters. Fully built with new pistons, rods and an overhauled head. The turbo kit was pieced together with a Garrett T28 as the heart of it and an AEM EMS controlling it all. On the outside we have to admit this Yaris doesn’t even look half bad. The black and white theme is clean, and who would’ve thought white wheels would still look cool in 2010? The riveted carbon fiber fender flares are a nice touch too.
Don’t believe it? Think this owner is just hard parking his wicked Toyota Prius at a show? Check out the video after the break where it blasts a 12-second pass in your face!
GALLERY: 357hp 12-second Toyota Yaris
[Source: ClubLexus]
In a strange turn of events, a source inside Toyota has told the U.K.’s AutoCar that the Japanese automaker isn’t looking to build a hybrid version of the Yaris. The source says the car won’t be built in France, Japan or anywhere; not yet anyway.
Toyota does plan to build hybrid versions of every car it sells by 2020, but in the mean time the Yaris’s already fuel-efficient engine (sold with a 1.33-liter four cylinder that gets over 50 mpg in Europe and Japan) is sufficient. While the added weight and cost of hybridizing a car makes good financial sense on larger vehicles, it just wouldn’t be worth it on sub-compacts like the Yaris, says the unnamed source. That is, until battery technology improves, making the electric components smaller, lighter and cheaper.
Toyota has, however, officially said it will build a hybrid version of the slightly larger Auris in the U.K. starting next year.
[Source: AutoCar]
Toyota Planning Yaris-Based Hybrid for Sale in Japan, Europe
U.K model already confirmed
Just a few weeks after Toyota officially announced that it would build a hybrid version of the Corolla-based Auris in the U.K., new reports suggest a similar (but smaller) model is being prepared for Japan and Europe. The car would be built in Japan for the Japanese market and Toyota has plans to build a European version in France.
Priced at just 1.5 million yen ($15,760) the hybrid sub-compact would compete with the upcoming Honda Fit Hybrid in a growing segment. It is likely to debut in 2010 as a 2011 model.
The new model would not be badged as a Yaris, but rather as a stand-alone model (much like the Prius) and will be based on an all-new Yaris platform.
Demand for hybrid models has surged recently in Japan thanks to government incentives for green cars. In April the Honda Insight was the best selling vehicle in Japan, marking the first time a hybrid has ever topped the monthly sales charts there. It was bumped off the top spot in May by another hybrid, the new Toyota Prius.
[Source: Reuters]