Toyota has recently launched the largest recall in its history with over 4 million Toyota and Lexus models identified with potential safety issues. Last fall the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration received a flurry of reports that driver’s side floor mats were dislodging and causing the accelerator pedal to get stuck. The problem received national attention when a highway patrol officer and his family were killed. The officer’s Lexus crashed after traveling over 120mph as a result of a stuck gas pedal. Apparently the vehicle could not be stopped by the brakes alone. Toyota responded by issuing a safety alert recommending that Toyota and Lexus owners remove the driver’s side floor mats and not replace them until Toyota could investigate the matter further. The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration also issued an alert in which they strongly urged owners of these vehicles to remove mats or other obstacles that could lead to unintended acceleration. The models with potential safety issues are:
• 2007 – 2010 Toyota Camry
• 2005 – 2010 Toyota Avalon
• 2004 – 2009 Toyota Prius
• 2005 – 2010 Toyota Tacoma
• 2007 – 2010 Toyota Tundra
• 2007 – 2010 Lexus ES350
• 2006 – 2010 Lexus IS250 and IS350
Toyota and Lexus service technicians have undergone training and are now equipped to make the necessary modifications to these models. Although it would seem to be an easy fix; just replace the defective floor mats with a more efficient design, Toyota wants to ensure the safety of their vehicles. Therefore, technicians will actually be reshaping the accelerator pedal and in some models will also install a brake override system. Beginning in April 2010 there will be accelerator pedal replacement part available for those customers that would like to have it installed. Toyota has begun issuing recall letters instructing owners to bring their vehicles in for repair and anticipates a deluge in their service departments. To help combat the inconvenience many Toyota Dealerships are offering rental cars to customers affected by the recall.
The official Toyota website offers more information about the Toyota/Lexus recall including overall safety of both Toyota and Lexus vehicles. For further information Toyota customers can contact the Toyota Customer Experience Center at 1-800-331-4331 or Lexus Customer Assistance at 1-800-255-3987.
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The Mustang GT has had a 5.0 liter engine in its bay for almost 30 years. It was only in 1996 that Ford went with the 4.6L engine. Well now the 2011 Mustang GT will get an increase in displacement to meet the 5.0 liters of days gone by. Since the Mustang was redesigned in 2010, not much has changed on the outside; but a lot has changed under the hood.
In order to deal with the Chevy Camaro and its 426 horsepower, Ford need to add some more muscle for the 2011 model year. So a bump in displacement and a reworked engine will net 416 horsepower; enough to contend with the Camaro SS 426HP and the Challenger SRT8 425HP. The Mustang already is the best handling car of the bunch, and with the added horsepower, the GT should establish itself once again at the top of the muscle car heap.
Chevrolet struck a heart string with buyers when the 2010 Camaro came stock with a V-6 engine
that produced 300 hp while getting 30 MPG on the highway. Ford has decided to follow suit and will introduce a 3.7 liter, V-6 engine in the stock Mustang that will generate 305 Hp, which is more than the Camaro V-6. Fuel Economy numbers for this engine is right at the 30 MPG mark on the highway.
Going on sale in December of 2009, will be the Special Edition Nissan Rogue Krom. The Krom is a special version of the Rogue S compact SUV. The main focus of the Rogue Krom is to stand out from the crowd with a visually stunning appearance. Nissan is looking to take a page from the Scion xB book by creating a vehicle that expresses the feeling of the driver in an outward expression.
Starting with the exterior enhancements, the New Nissan Rogue Krom gets a new front bumper with fog lights and a sweet chrome grill that adds a sporty look to the front of the SUV. The outside mirrors are color matched. And speaking of Paint, the Rogue Krom comes in 3 limited edition colors: Gotham Gray, Venom Red, and Wicked Black. Out back the 2010 Nissan Rogue Krom get a new rear bumper with a cool exhaust that exits out the center, and a color matched rear spoiler. Rounding out the modifications are a set of 17-inch alloy wheels.
While these changes may not seem like much on the surface, they go a long way in the looks department when you compare the stock Rogue with the Krom version. MSRP for the Krom is $23,940.
Source: Nissan News
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The all new and redesigned GMC Terrain is the little brother to the Yukon. GMC is targeting the mid-sized SUV market with the Terrain and at the same time they are trying to get a piece of the pie that Honda and Toyota have long since ruled! The bold exterior of the Terrain is all GMC styling and the Crossover SUV is chalked full of cool features and technology. And of course GMC is sticking to the fuel economy wars offering a 4-cylinder engine that will net you 30 MPG on the highway. All in all the Terrain offers just about everything you would want in a mid-sized SUV.
The exterior of the 2010 GMC Terrain is very bold and truck like. The goal was to create a new look for GMC. The Terrain offers some Buff lines with a huge chrome front grill. But this grill is not just for looks alone, the surface area is so large as to provide proper cooling for the Terrain. The tires are also tucked behind the fenders as to reduce drag and increase fuel efficientcy. There are available 19-inch chrome rims that are a must on this ride.
The interior is clean and modern. The center stack is unique and is definitely the center piece of the interior. The leather heated seats are ultra comfortable and the car is very ergonomic. There is plenty of functional storage room and lots of cool ambient lighting. The backseat is roomy and cubic feet storage space is right in the middle for the class.
Base powertrain is a 2.4 liter 4-clyinder direct-injected engine mated to a six-speed automatic transmission that will get 30 MPG on the highway and 22 in the city which will set the Terrian at the top of the heap for in class fuel economy. Front wheel drive is also standard on the Terrain. If you opt for the V-6 engine you will get 3 liters of direct fuel injected goodness producing 260 hp and 222 lb-ft of torque. Gas mileage for the V-6 is 17/24 city/highway. All wheel drive is available on both engine choices but your fuel economy will suffer.
Features and technology is where the Terrain really shines. Besides the USB, MP3, touch navigation, rear view camera, 40 GB hard drive, XM Radio, OnStar, and rear DVD entertainment; ever new Terrain comes with GM’s 100k mile/5-year warranty which covers the entire drivetrain!
Cost starts at just over $24k and the Terrain has a five-star crash safety rating from the IIHS!
What if you could drive every day without stopping at the gas station? There’s a new electric car coming out soon: the Nissan Leaf. It’s not gas powered and it’s not a hybrid. It runs strictly on electricity. This means it has ZERO emissions. Sounds good, doesn’t it?
There are several reasons that electric cars have not already replaced the gas engine, and they’re challenging to overcome, especially in the short run. The first is range. How far away from home can you get, and will there be a place to recharge along the way? How much does the car cost to buy and operate? Does it have guts?
The new Nissan Leaf can drive up to 100 miles on a full charge. That’s a lot further than most people drive in a day. Drivers would plug it in at home to charge overnight. It only takes 4 to 8 hours to fully charge the battery. You can even program the car to charge late at night when demand for electricity is low. For those occasions when you need to go further than 100 miles in a day, Nissan is working with various cities to install quick charge stations that can charge the battery 80% in about half an hour. You could find these quick charge stations with the Leaf’s navigation system and charge your battery while you stop for a meal.
Before you invest in one, check for quick charge stations in places you might travel. Over time they’ll become more available. If coverage is weak in the places you drive, you might not want your new Leaf to be your only car. Still, in a two car family, an electric car would be an ideal day-to-day commuter car.
Because of the expense of an electric battery, electric cars haven’t historically been able to compete with gas engine cars on price. The Nissan Leaf hasn’t yet announced its retail price, but some experts anticipate a price of around $25,000, including the $7,500 tax rebate. That puts it within reach of the average family. The battery lasts about 5 years, so you’d have to figure in the price of a battery every five years against the gas savings.
What about power? We’ve all driven electric golf carts. Is that how an electric car feels? Not this one. The Nissan Leaf accelerates like a V-6 gas powered car. Nissan’s U.S. tour will show these electric cars in Los Angeles in November. Mass production will start in the U.S. in 2012. The new 2011 Nissan Leaf will be available on a limited basis in selected U.S. cities in 2010. You should be able to buy one at many Southern California locations, since this is one of the areas where Nissan is working to offer quick charge stations. Soon you’ll be able to test drive a Nissan Leaf in Redlands, San Diego, or Los Angeles. Only time will tell if electric cars will become the norm, but the Leaf seems to have a good chance at breaking through that barrier.
Nissan Motor Company is coming out with a new electric vehicle. The electric concept, Nuvu, was introduced in Paris last year but Nissan has yet to release a concept that is closer to the production version of their new EV. Nissan reportedly stated that they wanted a bold design for the Nuvu that looks nothing like a hybrid.
The goal of the new design would be something that exudes environmentally conscious yet differentiates itself from the average “wedge-shaped silhouette” that is too often seen as a hybrid. Nissan wants the car to be so unique that when people see the car they realize it is an EV and not a hybrid.
Because EVs lack an outsized engine and gasoline tank, they open up new design possibilities. The new EV is rumored to be comparable in size to the Cube or Versa. Nissan has not released pictures of the car but is stating that the EV has no grille, a low hood (by lack of engine), a visible recharging plug in the front, and a profile that is flowing instead of triangular, but this spy shot is circulating the web. The new EV from Nissan is scheduled to go on sale next year.
Hyundai Motor Company had HKS USA Inc. create a high performance Genesis Coupe 2.0T for the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) show. HKS is the leading manufacturer of premium performance parts and is the second company to join Hyundai for the SEMA show. The Genesis Coupe already has a great chassis, rear-wheel drive, aggressive styling and design, and a charged up engine but these qualities provide the perfect opportunity for HKS to maximize the Coupe’s performance.
The new Coupe will showcase functional ground effects and emphasize on driver comfort and control with all HKS electronics. Some of which include, a CAMP2 which monitors up to 24 data signals from the programmable calculations for fuel cost, averaging the fuel consumption and fuel efficiency in real time. The HKS Genesis Coupe includes many new 
features like: a HKS GT Turbo upgrade engine (to maximize horsepower and torque), HKS engine intervals, HKS limited-edition turbo exhaust system, HKS Super Mega Flow Intake System, HKS Engine Management, and HKS Hipermax III with fully adjustable suspension.
Partnering with an industry leader like HKS is a excellent way for Hyundai to expand on the performance of the already great Genesis Coupe. This new vamped up Coupe is the ideal vehicle for driving enthusiasts. And the SEMA HKS Hyundai Genesis is a great car to showcase just what a Genesis can be!
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Lexus has finally decided to dedicate to the world the first hybrid luxury vehicle; the HS 250h Lexus. The HS hybrid was unveiled at the Detroit Auto Show and marks new territory for Lexus entry level hybrid in the luxury class. When talking about a hybrid the first thing comes to mind is what’s under the hood. Well a 2.4Liter four cylinder that produces 187horsepower. Add the 40 horsepower electric motor and you have some nice acceleration.
The Toyota Hybrid Synergy Drive System is mated to a power control unit that manages fuel consumption by recharging the battery when slowing down or braking and delivering an electric assist when accelerating. According to Lexus, the HS 250h can accelerate from 0 to 60 in 8.4 seconds. Lexus also promised that the HS would be the most fuel efficient luxury vehicle in the world with an EPA fuel economy rating of 35mpg city and 34mpg highway. The Lexus HS250h’s’ 0.27 drag coefficient alon with a couple of spoilers and diffusers seem to support Lexus’ claim.
As for styling and the green theme, 30 percent of the Hybird’s materials are derived from plant-based materials and 85 percent are fully recyclable. Luxury vehicles are always jam packed with features, and this luxury hybrid includes a wireless cell-phone link, a navigation system with rearview camera, a Heads-Up Display, adaptive cruise control, adaptive headlights, auto-dimming headlights, ventilated front seats, and keyless access and starting. Also offered on the Lexus Hybrid car is a wide-view front camera that shows the view to the sides when pulling out from between two cars, a lane-departure warning system that alerts the driver and can correct the vehicle’s path if it drifts out of its lane, and Lexus’ new Enform System with Safety Connect, an assistance system with convenience, safety, security, and emergency-response features.
Shelby Automobiles presents a supped up package for the existing Shelby GT500. The newest performance package for the Mustang is the Super Snake. The performance package will include enhancements to the GT500’s handling, styling, and motor. Available tuning options will include a 600 horsepower V-8 that comes with a warranty, or an unwarranted 725 horsepower mad man.
Super Snakes will be built per model year at Shelby Automobiles in Vegas but it is unclear as to how many of these special Mustang’s will be manufactured. Shelby Automobiles designed an aggressive suspension and engine package made specifically for the car. The Ford Mustang GT500 Super Snake package will include features like a 6 speed manual transmission with 3.73:1 rear axle ratio, a Ford Racing performance exhaust system and
upgrade kit with over 600hp and 590ft-lbs of torque, tuned stabilizing bars, front strut tower brace, Alcoa 20inch wheels, short throw shifter from Ford Racing, Baer 6 piston brakes including Shelby cast calipers and larger rotors, front brake cooling ducts, carbon composite hood, Shelby emblems, and Super Snake badging.
Carroll Shelby reportedly stated that Shelby Automobiles is always working on new ways to build better performing cars and that by partnering with Ford they’re giving driving enthusiasts a Mustang with amazing blow-you-away performance.
Infiniti showcased their ultra powerful, ultra luxurious concept car the “Essence” at the Councours d’Elegance in Pebble Beach. This sleek bullet of a vehicle pulls its 592-hp from a parallel hybrid system that combines an ultra-slim 3D electric motor with a 3.7 liter twin turbo V6 engine. The 3D motor has a power regeneration mode which keeps the battery pack charged.
The Essence exterior is beyond sleek. Its fluid, seamless structure gives the appearance of molten liquid being hurled through space. The exquisite design is a culmination of 20 years of Infiniti craftsmanship and is a pre-curser to future production models. The Essence gives us our first peak at Infiniti’s newest Safety Shield technology, designed with the intent to create the first collision-free car.
The Essence interior embodies Infiniti’s emphatic sense of style and attention to detail. The plush leather seats and molded cabin structure cocoon both driver and passenger in comfort and luxury. However, the icing on the cake is the inclusion of a three-piece Louis Vuitton luggage set, fitted perfectly in the vehicle trunk.
Read more about the Infiniti Essence or see great Infiniti Specials
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