2005 Toyota Solara Se Convertible 2-door 3.3l on 2040-cars

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Toyota mulling more Tundra, Tacoma capacity in TX

Toyota may be expanding its pickup truck production at its San Antonio, TX factory following calls from dealers for more Tacoma and Tundra models, according to a new report from Automotive News.
The San Antonio plant is currently able to produce 250,000 trucks on two shifts with overtime, while a secondary facility in Tijuana, Mexico can build an extra 50,000 Tacomas. Despite this capacity, and the fact that Tundra is a slow seller relative to the full-size trucks from Ford, Ram and Chevrolet/GMC (not to mention the Tacoma being part of a segment with diminishing sales), Toyota franchisees apparently can't get enough of the trucks.
"Dealers are telling us they could sell more Tacomas and Tundras," said Bill Fay, the general manager of the Toyota Division. "We are evaluating our footprint and capacity." According to AN, Toyota has moved over 248,000 trucks through November.

First live photos and impressions of Toyota's 2014 Corolla

After releasing official pictures and a press release about an hour earlier, Toyota chose an aircraft hanger at the Santa Monica airport as the venue for the global introduction of its highly anticipated 2014 Corolla. Following an extended aerial acrobat show, which included performers running along the walls, swimmers romping in a massive overhead clear plastic pool and angry dancers destroying their cardboard stage in a glittery fit... the all-new C-segment star of the show was lowered on cables from the ceiling. (After the strobe lights and pounding sound that preceded it, the final vehicle reveal was almost anticlimactic.)
Face-to-face with the eleventh-generation sedan, we liked what we saw. Compared to last year's Corolla, the new model appears smaller in person - yet that is mostly an optical illusion. By the tape, it is four inches longer and slightly wider than its predecessor, but a bit shorter. The wheelbase has been stretched nearly four inches, yet the front and rear overhangs only give or take about an inch in the conversion. With the exception of the enormous wheel/fender gap (the new Corolla seems to ride too high), its overall proportions are very pleasing.
The fresh styling is modern and stylish, with sculpted lines that add character to a formerly bland sedan

Toyota and Lexus will have standard automatic braking by 2017

Last week, NHTSA and IIHS announced that 20 auto manufacturers and three agencies had agreed to include automatic emergency braking (AEB) as standard equipment by 2022. Toyota was one of those 20 companies, but this week they upped the AEB ante: Nearly every Toyota and Lexus model and trim level will have standard AEB by 2017. That's next year. Many models already offer AEB as part of the Lexus Safety System+ and Toyota Safety Sense packages, but consumers have had to pay extra for these options (unless they leased a Toyota Mirai hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle; it already has AEB as standard equipment.) By the end of next year, all but the Lexus GS, Toyota 4Runner and Toyota 86 — which was developed together with Subaru — will have AEB installed at no extra cost. (Interestingly, the new Prius Prime unveiled at the New York International Auto Show has Safety Sense as an option rather than standard equipment.) The AEB function is part of Toyota's safety suites, which will be included in 25 Lexus and Toyota models. Both makes have a precollision system that detects the possibility of collision with the car ahead and engages the brakes if the driver doesn't react quickly enough, as well as lane departure alerts and automatic high beams. Toyota's move leapfrogs ahead of Honda making its Honda Sensing system, which includes AEB tech, available as a flat $1,000 option on every Civic Sedan. Related Video: This article by Kristen Hall-Geisler originally ran on TechCrunch, a leading technology media property, dedicated to obsessively profiling startups, reviewing new Internet products, and breaking tech news.