2009 Toyota Matrix S Wagon 4-door 2.4l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Daily Driver: 2015 Toyota Yaris SE

Daily Driver videos are micro-reviews of vehicles in the Autoblog press fleet, featuring impressions from the staffers that drive them every day. Today's Daily Driver features the 2015 Toyota Yaris SE Hatchback, reviewed by Sebastian Blanco. You can watch the video above or read a transcript below. Watch more Autoblog videos at /videos. VIDEO TRANSCRIPT: [00:00:00] Hello, everyone. Sebastian Blanco here from Autoblog and AutoblogGreen, with the Daily Driver, this time in the 2015 Toyota Yaris SE Hatchback. It's in a fine blue color called Blue Streak Metallic. This car comes in at just under $17,000, but with all the options and we'll talk about that in a minute, it comes to $18,700. It's rated at 30 miles per gallon in the city, [00:00:30] 37 on the highway, and 33 combined. I've driven it a little over 350 miles this week and the dashboard is reading at 36.8 miles per gallon average, so it definitely gets props for hitting the EPA fuel economy numbers. It has warmed up a little, so we're not operating in the cool Michigan winter that some of my previous cars were, so I gave them a little slack for being under the average. This one right on the money her in the spring time. I do like the [00:01:00] roominess of it. I think it feels great for such a small car. Visibility, you can see everywhere you look. All cars should have this but so few of them do. I like that it's a manual transmission. It's been way too long since I've driven a manual. I do like even this little pocket thing up front here. I haven't put anything in it. I just like that it's there. I don't know, maybe you can put your phone in there or something, but it's cool. The worst part about this though is the infotainment screen here. It is unresponsive. It looks like it's something from Windows 95. [00:01:30] It just acts so weird when it connects to my phone. It connects either via Bluetooth or USB. It's for me, maybe I just haven't had enough time with it, but it's very hit and miss as far as getting my music or my podcast to stream over the vehicle's audio system. The nav system is a $900 upgrade, and given how bad it looks and how bright it is at nighttime, I think an after-market system or even just a mount for your phone is a much, much better deal. Like [00:02:00] I said, this is the base model. There's absolutely nothing wrong with that. I'm a big fan of utility, practical, don't get anything extra.

Total auto recalls already on record pace in 2014

If you've noticed that there have been more recalls than usual this year, you may be on to something. According to a report from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the US market is on pace to break a record for recalls. In 2013, 22 million cars were recalled. We're only a third of the way through 2014, though, and we've already halved that figure, with 11 million units recalled. That's wild.
Considering the past few months, it shouldn't be a surprise that General Motors is leading the charge, with six million of the 11 million units recalled coming from one of the General's four brands. Between truck recalls, CUV recalls and the ignition switch recall, 2014 hasn't been a great year for GM.
Other recall leaders include Nissan (one million Sentra and Altima sedans), Honda (900,000 Odyssey minivans), Toyota (over one million units in a few recalls), Volkswagen (150,000 Passat sedans), Chrysler (644,000 Dodge Durango and Jeep Grand Cherokee SUVs) and most recently, Ford (434,000 units, the bulk of which were early Ford Escape CUVs). So while it's been a bad year for GM so far, its competitors aren't doing too well, either.

Toyota twin-turbo V8 patent unearthed

An unremarkable patent focusing on a minor engine part has revealed that Toyota is at least considering a twin-turbo V8. While the filing is most likely just a large company protecting its intellectual property, it could also be a small glimmer of hope that Toyota, a storied company that's made some glaring missteps with enthusiasts in recent years, can leave the ICE party with a bang for the ages. The patent for a secondary PCV separator, whose function is to isolate exhaust gas from lubricating oil, was discovered by a member of the GR86 forum. In this case, it's not engine oil that's the culprit, but turbocharger oil. From a twin-turbo V8. The patent starts out with an almost embarrassingly hilarious stick figure drawing of a car and where said engine would be located (in the front, under the hood, duh). It has the words "Internal Combustion Engine" printed on a rectangle in case there was any doubt. However, the second figure shows a dual turbo setup nestled in the valley of a V8. It's a prime location for reducing turbo lag and optimizing throttle response (and should necessitate a substantial hood bulge as well). Now, interestingly, the forum member believes this engine will be installed in the next Tundra (and presumably Sequoia), but our own research indicates that the pickup will have a 3.5-liter twin-turbo V6 under the hood. With all due respect to the GR86 members, we're going to stand by that assertion and cross our fingers that the patent hints at something even better. That would be a high-performance Lexus, possibly an IS F or, if the ICE gods will allow it, an LC F. After all, we have had reports from Japan that a trio of F-cars were coming, including a LS F. It would explain why the 472-horsepower, V8-powered IS 500 was called the Sport Performance instead of full-on IS F. In fact, Lexus reps have promised that the F label would become even more performance oriented. A proper IS F would be a fitting sendoff to Toyota's high-performance V8, but the tested, then reportedly canceled, then reportedly revived LC F would be an even more melodious swan song. The flagship grand tourer could very well allow loyalists to forgive the aforementioned gaffes. Toyota president and noted car guy Akio Toyoda has taken heat for questioning the coming outright ban of ICE sales in his home country of Japan. Perhaps this engine is one of the reasons he's objecting.