Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203) upwardly revised its earnings forecast on Aug. 4 for the full business year ending in March 2018. The company’s total sales forecast is now 28.5 trillion yen ($257.33 billion), a 1 trillion yen increase from previous estimates. Operating profit is now forecast at 1.85 trillion yen and net profit at 1.75...
Toyota
Toyota and Mazda to Build $1.6B Production Plant in US, Partner up on EV Development
Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203) and Mazda Motor Corp. (TYO:7261) announced on Aug. 4 that they have signed an agreement to enter into a business and capital agreement. Under the alliance, the two Japanese automakers will establish a JV in the U.S. with a production capacity of 300,000 units and work together on electric vehicle (EV)...
Toyota and Microsoft Launch Interactive Viewing Experience for World Rally Championship
Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203) and Microsoft Corp. have announced the launch of EchoCam, an interactive viewing experience for the World Rally Championship’s Neste Rally Finland 2017, which is being held July 27–30. During the event, spectators can go to special locations to take photos of the Yaris WRC as it passes by. Spectators who upload...
Hitachi Provides Toyota With Machine Learning Service for Patent Data Analysis
Hitachi Ltd. (TYO:6501) announced on July 20 that it will provide Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203) with the patent analysis option of its Shareresearch service starting from Aug. 21. The upgrade will allow Toyota to automatically sort patent information using machine learning technology, reducing the workload required for analysis. Tokyo-based Nisseicom Ltd. will be in charge...
Toyoda Gosei Develops New Side Airbag With Three-Bag Structure
Toyoda Gosei Co. Ltd. (TYO:7282) announced on July 19 that it has developed a new side airbag with Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203). The new side airbag serves to reduce impact on the chest, abdomen and elsewhere, resulting in high marks under stringent collision safety assessment tests in the U.S. and Europe. The product has been...
Nissan Makes Full-Fledged Effort to Increase EV Sales in China
Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. (TYO:7201) has announced a full-fledged effort to increase its sales of electric vehicles (EVs) in China, developing new SUV and sedan EVs exclusively for the Chinese market. In addition to introducing these new EV models as Nissan brands in 2018, the company will also add local Chinese brand, Venucia, to its...
Toyota and Kanagawa Prefecture Team up on Hydrogen Project
Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203), Toyota Industries Corp. (TYO:6201) and Kanagawa Prefecture recently announced the July 13 full-scale launch of a demonstration project to supply wind power-generated hydrogen to fuel cell forklifts. Using the premises of the Yokohama City Wind Power Station, the group has installed manufacturing equipment that uses this renewable energy to create low-carbon...
Toyota Launches Fully Redesigned Camry – First Time in Six Years
Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203) launched a newly designed Camry in Japan on July 10, marking the first time in six years that the global midsize sedan has undergone a full redesign. Monthly sales have been set at a target of 2,400 units, around triple last year’s figure. While Toyota is particularly strong in the sedan...
Toyota Unveils All-New Lexus LS Featuring Advanced Safety System
Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203) on June 26 debuted its all-new Lexus LS, slated to be launched in Japan this autumn. Toyota Senior Managing Officer Kiyotaka Ise said that the new Lexus LS was developed to be the safest vehicle in the world, and emphasized that it is intended to serve as a model of things...
ISID Develops 3D Vehicle Data Sharing System Using VR Technology
Information Services International-Dentsu Ltd. (TYO:4812), commonly referred to as ISID, announced on June 20 that it has developed a prototype remote 3D vehicle data sharing system using virtual reality (VR) technology for Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203). This system will allow people in remote locations to communicate and share full-size vehicle models over the internet. Toyota...
Toyota Names Google and Apple as Rivals at Shareholder Meeting
Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203) held its 113th annual general meeting of shareholders at the company’s headquarters in Toyota, Aichi Prefecture on June 14. The Japanese automaker’s president, Akio Toyoda, said the company will need to consider various options in the future, including M&A deals. He also said Toyota will take an aggressive stance to raise...
Prius Climbs Back to Top New Car Sales for First Time in Three Months
Toyota Motor Corp’s (TYO:7203) Prius reclaimed the top spot in May for best-selling vehicle among those with engine displacement above and below 660 cc. It is the first time in three months that the Prius has retaken the lead, with the new model Prius plug-in hybrid (PHV) launched in February contributing to the boosted sales....
Toyota Unveils Lexus Pleasure Boat Prototype, Lays Out Sport Yacht Concept
Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203) recently unveiled its Lexus Sport Yacht Concept prototype boat for the first time in Japan. The model is the first pleasure boat under the automaker’s luxury brand, Lexus. Speaking at the Tokyo presentation for the new boat, Senior Managing Officer Shigeki Tomoyama talked of Toyota’s intention to leverage what it has...
Denso Develops World’s First Sensor to Measure Air/Fuel Ratio, NOx Levels
Denso Corp. (TYO:6902) has commercialized the world’s first compound sensor with the ability to detect both nitrogen oxide (NOx) levels and air/fuel (A/F) ratio. Combining the sensor functions into a single unit greatly reduces total cost and the space required to build the unit into vehicle exhaust system components. The compound sensor will initially be...
Toyota Mulls Over Dealership Services for Connected Cars
Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203) dealers have started looking at how to provide services for connected cars. The vehicles, which communicate with servers at all times, will automatically transmit signals in real time upon detection of malfunctions and the need for inspections. Dealers expect this to lead to an increasing need for actions such as emergency...
Toyota Posts Decline in Both Sales and Profit for First Time in Five Years
Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203) on May 10 announced its financial results for fiscal 2016, with the company’s report prepared in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). The automaker suffered a year-on-year decline in both sales and profit for the first time in five years. Sales fell 2.8 percent to drop to 27.5971 trillion...
Toyota Completes $154M Extension of US R&D Centers
Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203) announced on May 5 that Toyota North America Inc. has completed extension work its R&D centers in Michigan. With a capital investment of $154 million, the expanded R&D centers have been outfitted with extended engine and transmission development functionality. Additionally, with newly constructed test drive and component resource centers, the facility...
Toyota Group Global Sales Hit 10.25M Units for 2016 – Most Ever
Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203) announced on April 27 that group global sales for fiscal 2016 stood at 10.25 million units, increasing 1.6 percent year-on-year. Including figures for Daihatsu Motor Co. Ltd. and Hino Motors Ltd. (TYO:7205), this marks the highest number of units sold in one year by Toyota Group to date. The group’s previous...
Toyota, KDDI Start Verification Testing of Connected Taxis
Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203) and KDDI Corp. (TYO:9433) announced on April 25 that the two companies have begun verification testing on the collection and utilization of taxi driving data to make connected taxis a reality. Working together with Tokyo Hire-Taxi Association, Toyota and KDDI will carry out the verification testing through to the end of...
Toyota Supersizes Mirai Fuel Cell Technology for Tests in Heavy-Duty Truck
Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203) has announced that Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America Inc. (TEMA) will begin demonstration tests this summer of a heavy-duty truck equipped with fuel cell system at the Port of Los Angeles, California. The tests aim to determine the system’s level of durability, traveling performance and environmental performance for applications...
Toyota to Test Fuel Cell Cars in China
Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203) announced on April 18 that it will begin demonstration tests of two Mirai fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) this October in China. In conjunction with this, the company will build a hydrogen fueling station at Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing China, the automaker’s the automaker’s R&D center in Changshu, Jiangsu Province. Toyota...
Japanese Automakers Show Strong Sales Performance in US, China for 2016
Five Japanese automakers in fiscal 2016 enjoyed year-on-year growth in sales in China, with four of these companies doing so also in the U.S., according to sales volume data collated by Japan Automotive Daily. In China, Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203), Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. (TYO:7201), Honda Motor Co. Ltd. (TYO:7267) and Mazda Motor Corp. (TYO:7261)...
Toyota to Invest Record $1.33 Billion Into Kentucky Plant
Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203) announced on April 10 that it is investing $1.33 billion to renovate Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky Inc. (TMMK). The Georgetown, Kentucky factory is preparing for production of the automaker’s new Camry model from June. U.S. President Donald Trump said in Toyota’s press release that its decision to make the investment is...
Subaru to Create up to 600 New Jobs at Indiana Plant
Subaru Corp. (TYO:7270) plans on making up to 600 new hires by the end of 2018 at Subaru of Indiana Automotive Inc. (SIA), the automaker’s production base in Indiana, U.S. The new hires would increase the plant’s staff base by about 10 percent to almost 6,000 workers. SIA has to date served as a production...
2016 Sees Second Highest Number of Recalls in Japan – MLIT
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) announced on April 7 that a total of 15,848,401 vehicles were recalled in Japan in fiscal 2016. Driven by the recall of all automobiles outfitted with Takata Corp. (TYO:7312) airbags, it is the second highest recall count to date, behind that of fiscal 2015. However, the...
Prius Claims Back Top Spot in New Car Sales Rankings
The Toyota Prius was the best-selling new car in Japan in fiscal 2016. It is the first time in five years that the Prius has topped the domestic new car sales rankings, coming partly due to a market-expanding strong first-half performance. The Honda N-Box came in second for the second year in a row, followed...
Japan Tops 5 Million New Car Sales in 2016 – First Time in Two Years
New car sales in Japan rose 2.8 percent year-on-year for fiscal year 2016, increasing to 5,077,904 units. Including both full-size and kei-class light automobiles, it marks the first time in two years that sales have surpassed 5 million units. After weak sales early on due to the Kumamoto earthquakes and kei-class light automobile-related fuel efficiency...
Toyota Boshoku and Tachi-S to Enter Business Partnership
Toyota Boshoku Corp. (TYO:3116) and Tachi-S Co. Ltd. (TYO:7239) recently announced that they have come to terms for forming a business partnership for automotive seat operations. With Toyota Boshoku a Toyota Group parts supplier, and Tachi-S primarily handling parts for Nissan Motor Co. Ltd’s (TYO:7201) automobiles, the two companies will be crossing the boundaries of...
METI Drafts Guidelines for Virtual Simulation Practices in Automobile Development
The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) announced on March 31 that it has drafted a policy to promote model-based development (MBD) for the virtual simulation of automobile development and performance assessments. METI released its guidelines for defining the intermodal interfaces used, as well as the vehicle performance simulation model that forms a common...
Major Passenger Automakers Show Strong Production and Export Figures for February
Eight Japanese passenger car manufacturers on March 29 announced their respective output and export figures for February 2017. All the companies posted higher numbers for overseas production over the previous year thanks to strong performance in North America, China and elsewhere in Asia, as well as other major markets. Six of the companies set new...
