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Toyota Crown celebrates 60 years

Toyota offers a robust lineup of cars in North America, but while the Crown may not be one of them, that wasn't always the case. And this year, the company's longest-running nameplate is marking its sixtieth anniversary. First introduced way back in 1955, the Crown was Toyota's first major export. It became the first Japanese passenger car to reach the US market when the first-generation Crown was launched here in 1958, and marked the company's arrival in Europe when the second-gen model arrived in Denmark in 1963. It started building the Crown in Australia in 1967 and in China more recently in 2005. The Crown is now on its fourteenth generation, and to mark its birthday, Toyota is launching the sedan for a limited time only in sky blue and bright green. Jan. 08, 2015 Toyota 'Crown' Turns 60 Sixty years ago this week, Toyota launched the "Crown", a luxury sedan that would go on to become the company's longest-running passenger-car nameplate and a significant vehicle in the history of the Japanese automobile industry. In 1958 the Crown became the first Japanese passenger car to be exported to the United States, and also started Toyota's passenger car exports to Africa in 1957 and Europe in 1962. Now in its 14th generation, its foremost models are the Crown Royal deluxe saloon and the Crown Athlete sports sedan, both with hybrid powertrain options. In Japan, Toyota is marking the anniversary with the introduction of limited-time-only sky blue and bright green exterior body colors. Toyota Crown Milestones January 1955 First generation launched April 1957 Exported to Ethiopia, Africa August 1958 Exported to the United States October 1962 Second generation launched December 1963 Exported to Denmark, Europe February 1965 Exported to Canada February 1967 Assembly begins in Australia September 1967 Third generation launched February 1971 Fourth generation launched October 1974 Fifth generation launched September 1979 Sixth generation launched August 1983 Seventh generation launched September 1987 Eighth generation launched October 1991 Ninth generation launched December 1995 10th generation launched October 2001 11th generation launched December 2003 12th generation launched March 2005 Production begins in China February 2008 13th generation launched December 2012 14th generation launched

Toyota RAV4 EV lease gets cut in half to $299/month

If you're in the market for a new electric vehicle, now is definitely the time to buy or lease. Following price drops on just about every other EV on the market, Toyota is looking to push a few more all-electric RAV4 crossovers out the door over the Labor Day weekend. The Detroit News is reporting that, through September 3, anyone looking to get into a RAV4 EV in Los Angeles or San Francisco, can get a deal: a $299 a month lease (no word on down payment, though) or zero-percent financing for 60 months for buyers.
The $49,800 RAV4 EV normally leases for twice as much - $599 a month - so this move could be an attempt to sell more of the 2,600 units Toyota has planned to produce. Or maybe, if you thought $599 was a fair price, you can now get two RAV4 Evs. Although temporary, the price drop comes at a time when many other EVs on the market have had their prices reduced, including the Nissan Leaf, Chevy Volt, Smart Fortwo ED and Honda Fit EV, not to mention already low prices for the Fiat 500e and Chevy Spark EV.
*Note: 2012 RAV4 EV pictured here

VW was 2018's top-selling automaker — but

TOKYO — Volkswagen Group has held on to its position as the world's top-selling automaker for the fifth year in a row, although the German group was edged out again by the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance in the light-duty vehicles segment. Renault SA, Nissan Motor Co Ltd and Mitsubishi Motors Corp together sold 10.76 million passenger cars and light commercial vehicles in 2018, according to Reuters' calculations after new data released on Wednesday. The group doesn't sell heavy trucks. Nissan said on Wednesday it sold 5.65 million vehicles last year, down 2.8 percent on the year. Mitsubishi reported an 18 percent rise in sales to 1.22 million units while Renault sold 3.88 million units, up 3.2 percent on the year. Volkswagen's deliveries rose 0.9 percent to a record 10.83 million last year, including its MAN and Scania heavy trucks, the German company said earlier this month. Excluding heavy trucks, it sold 10.6 million units. Toyota Motor Corp retained its third spot, announcing on Wednesday that it had sold 10.59 million vehicles last year including its Toyota and Lexus brands, along with minicars made by subsidiary Daihatsu and light and heavy trucks produced by its truck division Hino Motors Ltd. Excluding Hino trucks, Toyota sold 10.39 million units last year. The automaker has said it expects to sell a total of 10.76 million vehicles in 2019. Many automakers are trying to boost sales volumes to achieve economies of scale and reduce costs amid soaring investments needed to develop next-generation technologies, including self-driving cars and electric vehicles. This has been a focus of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Motors group, which is looking to share more vehicle parts and consolidate production platforms to trim R&D and manufacturing costs, while raising profitability. The alliance, which brought Mitsubishi Motors into its fold in 2016, is currently in crisis with its former Chairman Carlos Ghosn arrested and indicted on charges of misconduct. Nissan has also been indicted, and Renault appointed new top management last week. Related Video: Earnings/Financials Mitsubishi Nissan Toyota Volkswagen