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Toyota previews new C-HR crossover concept bound for Paris

We're now just a few weeks away from the start of the Paris Motor Show, and when the doors open at the Porte de Versailles, Toyota will be among the many automakers with new wares to show - including the new concept car pictured in this latest teaser image.
Called the C-HR, the concept is designed to represent an "innovative vision for a compact crossover model", incorporating "a new design language with an engaging driving experience and a hybrid powertrain." The Japanese industrial giant isn't saying much else, but the C-HR is set to debut alongside the finalized exterior design for its upcoming new fuel cell sedan.
Toyota, of course, became a pioneer in the compact crossover segment when it introduced the first-generation RAV4 way back in 1994. If the silhouette is anything to go by, however, the C-HR concept appears to adopt a far more streamlined form. Watch this space for more.

Toyota To Stop Building Cars In Australia

Toyota said Monday it will stop making cars in Australia by the end of 2017, spelling a final blow to auto manufacturing in the country, where car companies say high production costs and tough competition have crippled business conditions. Toyota's announcement, which will result in the loss of around 2,500 jobs, was widely anticipated, coming just two months after General Motors Co. said it would end production in Australia by 2017. Ford Motor Co. announced in May that it would cease Australian production in 2016. All told, some 6,600 manufacturing jobs will be lost between the three companies. Mitsubishi Motors Corp. stopped manufacturing in Australia in 2008. Toyota Motor Corp. said its decision was based on a combination of factors including the high Australian dollar, the high cost of manufacturing and competition. "We did everything that we could to transform our business," Toyota Australia CEO Max Yasuda said in a statement. "But the reality is that there are too many factors beyond our control that make it unviable to build cars in Australia." Toyota President Akio Toyoda delivered the news to workers at the company's Altona plant near Melbourne, where he paid tribute to 50 years of Toyota cars being built in Australia. "To now have to deliver this news to the very people we have worked so hard with, to the many people who have supported our production for so many years, is most regretful for Toyota and, for me personally, simply heartbreaking," he said. Toyota, which has been manufacturing cars in Australia since 1963, currently makes the Camry, Camry Hybrid and Aurion in the country. It will become a sales company. Industry Minister Ian Macfarlane said Toyota had not asked the government for any financial assistance in the lead-up to its decision. The government had subsidized auto manufacturing, hoping to keep the industry alive as it supports tens of thousands of jobs in other areas including auto parts. Holden, which is the Australian arm of GM, received 1.8 billion Australian dollars ($1.6 billion) in federal government assistance in the past 11 years. Auto makers in Australia produced about 178,000 cars in 2012, according to the International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers. Related Gallery AOL Autos Test Drive: 2014 Toyota Highlander Plants/Manufacturing Toyota

Hyundai, Kia, Genesis and Subaru clean up in IIHS 2018 safety ratings

Hyundai, its partner Kia and its Genesis division are the big winners in the latest vehicle safety ratings from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, accounting for six of the 15 models that earned the Top Safety Pick+ awards for 2018. Subaru was right behind with four, Mercedes-Benz had two, and Toyota, BMW and Ford each had one. Another 47 vehicles earned the Top Safety Pick designation, where Toyota had 10 vehicle models, with Hyundai recognized for nine models. All but one of the seven vehicles in Subaru's lineup, the BRZ, qualified for one of the awards. IIHS strengthened the criteria for the Top Safety Pick+ award for 2018 to require headlights to earn a "good" rating — an "acceptable" rating was previously enough to notch the "plus" award — and good or acceptable passenger-side protection in the small overlap front crash, which replicates a crash involving just the front corner of a vehicle. It also required vehicles to have acceptable or good headlights for the first time to earn a Top Safety Pick award. Most of winners for both awards qualified on the basis of optional upgrades. IIHS in October began evaluating the passenger side of vehicles in its small overlap front crash test after it said it became clear that automakers were neglecting that side of the vehicle as they focused on improving driver-side protections. IIHS first began conducting driver-side small overlap crashes in 2012. It began measuring both how well low and high beams illuminated the road and the amount of glare they produce for oncoming vehicles as part of its ratings in 2016. The Top Safety Pick+ winners are listed below. The list doesn't include any minivans, pickups or minicars, which don't appear on either list of awardees. Small cars Kia Forte Kia Soul Subaru Impreza (sedan and wagon) Subaru WRX Midsize cars Subaru Legacy Subaru Outback Toyota Camry Large luxury cars BMW 5 series Genesis G80 Genesis G90 Lincoln Continental Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan Midsize SUVs Hyundai Santa Fe Hyundai Santa Fe Sport Midsize luxury SUV Mercedes-Benz GLC The full list of Top Safety Pick winners is available here.Related Video: Image Credit: IIHS BMW Genesis Hyundai Kia Lincoln Subaru Toyota Safety Crossover SUV Wagon Sedan crash test