After finding their way into our homes and offices, wireless charging systems for cell phones and other electronic devices are now beginning to make their appearance in automobiles.
General Motors has already introduced a wireless cell phone mat and so has Chrysler's Mopar division, but Toyota is laying claims to the "world’s first application of Qi wireless in-car charging" as part of a Technology Package for both the 2013 Avalon and Avalon Hybrid models.
We reached out to Chrysler to ask whether its already available wireless charging system adheres to the "Qi" interface standards and we will post an update once we receive a reply, but for now, we will take Toyota's word for it.
Toyota has announced pricing for its U.S. market 2011 model year line-up, which will begin arriving at dealerships in August, with the exception of RAV4 that goes on sale in September.
The big news for the 2011 lineup is the installation of brake override technology as standard equipment across the range. This technology is designed to stop a car if the brakes and accelerator are applied simultaneously (see Consumer Report's video after the jump) and was adopted by Toyota to ease consumer concerns over sudden acceleration of its vehicles.
Aside from the redesigned 2011 Avalon that was introduced with the safety feature, brake override technology is now standard on the Yaris, RAV4 SUV, Land Cruiser SUV, Sequoia SUV and Tundra pickup truck.
There are more changes on certain models for the 2011 model year that you can check out in detail in the press release after the jump.
Toyota officially placed the arrival of the all-new 2012 Camry sedan and its hybrid sibling (2010/2011 Camry pictured above) in the U.S. market for this fall during the company’s annual national dealer meeting which took place on Wednesday in Las Vegas.
The Japanese company said that the next generation of its best-selling model will move away from the conservative designs of the past.
“Designed to meet the changing needs of the 21st Century driver, the new Camry will provide technologically advanced features, a contemporary design inside and out, improved performance and refined ride and handling,” Toyota said in a press statement.
The March 11 earthquake and tsunami in Japan caused severe problems to automakers all around the world, mainly due to the lack of parts, but at least Toyota seems to be recovering at a faster pace than expected. Today, the world’s largest automaker said production at its North American facilities will rise to approximately 70 percent of normal in June, up from around 30 percent in May when it was forced to idle factories for several days or reduce shifts.
Toyota has announced a voluntary recall of some 740,000 vehicles in the United States to address a potential leak problem with a seal in the brake master cylinder. The models that are being recalled in the U.S. are the 2005-2006MY Toyota Avalon, 2004-2006MY Highlander (non Hybrid) and Lexus RX330, and 2006 Lexus GS300, IS250, and IS350. Another 600,898 vehicles were recalled in Japan and approximately 200,000 in China for the same issue.
Another day, another recall-nightmare for Toyota Motor Corp. This time, the Japanese automaker said it was recalling around 373,000 of its 2000-2004MY Toyota Avalons, and approximately 39,000 of its 2003-2007MY Lexus LX 470s in the U.S. for unrelated problems concerning steering parts that may be defective.
