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Honda Civic losing ground to Toyota Corolla, sales crown threatened

Oh, what a difference a year has made. When the numbers were tallied for 2013, the Honda Civic was riding high by claiming its segment's sales crown in the US despite being challenged by the latest generation of the Toyota Corolla for part of the year. However, with just a month to go in the battle for C-segment supremacy in 2014, it looks like Toyota gets to hoist the trophy this time. Looking at November sales numbers, Honda moved 300,644 Civics through the first 11 months of the year, down 2.1 percent in volume. Furthermore, for the month alone, the company sold 23,060 Civics, a 12.3 percent drop. Meanwhile, on Toyota's side, business has been booming comparatively. Through the first 11 months it sold 309,373 Corollas, a 10.6 percent jump, and for November alone it moved 25,609 examples, a 14.2 percent improvement. With fewer than 10,000 cars between them, it would take quite a December slump for the Corolla to lose this fight. According to The Truth About Cars, the Civic actually started out the 2014 somewhat positively with 5 percent growth over the previous year, though still behind the Corolla's figures. However, the Honda has seen a slide since then with five consecutive months of sales drops. Meanwhile, the Toyota has generally kept showing growth. Being the newer model of the two, the Corolla comes to this fight with an advantage. Honda hasn't let the Civic languish; it gave the model a CVT in 2014 to boost fuel economy. That's nothing like the Toyota's thorough recent rethink, though. According to TTAC, Honda does have reason to crow about the Civic, just not necessarily in the US. The model is on track to be the bestselling vehicle in Canada for the 17th consecutive year and have its best sales since 2008 there.

Toyota's 'green bond' an industry first, quickly rises to $1.75 billion

Toyota is greasing the skids for more green car purchases with the announcement of a $1.75-billion bond designed to finance the purchase of high-efficiency Toyota and Lexus models. The Asset-Backed Green Bond is a first for the automotive industry and is making a lot of money available to buy or lease the following vehicles: any of the four Prius variants, Camry Hybrid, Avalon Hybrid, RAV4 EV, Lexus CT 200h and Lexus ES 300h. Originally, the bond was set at $1.25 billion, but Justin Leach, manager of public relations for Toyota Financial Services (TFS), told AutoblogGreen that demand was high and it was quickly oversubscribed. TFS has been looking at more ways to diversify its portfolio after a Diversity & Inclusion Bond that was announced in early 2013 and, with the new Green Bond, TFS is offering something for the "number of investors out there who are looking for investment opportunities in green." The way the money from the bond is used, basically, is that TFS takes the $1.75 billion and uses it to finance the purchase or lease of the nine vehicles listed above. As of right now, all the eligible vehicles are plug-in or hybrids, but the rules simply say that the cars in the program have to meet certain "powertrain, fuel efficiency and emissions" criteria. That means: Minimum EPA estimated MPG (or MPG equivalent for alternative fuel vehicles) of 35 city / 35 highway California Low-Emission Vehicle II (LEV II) certification of super ultra-low emission vehicles (SULEVs) or higher, which would include partial zero emissions vehicles (PZEVs) and zero emissions vehicles (ZEVs). TFS raises plenty of billions in other ways for the rest of the lineup, and got into asset backed securities in 2010, Leach said. Given the success of this first Green Bond, Leach said he expects TFS to keep this idea in its arsenal. "This one was so well received, I would be surprised if we didn't see it again," he said. "If anyone was going to do it, it should be Toyota, right?" Toyota Financial Services (TFS) Issues Auto Industry's First-Ever Asset-Backed Green Bond Bond Proceeds to Fund Consumer Loans and Leases for Toyota's Leading Portfolio of Green Vehicles TORRANCE, Calif., (March 24, 2014) – Toyota Financial Services (TFS) issued the auto industry's first-ever Asset-Backed Green Bond in the amount of $1.75 billion.

Toyota says you might have the 40-millionth Corolla ever built

The guy who bought the 50-millionth Toyota in the US got a free Camry and RAV4, but whoever in the world bought the 40-millionth Corolla in August gets a hearty "thank you" from the Japanese automaker. On sale since 1966, the Corolla is the best-selling nameplate in the world by a goodly margin (more than the Volkswagen Beetle and Ford Model T combined). So while you'd think that vehicle number 40 million would be sitting in a museum somewhere, Toyota can't even say in which country this milestone Corolla was sold, let alone to which customer.
One reason that Toyota is unsure where this Corolla was sold is the fact that the Corolla name itself is more than just the compact sedan sold in the US. On our shores alone, sales of the Matrix are lumped in with the Corolla, but around the world, numerous vehicles wear the Corolla name or share its platform. Scroll down for Toyota's press release, and it has also put together a website celebrating 47 years and 40 million sales for the Corolla... and counting.