The Global Citizen 2015 Earth Day Celebration Will take place from April 17-19 and will feature Toyota Motors America as the Exclusive Partner of the event. As such, Toyota will feature the all-new Toyota Mirai by providing a series of interactive displays to allow attendees to learn more about the brand’s first-ever hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle. The innovative technology that provides power to the Mirai is a combination of oxygen and hydrogen that work together to create electric power that fuels the model for up to 300 miles on a full charge and the only emissions are water vapor.
This will mark the 45th Earth Day Celebration and Toyota’s participation is even more poignant because it was during the 30th celebration that the brand first debuted the Toyota Prius. In addition to the Global Citizen Celebration, the Mirai will also be displayed at the Waterkeeper Alliance’s star-studded “Keep it Clean” celebrity night of comedy taking place on April 22.
“Toyota has been a committed partner in creating solutions and momentum for a cleaner, better planet,” said Kathleen Rogers, president of Earth Day Network. “We are proud to help educate about the possibilities for fuel cell technology and advocate around a shared vision for the environment.”
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Toyota Provides Support To Robotics Programs
The Toyota Technical Center (TTC) recently announced that it will be donating $60,000 to fund a series of FIRST Robotics activities in Michigan. As the North American engineering, development and research headquarters for Toyota, TTC is funding these activities in order to help promote STEM research amongst today’s students and to encourage an interest in engineering and the automotive industry.
The provided funding will help to support robotics programs in school along with state and regional competitions. Since its initial development, the robotics program has led to the education and training of over 10,000 future scientists, technologists and engineers throughout the state.
“One of Toyota’s founding principles is to improve society,” stated Kristen Tabar, Electrical Engineer and TTC Vice President. “What better way to do that than to give students the tools they need to be successful today while they develop the critical skills they will need tomorrow. We are inspired by the hard work and dedication of the FIRST Robotics students in Michigan and all over the world. We look forward to seeing what they will accomplish, both this school year and beyond.”
Toyota Sales For March 2015
Sales for Toyota Motor Company have continued to rise throughout the first quarter of the year. The latest monthly total for the Toyota Division was an impressive 194,995 units that sold throughout March. This total represents a 4.4% increase over total sales from March of 2014. Additionally, the daily selling rate (DSR) of Toyota models increased as well at a rate that is 9.1% higher than last year’s DSR.
Toyota Sales Highlights:
- Light trucks sales increased by 11.5% with 105,997 units
- Sienna sales increased by 16.6%
- Tacoma and Tundra sales increased by 5.2% with more than 27,000 units
- Camry sales reached more than 40,000
- RAV4 sales increased by 27.9% with 25,243 units
- 4Runner sales increased by 22.5%
- Corolla sales increased by 19.7% with 35,532 units
2016 Toyota RAV4 Makes World Debut
Toyota recently unveiled the all-new 2016 RAV4 Hybrid at the New York International Auto Show. This is now the eighth hybrid to be released by the brand since the launch of the Prius back in 2000. This newest hybrid model has been designed to appeal to more adventurous outdoor lovers who are looking for a fuel-efficient vehicle that can easily handle a variety of road and weather conditions.
Additionally, this model comes complete with a variety of available style, safety and technological such as 17” Alloy Wheels, Six Exterior Color Options, 4.2-inch TFT multi-information display, Smart Key, Homelink® garage door opener, front and rear parking sonar, SiriusXM All-Access Radio with a 3-month complimentary trial, Leather steering wheel, Pre-Collision Warning System, Dynamic Radar Cruise Control, Automatic High Beams, Forward Collision Warning, Pedestrian Pre-Collision System and Lane Departure Warning.
Additionally, this model also comes with the all-new Bird’s Eye View Monitor that offers an industry-first live rotating 360 degree driver view with its innovative Perimeter scan. This system helps drivers to have a full view around their vehicle in order to better observe objects that could get in the way when pulling in and out of a parking space or drive way, or for assistance in parallel parking. This system works through the use of four cameras that are mounted to the rear, front and side mirrors offering the driver views from every possible angle around their vehicle.
Check out this incredible new system in the video above and keep checking back with Fiore Toyota for more information on this all-new model is you live near Hollidaysburg, Altoona, Johnstown, State College or Indiana, PA.
Toyota Releases Gifony Toyota Remix
A new interactive program called “Gifony” has been released by Toyota, making it possible for fans to create their own custom Toyota DJ mix using the sites and sounds of the Toyota production line. The program is on an interactive platform that features a series of gifs that offer a quick look and sound from various different parts of the assembly line at a few of Toyota’s manufacturing plants. Fans can select as many or as few of the gifs that they like and then the program will piece them together into an incredible, one of a kind mix.
“We wanted to give people a rare glimpse at the story behind how their favorite Toyota cars are made,” said Marjorie Schussel, corporate marketing director at Toyota. “Gifony allows users to experience the thrill of stepping into one of our 10 U.S. manufacturing plants for the first time and entering an exhilarating world of sounds, energy and activity.”
Gifony can be found at http://www.toyota.com/gifony/ where users can find the mixture of gif options to choose from. Check it out today to create your own!
Toyota Safety Engineer Shares Her Story
Toyota recently shone the spotlight on Dana Buckley, one of the safety engineers at the Toyota Technical Center (TTC). Buckley’s story is a unique one as she seemed to accidently fall into her career through a chance encounter with a Toyota Recruiter at a Society of Women Engineers conference back in 2012. This was a surprise to her as she originally got her degree in biomedical engineering from the Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) with a plan to spend her time building prosthetic limbs for amputees.
“I never expected that exactly what I wanted to do would be offered by a car company,” she says. “I never pictured myself as a typical engineer. I’m not the kind of person who sits around and solves math problems all day.”
Buckley had attended the conference with plans to speak with only representatives from medical development companies but said when she saw the Toyota booth she was compelled to go over and ask them one question; “Who gets to crash the cars?” This bold question irrevocably changed her entire career course as she discovered that she could actually build a career around crashing cars and testing them out to improve safety, thus helping people, which was her goal all along.
Since starting her career with Toyota, she has worked on the all-new Sienna which earned a 5-Star Safety Rating from NHTSA and is now putting her energy into the 2016 Tacoma. Buckley was even able to put her skills to work in a real life crash situation when she had the front end of her 2012 Camry smashed in by a vehicle that ran a stop sign. She said that once she realized that she was unharmed, her instincts immediately kicked in and she began evaluating the crash damage done to her vehicle looking for answers such as why her bumper sheared off after the blow.
“The most important aspect of engineering is asking questions,” Buckley says. “You’ll never have all the answers, but if you don’t ask the questions you can’t even start to figure it out.”
Buckley has had some incredible experiences through her venture into the world of science, and has gone to placed that she never dreamed she’d be. As part of her studies at WPI, she was required to participate in a project outside of her major, which led to go to Thailand and work with a group that was using science to study and classify the quality of life of elephants native to that area. This experience only helped to feed her strong desire to use math and science to improve the lives of others, a passion that she now proudly pursues through Toyota.
Toyota Applies for Patent on Eyelid Detection System
Toyota is taking another step to improve distracted driving issues by applying for a patent on their new eyelid detection system. This new system scans the driver’s eye and measures the space between the eyelids to calculate how open the driver’s eyes are to determine whether their focus is on the road ahead or a distraction.Toyota states that there is currently technology similar to this on the market today but that it can sometimes falsely detect red eye and therefore not obtain an accurate reading.
The company is still looking to perfect the technology and has plans to perform a series of tests to determine exactly how this new technology could be applied to help combat distracted driving. The company has applied for the patent in order to secure the rights to this advanced idea and continue looking for ways in which to make this technology more viable for in-car use.
Original Source: http://www.autoblog.com/2015/03/23/toyota-self-driving-step-patent-eyelid-detection-device/
At the annual Texas Automotive Writers Association (TAWA) Roundup that took place earlier this month, The 2015 Toyota Sienna, or “Swagger Wagon” as it has been nicknamed, was presented with two different accolades. This vehicle was awarded as both the Family Car of Texas and the Minivan of Texas.
The judging for this year’s competition was conducted by 52 different automotive journalists who test drove a total of 54 vehicles and evaluated them before voting on their favorite in each of the 18 vehicle categories. The 2015 Sienna was selected not only in the minivan category, but the top overall, for its effective combination of convenience, multimedia and safety features that make this a stand-out vehicle and ideal for family-friendly traveling.
Journalists specifically named several available features on the 2015 Sienna that they felt stood out the most. These features include Second-row captain chairs, leather or premium leather trim, three-spoke heated steering wheel, Driver Easy Speak system, Blu-Ray Dual View Entertainment Center and standard second-row Lounge Seating.
Part 2 of Mirai Production Series
In our previous blog we brought you the first three videos in the six part series “Making the Mirai” featuring the production of the Mirai, Toyota’s new fuel-cell sedan. Here we have the final three videos in the series that take you through the rest of the journey as the new Mirai travels along the assembly line of the Motomachi Plant. In these last three videos you can watch as the Mirai makes its way through the Chassis and Fuel Cell System Assembly part of the assembly line and then continues on through the final assembly and inspection before this stylish all-new model emerges off the line. Check out the video’s below to see the rest of the Mirai journey!
Chassis and Fuel Cell System Assembly:
Final Assembly:
Quality Control & Inspection:
Videos Released On Toyota Mirai Production
A series of videos documenting the production of the all-new Toyota Mirai were recently released by Toyota. The videos include an in-depth look at all of the various assembly-line steps at the Motomachi Plant in Toyota City, Japan. Additionally, the series also includes a speech delivered to plant workers by Toyota Motor Corporation President Akio Toyoda. Check out the videos below to see the first three clips in the series and get a look at the production of this all-new fuel-cell sedan.
President Toyoda Speech:
Plant Interior and Parts Selection:
Vehicle Trim Production:
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