Category Archives: Events
Is the “Supra revival” really dead? Not so fast…
Last month, we commented on Mike Connor of Motor Trend‘s May 2013 print edition good news/bad news MT Confidential column. Good news because it predicts a Mercedes SLK, BMW Z4, and entry-level Porsche Boxster-rivalling small Lexus roadster. Bad news because, … Continue reading
Is Spyker’s newest sports car powered by Toyota?
On the fringes of the “top tier” of super sports car makers (think Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche and McLaren) that make their own engines for their much-admired creations lies another group of manufacturers that depend on larger outside carmakers for the … Continue reading
The 2013 Toyota, Lexus and Scion “launch list” gets tweaked yet again!
Another day, another set of teaser hints and pronouncements over what new or revised vehicles Toyota, Scion and Lexus will introduce during the 2013 calendar year. First, on 11 September 2012, Toyota Division U.S.A. group vice president and general manager … Continue reading
7 or 9? The other 2 new Toyota…er…Lexus models for 2014
Back in 17 November 2010, a Toyota RAV4 press release concluded by informing us, in an almost throwaway fashion, that “by the end of 2012, Toyota will add seven all new (not next-generation) hybrid models to its portfolio”. We scrambled … Continue reading
Informed speculation: the 7 all-new or updated Toyota and Scion vehicles for 2013
As the calendar turns from 2012 to 2013 and we look back at our previous predictions (some dating back to 2010) on what new or revised models Toyota, Scion and Lexus models were launched, we are reminded that Toyota is … Continue reading
Should Toyota be considering a Yaris-derived, sub-RAV4 crossover SUV?
Back in the mid-to-late 1990s, Toyota almost singlehandedly created 2 vehicle segments which would go on to become of pivotal importance in the automotive universe and spawn a plethora of imitators and competitors. The first of these is the compact … Continue reading
An…er…um…highly unusual Lexus CT 200h art car
What do cars and politics have in common? All the fiery debate, finger-pointing and hand-wringing over the U.S. government/taxpayer bailout of General Motors and Chrysler and dubious “investments” in and loans to “green” companies such as Fisker and Tesla? Yeah, … Continue reading
The Toyota alliances: a preamble
Over two years ago, the first thing this author wrote for Kaizen Factor included these passages: Although Toyota President Akio Toyoda famously stated at the 2009 Management Briefing Seminars in Traverse City, Michigan that “Toyota is not the kind of … Continue reading
