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Toyota still wants Tesla's battery help, still evaluating RAV4 EV program

Tesla Motors said earlier this month that the agreement it has with Toyota to supply battery packs for the Toyota RAV4 EV SUV would be finished by the end of the year. The deal is done, but Toyota is now singing its best version of Baby, Please Don't Go. The Japanese automaker may look to extend the battery-pack agreement with California-based Tesla, Automotive News says, citing comments made by Osamu Nagata, who heads Toyota's manufacturing and engineering in North America. Nagata also complimented Tesla for its "clear business strategy." Toyota, which owns 2.5 percent of Tesla, started the RAV4 EV collaboration in 2012, in which Tesla was to make about 2,600 battery packs for the all-electric SUV. That agreement was estimated to be worth about $100 million. "We are also evaluating the RAV4 EV program and will have more to say at a later date" – Toyota "We have a good relationship with Tesla and will evaluate the feasibility of working together on future projects," Toyota said in a statement e-mailed to AutoblogGreen. "We are also evaluating the RAV4 EV program and will have more to say at a later date." And while Toyota hasn't quite met initial sales expectations – it sold about 1,600 of the RAV4 EVs through this spring – the company expects to reach 2,500 by the end of the year. And the partnership did generate about $15 million in revenue for Tesla, according to that company's first-quarter letter to shareholders. That said, Tesla is obviously focusing its battery-making efforts on its own models.

Toyota hydrogen vehicle visits CES, on sale in US in 2015

If there was ever any doubt that Toyota loves hydrogen vehicles, just listen to some of what Bob Carter, senior vice president of automotive operations for Toyota Motor Sales, USA, said today at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas: "Fuel cell electric vehicles will be in our future sooner than many people believe, and in much greater numbers than anyone expected." "Hydrogen works beautifully with oxygen to create water and electricity and nothing more." "This [hydrogen] infrastructure thing is going to happen." "I believe what I'm going to tell you about today is going to change our world." Sounds like love is in the air. In all seriousness, Toyota is incredibly bullish on the future of hydrogen as a part of the automotive landscape, and is now gearing up for the 2015 launch of its hydrogen sedan. The concept version of the car was shown for the first time at the Tokyo Motor Show last fall and is making its North American debut at CES today, alongside the still-under-camo engineering prototype. The reasons for Toyota's hydrogen confidence? The debut vehicle is supposed to be a "reasonably priced" car that has a range of 300 miles and a refueling time of about five minutes. Carter highlighted the engineering work that Toyota has done over the past decades to get the fuel cell system downsized while upping power output to over 100 kW. He also said the vehicle will have carry enough energy to power a house for a week, so company engineers are working on an export power supply device. The H2 Toyota sedan will start sales in California (the only state in the US where there are currently any hydrogen stations) next year. The automaker is working with the University of California Irvine's Advanced Power and Energy Program (APEP) to figure out where to build the next series of public hydrogen fueling stations. Today there are ten, but the model Toyota is using "is based on the assumption that owners want to reach a refueling station within 6-minutes" and shows that 68 stations would be able to serve around 10,000 hydrogen vehicles. 'Toyota Car of the Future' On Sale Next Year; Opens 2014 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) Reasonably priced hydrogen fuel cell electric targets 300-mile range, 3-5 minute fill-up LAS VEGAS (Jan. 06, 2014) – "We aren't trying to re-invent the wheel; just everything necessary to make them turn," said Bob Carter, senior vice president of automotive operations for Toyota Motor Sales (TMS), U.S.A.

Toyota recalling 1.67 million vehicles worldwide in 3 campaigns

Toyota is issuing three separate recalls covering 1.67 million vehicles worldwide with most of those models in Japan. It looks like the campaigns' impact on the US may be smaller, though. According to Reuters, Toyota isn't aware of any accidents, injuries or fatalities affecting the models. Some yet-unnamed Lexus models might also be affected.
The largest of the campaigns does not currently affect any US-market vehicles. About 802,000 units of the Toyota Crown Majesta, Crown, Noah and Voxy in Japan are being repaired to replace a seal that could leak in the brake master cylinder. Those already leaking get a new brake booster, as well, according to Reuters.
The only recall currently believed to affect the US is due to a problem covering approximately 759,000 vehicles with 423,000 of them here. The repair is to fix a faulty fuel delivery pipe that could cause a fire if the fuel leaks out. Unfortunately, we don't know which models it covers. Autoblog spoke to Toyota spokesperson Mona Richard and was told the information was still "under embargo." When exactly that embargo will lift isn't yet known, but we're on the case.