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Toyota reveals custom Mark X, Harrier and Prius for Tokyo Auto Salon

Toyota offers a robust lineup of models in markets around the world – ours included – but there are certain models that remain reserved for Japan, and now it has revealed some tantalizingly modified versions for its home market. Arguably chief among them is a version of the Mark X that's been upgraded by GRMN. For those unfamiliar, the Mark X is a rear-drive sport sedan offered in the Japanese Domestic Market, while GRMN (shorthand for Gazoo Racing Masters of Nurburgring) is the street-tuning division of one of the company's racing departments. The confluence of these two Japanese lines brings some enticing upgrades to the sedan, including a new front bumper, carbon-fiber roof, trunk spoiler, 19-inch alloys, sport suspension, upgraded brakes and an interior decked out with sports sedans and steering wheel as well as carbon, piano black and Alcantara trim. Motivation comes from a 3.5-liter V6 driving 316 horsepower to the rear wheels through a six-speed manual transmission and Torsen limited slip differential. Joining the Mark X GRMN are a pair of models enhanced by G's, another one of Toyota's Japan-centric performance lines. There's an Elegance version of the Harrier – similar to the Lexus RX we get Stateside – with a sports suspension dropped by 1.4 inches, upgraded brakes, an aggressively restyled front end and an enhanced interior. Alongside it Toyota has revealed a version of the tall-roofed Prius Alpha (which we know as the Prius V) with a similarly upgraded suspension, refreshed front end styling and interior with sports seats and silver-stitched black interior. All three models are slated to debut at the 2015 Tokyo Auto Salon - Japan's equivalent of the SEMA show - next month at the Makuhari Messe in Chiba. Featured Gallery Toyota at 2015 Tokyo Auto Salon View 18 Photos News Source: Toyota Aftermarket Green Tokyo Auto Salon Toyota JDM toyota prius v

New Toyota Mirai videos continue questionable hydrogen claims

"Toyota engineers were simultaneously working on a brand new technology that met all the driver's needs with an even smaller carbon footprint." Toyota has released a number of new promotional videos for the hydrogen-powered 2016 Mirai. Most are exactly what you'd expect: pretty, full of promise and vaguely informational. But there was one line in the Product Introduction video that caught out ear. In the Product Information video about the Mirai, the narrator goes into a short history of Toyota's green car advances. After talking about the Prius and the Prius Plug In, making EVs for urban commuting and the rest of Toyota's advanced fuel programs, we hear this: "Never satisfied though, Toyota engineers were simultaneously working on a brand new technology that met all the driver's needs with an even smaller carbon footprint, one that took its lead from nature itself." You can watch the video (and four others) below. Plug In America co-founder Paul Scott told AutoblogGreen, "Show us the math! Toyota claims the FCV has a smaller carbon footprint than their EV, but every paper I've read indicates the FCV uses 3-4 times as much energy to travel a given distance as an EV. If they are making this claim, let's call them out to prove it. Show us the math!" There's some math that comes out in favor of EVs here and here. "BEVs and FCs have a very similar carbon footprint, dependent on fuel source." – Toyota's Jana Hartline Plug-in vehicle advocate Chelsea Sexton went further. "Assuming appropriate comparisons in energy feedstock, basic science doesn't support the notion that the footprint of an FCV is smaller than that of an EV," she told AutoblogGreen, explaining that "appropriate comparison" would mean using similar energy generation methods for both hydrogen and plug-in vehicles. Not the tendency, she noted, "of H2 fans to compare FCVs based on solar-based electrolysis to EVs running on coal-bases electricity and similar shenanigans." Besides, Sexton said, "focusing purely on efficiencies entirely misses the biggest struggles that FCVs face in the market, namely fuel price, inconvenience, and market fear, even if the vehicles themselves are initially subsidized.

Toyota reveals latest autonomous tech test bed

Toyota revealed its latest autonomous technology effort Friday, a sophisticated Lexus LS 600hL prototype that showcases its plans to advance in the emerging field. The Lexus is the first developed entirely by the company's in-house Toyota Research Institute and it will focus on the car's ability to learn and see behavior on the road. Toyota is showing the car at the Prius Challenge event at Sonoma Raceway. The Lexus uses Lidar, radar, and sensors, which potentially reduce reliance on mapping. The prototype advances Toyota's last concept vehicle shown at the Consumer Electronics Show in 2013. This one is said to be more flexible and it will focus on Toyota's two autonomous tech pillars, called Guardian and Chauffeur. Guardian is meant to improve safety features, while Chauffeur moves toward full autonomy. "We believe Guardian can probably be deployed sooner and more widely than Chauffeur, providing high-level driver-assist features capable of helping mitigate collisions and save lives, sooner rather than later," Toyota Research Institute Gill Pratt said in a statement. Related Video: Green Lexus Toyota Autonomous Vehicles Luxury Sedan lexus ls