1997 Toyota 4runner Sr5 Sport Utility 4-door 3.4l on 2040-cars

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2014 Toyota Tundra

Raising A White Flag To The Competition
We all benefit from highly competitive battles. In the automotive sector, few campaigns are so closely fought as the decades-long struggle for supremacy in the fullsize half-ton pickup truck segment. The Ford F-150 has dominated for ages, but Chevrolet, Ram and GMC have been closing the gap with freshly redesigned trucks that are rocking the industry.
Today's half-ton trucks are better than they've ever been, and we have fierce competition to thank for that.

Successor to the Toyota 86 is on the way

Until now, Toyota and Subaru have been mum on the prospect of a follow up to the Toyota 86 and Subaru BRZ. Although both cars received mild refreshes and even milder power bumps, they're both essentially the same cars that hit the market nearly five years ago. It appears a successor is indeed on the way, as Autocar confirms that Toyota is developing a next-gen 86. Karl Schlicht, executive vice-president at Toyota Motor Europe, said that the 86 will live on past the current generation. "The car serves a big purpose," Schlicht said. "We are not getting out of that business. Sporty cars go through their phases. It's our intention to continue with that car." Toyota seems to be back in the sports car business, as the company has partnered with BMW on a new Supra. Like the current Toyota 86, it seems likely that the successor will be co-developed with Subaru. Schlicht says that to get the low center of gravity and the handling characteristics that come along with it, a horizontally opposed engine is a necessity. He admits that there is no firm confirmation of a commitment from Subaru. While no Schlicht gave no details about the new car, he did nix any possibility of a convertible variant. "We wouldn't do it on the current model," he said. "That doesn't mean dealers wouldn't like one, but there are so many other priorities that I don't think we've got spare capacity for that." Related Video:

Question of the Day: Ever consider driving a minivan?

Since I'm supposed to know something about cars, it happens all the time: friends and relatives ask me advice about what kind of vehicle they should get. Very often, the only type of vehicle that can check every item on their wish list (e.g., hauls lots of people and stuff, gets good fuel economy, has great crash-test ratings, can take four Great Danes camping, and so on) is a modern minivan... and, of course, nobody wants to hear this. I'm not a minivan person, they will wail, and so they end up with a cramped, fuel-swilling SUV or a not-so-space-efficient minivan-in-disguise CUV. So, is it worth becoming one of those minivan people in order to get the incredible usefulness of these masterpieces of vehicle engineering, or do you hold your head high and drive something that doesn't quite meet your needs? Related Video: Auto News Design/Style Chrysler Honda Toyota Minivan/Van question of the day questions