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Toyota's 'green bond' an industry first, quickly rises to $1.75 billion

Toyota is greasing the skids for more green car purchases with the announcement of a $1.75-billion bond designed to finance the purchase of high-efficiency Toyota and Lexus models. The Asset-Backed Green Bond is a first for the automotive industry and is making a lot of money available to buy or lease the following vehicles: any of the four Prius variants, Camry Hybrid, Avalon Hybrid, RAV4 EV, Lexus CT 200h and Lexus ES 300h. Originally, the bond was set at $1.25 billion, but Justin Leach, manager of public relations for Toyota Financial Services (TFS), told AutoblogGreen that demand was high and it was quickly oversubscribed. TFS has been looking at more ways to diversify its portfolio after a Diversity & Inclusion Bond that was announced in early 2013 and, with the new Green Bond, TFS is offering something for the "number of investors out there who are looking for investment opportunities in green." The way the money from the bond is used, basically, is that TFS takes the $1.75 billion and uses it to finance the purchase or lease of the nine vehicles listed above. As of right now, all the eligible vehicles are plug-in or hybrids, but the rules simply say that the cars in the program have to meet certain "powertrain, fuel efficiency and emissions" criteria. That means: Minimum EPA estimated MPG (or MPG equivalent for alternative fuel vehicles) of 35 city / 35 highway California Low-Emission Vehicle II (LEV II) certification of super ultra-low emission vehicles (SULEVs) or higher, which would include partial zero emissions vehicles (PZEVs) and zero emissions vehicles (ZEVs). TFS raises plenty of billions in other ways for the rest of the lineup, and got into asset backed securities in 2010, Leach said. Given the success of this first Green Bond, Leach said he expects TFS to keep this idea in its arsenal. "This one was so well received, I would be surprised if we didn't see it again," he said. "If anyone was going to do it, it should be Toyota, right?" Toyota Financial Services (TFS) Issues Auto Industry's First-Ever Asset-Backed Green Bond Bond Proceeds to Fund Consumer Loans and Leases for Toyota's Leading Portfolio of Green Vehicles TORRANCE, Calif., (March 24, 2014) – Toyota Financial Services (TFS) issued the auto industry's first-ever Asset-Backed Green Bond in the amount of $1.75 billion.

2019 Lexus ES gets new F Sport trim, Amazon Alexa and Apple CarPlay

"Alexa," I say out loud. A chime goes off in the all-new 2019 Lexus ES acknowledging the wake word. I ask what the weather is going to be like tomorrow, and after a brief pause, the voice made famous from Amazon's Super Bowl campaign replies, informing me of the cloud conditions and the temperatures for the next day based on my current GPS location. Although the ability to order paper towels from the comfort of a car wasn't quite ready for prime time (I tried), the future is nigh. While Lexus was unveiling the seventh-generation ES on the global stage that is the Beijing Motor Show, simultaneously in Los Angeles, a more intimate gathering of journalists was held and the wraps were pulled off an ES 350 and the ES F Sport. Not present was the ES 300h hybrid variant. In all, 2,000 components are either new or have been revised on the 2019 ES, which utilizes the larger GA-K chassis variation of Toyota's new global TNGA platform. Utilized on the 2018 Toyota Camry and 2019 Avalon, it's the first time the luxury brand has put the new front-wheel-drive platform to use. Standing 2.6 inches longer, 0.2 inches lower, 1.8 inches wider with wider tracks (0.4-inch front, 1.5 inch rear), and having a 2-inch longer wheelbase than the model it replaces, Lexus says the dimensions have been stretched to improve handling(for some reference, you can see how the similarly sized new Avalon compares to the last-generation ES). Another benefit is rear seat legroom, which is actually greater than that of the flagship LS sedan. All new ES models will roll out of Toyota's Kentucky plant with aluminum hoods and front fenders, and high-tensile steel to save on weight. Thanks to efforts such as those, the preliminary curb weight for the new, larger ES 350 is 3,649 pounds, a 78-pound increase from the current. The ES models on display both employ a new 8-speed automatic transmission mated to the same 3.5-liter V6 found in the Camry and Avalon. In the ES it produces 302 hp and 267 lb-ft of torque, a jump in 34 hp and 19 lb-ft of torque from the current ES 350. Preliminary fuel economy figures are 26 mpg combined (22 city / 33 highway), a bump up from 24 combined (21 city / 30 highway). The ES 300h will also share its hybrid powertrain with the Avalon, consisting of a 2.5-liter four-cylinder aided by two electric motors (one for propulsion and another that serves as a motor generator). The current ES only has one electric motor. Total system output is 215 horsepower.

Lexus tops JD Power Vehicle Dependability Study again, Buick bests Toyota

It shouldn't surprise anyone, but Lexus has once again taken the top spot in JD Power's Vehicle Dependability Study. That'd be the Japanese luxury brand's fourth straight year at the top of table. The big news, though, is the rise of Buick. General Motor's near-premium brand beat out Toyota to take second place, with 110 problems per 100 vehicles compared to Toyota's 111 problems. Lexus owners only reported 89 problems per 100 vehicles. Besides Buick's three-position jump, Scion enjoyed a major improvement, jumping 13 positions from 2014. Ram and Mitsubishi made big gains, as well, moving up 11 and 10 positions, respectively. In terms of individual segments, GM and Toyota both excelled, taking home seven segment awards each. The study wasn't good news for all involved, though. A number of popular automakers finished below the industry average of 147 problems per 100 vehicles, including Subaru, (157PP100), Volkswagen (165PP100), Ford/Hyundai (188PP100 each) and Mini (193PP100). The biggest losers (by a tremendous margin, we might add) were Land Rover and Fiat, recording 258 and 273 problems per 100 vehicles. The next closest brand was Jeep, with 197PP100. While the Vehicle Dependability Study uses the same measurement system as the Initial Quality Survey, the two metrics analyze very different things. The VDS looks at problems experienced by original owners of model year 2012 vehicles over the past 12 months, while the oft-quoted IQS focuses on problems in the first 90 days of new-vehicle ownership. Like the IQS, though, the VDS has a rather broad definition of what a problem is. Because of that, a low score from JD Power is no guarantee of extreme unreliability, so much as just poor design. In this most recent study, the two most reported problems focused on Bluetooth connectivity and the voice-command systems. The former leaves plenty of room for user error due to poor design (particularly true of the Bluetooth systems on the low-scoring Fords, Volkswagens and Subarus), while the second is something JD Power has already confirmed as being universally terrible. That makes means that while these studies are important, they shouldn't be taken as gospel when it comes to automotive reliability. News Source: JD PowerImage Credit: Copyright 2015 Jeremy Korzeniewski / AOL Buick Fiat Ford GM Hyundai Jeep Land Rover Lexus MINI Mitsubishi RAM Scion Subaru Toyota Volkswagen Auto Repair Ownership study