Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) announces that it plans to start production at a new plant in China in the first half of 2012. The plant, for which construction will soon begin, will be the third plant of Sichuan FAW Toyota Motor Co., Ltd. (SFTM), a joint venture by TMC and China FAW Group Corporation (FAW).

The new plant—located in Changchun, Jilin Province and for which a groundbreaking ceremony was held in October 2008—will initially produce the “Corolla” on a scale of 100,000 units annually. New investment will total approximately 3.8 billion yuan (approximately 50 billion yen).

Source: http://www2.toyota.co.jp/en/news/10/04/0428_2.html

Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) announces that it has begun accepting applications today for this year’s1 Toyota Environmental Activities Grant Program, which is designed to support environmental revitalization and conservation activities aimed at sustainable development.

The themes this year, as last year, are “Global Warming Countermeasures” and “Biodiversity Conservation”—both key areas of environmental activities. Grants will be provided to NPOs and other private, non-profit groups (excluding schools) that are promoting practical projects—inside or outside Japan—in these areas.

The Toyota Environmental Activities Grant Program was established in commemoration of TMC’s receipt of the Global 500 Award2 in 1999 from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and has been carried out every year since 2000 as part of TMC’s environmental social contribution activities, with this year marking the program’s 11th year.

Source: http://www2.toyota.co.jp/en/news/10/04/0428_1.html

Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) announces that its distributor in South Korea, Toyota Motor Korea Co., Ltd. (TMKR), recently marked its 10th anniversary.

Established in March 2000 as a local distributor of Toyota-brand vehicles, TMKR began to sell Lexus-brand vehicles in January 2001 and added the Toyota brand to its lineup in October 2009.

Since its establishment, TMKR has striven to be a good corporate citizen in South Korea through a variety of social contribution activities. To mark its 10th anniversary, the company has announced a new social contribution activity named the “Smile Together Campaign”, in which TMKR will lend for free two specially equipped “Hiace” minivans to social welfare groups. The campaign is based on TMC’s philosophy of providing the freedom of comfortable mobility to all people.

TMKR has implemented various other social contribution activities such as supporting special courses at Seoul National University, assisting the Toyota Environmental School and encouraging TMKR employees to volunteer at centers for the homeless. Through such activities, TMKR intends to continue actively contributing to local society.

Source: http://www2.toyota.co.jp/en/news/10/04/0426_1.html

Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) announces that the Toyota “Alphard” minivan and Toyota “Land Cruiser Prado” SUV are highlighting TMC’s 49-vehicle display at the 11th Beijing International Automotive Exhibition. The display of Toyota and Lexus vehicles is TMC’s largest ever in China; the show runs from today until May 2 at the Beijing China International Exhibition Center.

The soon-to-be-introduced Alphard is aimed at meeting the expectations of a broader range of Chinese customers. Meanwhile, the new made-in-China Land Cruiser Prado is making its Chinese-show debut. Drawing the spotlight for Lexus is the “LF-A Race Car”, a two-seater supercar veteran of the 2009 24 Hours Nürburgring endurance race in Germany.

The main Toyota concept vehicles on display at the show are the “FT-CH” compact hybrid (Asian debut), the “FT-EV II” electric vehicle with newly developed motor and lithium-ion battery (Chinese debut), the “Prius Plug-in Hybrid” with plug-in hybrid technology and lithium-ion battery (Chinese debut) and the “FT-86″ rear-wheel-drive compact sports car (Chinese debut). These concept vehicles aim to address environmental and energy-related issues, while fostering the joy and dreams associated with driving and automobiles.

TMC has positioned hybrid-vehicle technology as a core technology that can help make exhaust emissions cleaner, reduce CO2, and increase fuel efficiency. As such, it began producing the “Camry Hybrid” in Guangzhou, China in April to help further expand hybrid vehicle use. TMC aims to contribute to Chinese society by meeting the increasingly diverse needs of customers in China with a product lineup that ranges from compact cars to SUVs and minivans.

TMC Display at 11th Beijing International Automotive Exhibition

Source: http://www2.toyota.co.jp/en/news/10/04/0423_2.html

Chevrolet, General Motors Company’s leading global vehicle brand, will be introduced in Korea in 2011. GM Daewoo Auto & Technology President and CEO Mike Arcamone made the announcement today at a press conference held in conjunction with the opening of the Busan International Motor Show.

“The introduction of Chevrolet will enable us to provide our customers an array of exciting new vehicles from the brand’s global lineup, giving them more driving options,” said Arcamone. “This will help GM Daewoo increase our sales and market share in the domestic market while generating additional revenue, strengthening our employees’ job security, creating new jobs and resulting in additional investment in Korea. We regard it as a key to our long-term success.”

As an example of the products that Korean consumers can expect, GM Daewoo introduced the new Chevrolet Camaro at its motor show stand. The popular sports car will go on sale in Korea in 2011.

“According to our market research, half of all Koreans are familiar with the brand and more than 80 percent are aware of Chevrolet’s distinctive logo,” said Arcamone. “This is indicative of the positive brand image that already exists among consumers in Korea toward Chevrolet. We see tremendous upside with its introduction.”

Arcamone also emphasized that today’s announcement is about brand coexistence, not brand replacement. “Our decision to launch Chevrolet is in the best interest of GM Daewoo and Korea,” he said.

Founded in 1911 and named after famous race car driver Louis Chevrolet, Chevrolet is one of GM’s four core brands. Last year, Chevrolet accounted for 44 percent of GM’s global sales and registered a 21 percent increase in sales from the previous year.

“GM is bringing the new brand to Korea to enhance our presence in the domestic market,” said GM International Operations President Tim Lee. “Last year, 3.3 million Chevrolet vehicles were sold in 130 markets worldwide, making it the fourth most popular passenger car brand globally.”

The success of products such as the new Chevrolet Cruze global compact sedan and the next-generation Chevrolet Spark mini-car has played a key role in Chevrolet becoming one of the fastest-growing vehicle brands in the world. Chevrolet sales in 2009 were twice those in 2005.

“Chevrolet has enjoyed success in mature markets in North America and Europe, as well as in emerging markets in Asia Pacific and Latin America,” said Lee. “We are confident that it will drive us into a new era in Korea.”

Source: http://publish.media.gm.com/content/media/us/en/news/news_detail.brand_gm.html/content/Pages/news/us/en/2010/Apr/0428_korea

Stanley Steemer International, Inc., a commercial and residential carpet cleaning company, recently chose General Motors’ Chevrolet Express 2500 cargo vans as the newest additions to its U.S.-based corporate and franchise fleet. GM’s 100,000 mile/5-year transferable powertrain limited warranty led Stanley Steemer to upfit the Express 2500 cargo vans and immediately place 30 in the fleet lineup.

“Adding Stanley Steemer to our long list of fleet customers was a goal that the GM teamed worked extremely hard to achieve,” said Eric Raich, fleet account executive for GM’s Fleet and Commercial Operations. “The van’s extended wheel base for increased cargo space and lower lifecycle maintenance costs made the Express 2500 the most fitting and logical decision for what Stanley Steemer needed in their fleet vehicles.”

The Chevrolet Express 2500 has 225.1 cubic feet of maximum cargo space, and the extended wheelbase models offer 261.6 cubic feet of space. The Express Cargo 2500 also features standard passenger-side and rear swing-out doors that open wide for easy access.

The Vortec 4.8L V6 is standard on the Express Cargo 2500 and provides 280 horsepower and 296 lb-ft of torque, and can handle a payload of up to 3,058 lbs., regular wheelbase mode, and 2,848 lbs. on extended wheelbase model. The Express Cargo also comes with a Hydra-Matic 6L90 6-speed automatic transmission and revised rear axles to help improve low-rpm torque, highway fuel economy and overall drivability.

“The longest powertrain warranty and exceptional flexibility for our upfitting variations were two of the main factors that led us to choose the Express Cargo 2500,” said Sean Vrenna, Stanley Steemer engineer. “When you add in drivability, fuel economy, and easily accessible cargo space, it makes this the perfect van to meet our business needs.”

Source: http://publish.media.gm.com/content/media/us/en/news/news_detail.brand_gm.html/content/Pages/news/us/en/2010/Apr/0427_stanleysteemer

General Motors Company and its Chinese joint ventures are displaying 37 production and concept vehicles, including three that are making their global debut, at Auto China 2010. This year’s leading auto show in China runs from April 25 through May 2 at the China International Exhibition Center in Beijing.

“We are proud to once again be introducing to the people of China a broad range of vehicles built and sold in China by GM and our joint ventures,” said Kevin Wale, President and Managing Director of the GM China Group. “Many of these vehicles are leaders in their respective segments in terms of both fuel economy and technology such as OnStar. Our lineup demonstrates our clear vision for today as well as our exciting vision for tomorrow in China.”

GM is highlighting its Chevrolet, Buick and Cadillac brands along with the Wuling and Jiefang nameplates. GM vehicles are being displayed on the stands of its joint ventures, Shanghai GM and SAIC-GM-Wuling, as well as its joint venture partner, China FAW Group.

Source: http://publish.media.gm.com/content/media/us/en/news/news_detail.brand_gm.html/content/Pages/news/us/en/2010/Apr/0422_beijing

Robert Downey Jr. has returned to his role as the ingenious engineer and Super Hero Iron Man. The world premiere of Iron Man 2 took place on Monday in Los Angeles. Along with Robert Downey Jr., several other big names accompanied director Jon Favreau down the red carpet, including Gwyneth Paltrow, Scarlett Johansson, Mickey Rourke, Don Cheadle, Sam Rockwell, Samuel L. Jackson – and right in the centre of things, the Audi R8 Spyder. Robert Downey Jr. arrived for the premiere at the El Capitan Theatre in the supercar. It was a scene straight out of the Marvel Studios movie, in which main character Tony Stark drives the open-top two-seater.

The R8 Spyder is practically custom-made for the superhero, a technological genius who needs to drive the car without his high-tech suit, but doesn’t want to miss out on innovative technology. Robert Downey Jr. and his R8 Spyder put Audi’s philosophy of Vorsprung durch Technik to good use: Iron Man’s visual capabilities are optimized by the helmet, for example, and the R8’s high efficiency LED headlights likewise provide for good vision.

The supercar from Audi matches the Super Hero’s indestructible suit with its own carbon fiber composite materials in parts of its exterior skin, along with a high-strength aluminum frame known as the Audi Space Frame. And they both have their hearts in the right place: a glowing artificial one in Iron Man’s chest, and an impressive mid-engine design in the R8, which is visible externally.

With its jet propulsion, the Iron Man suit worn by Robert Downey Jr. is unrivalled – and the R8 Spyder, with its 525 hp engine, needn’t fear its rivals either. The 5.2 liter FSI engine of the R8 powers the two-seater convertible to a top speed of 313 kilometers an hour. Only flying could be better – and in this case, Iron Man clearly comes out on top. But Robert Downey Jr. hardly needs to concern himself. In the movie, he has the best of both worlds.

“Just like the first movie, Iron Man 2 is the perfect environment for the Audi R8. Like us, the technologically ingenious Super Hero Tony Stark represents Vorsprung durch Technik. And just as the R8 Spyder was developed from the Audi R8, the Super Hero Tony Stark surprises us with new innovations,” said Lothar Korn, Head of Marketing Communications at Audi. Robert Downey Jr., alias Tony Stark, also drove the Audi R8 in the first Iron Man movie, which was released in May 2008.

Source: http://www.audiusanews.com/newsrelease.do?id=1753

In a weekly column Le Mans record winner Tom Kristensen gives some exclusive insights behind the scenes of the world’s most famous endurance race and the preparation by Audi Sport Team Joest.

“During the 30-hour test at Le Castellet this week we had the opportunity of driving plenty of miles in the Audi R15 plus. So this is a good point in time to explain the cockpit of our diesel race sports car to you.

You can’t compare the cockpit of an LMP1 with a road car in any respect. Even a genuine sports car like the Audi R8 LMS offers a lot more comfort than the R15 plus does. It is a thorough-bred race car that is totally designed for speed and efficiency and has a very direct power-assisted steering ratio.

Nevertheless, Audi Sport keeps trying to make the work easier for us drivers and to give us the best possible ‘comfort’ under the circumstances. For example, some of the details in the R15 plus have been modified compared with last year’s R15. Some of the switches and buttons are now positioned on a console along the right-hand side of the seat. And the pit speed limiter that serves to prevent us from exceeding the speed in the pit lane is now located behind the steering wheel.

Speaking of the steering wheel: the surface texture has been changed too so that the steering wheel’s grip is now even better than before. Only the controls we use most, like the gearshift, traction control (ASR) adjustment, brake balance adjustment, the high beam and the radio button, are located on the steering wheel, which is packed with electronics. This helps us keep a good overview of these functions.

The two ASR buttons are very important. In the race you always try to adjust the ASR to the conditions of the track and the tires - and these conditions constantly change during the race at Le Mans.

We constantly optimize and adjust the brake balance between the front and rear wheels as well. This for example depends on the temperatures which the sensors on the brakes transmit to the pits by a telemetry signal. The high beam button has a special additional function: if we push it for at least two seconds, the lights start flashing. We can use this to alert slower vehicles to us.

A display which can be freely programmed sits in a central position on the steering wheel. The mechanics and engineers use different screens than the drivers when starting up and checking the engine, for example. The most important information we need is the gear we’ve engaged, which is displayed particularly prominently, our lap time and the so-called delta time that lets us see in each sector whether we’re losing or gaining time to the respective fastest lap. The display has a day- and a night-time mode.

Also located behind the steering wheel are the two paddle shifters we use for up- or downshifting. This means that even in tight hairpins when we heavily turn in the wheel we can keep both hands on it and shift at the same time.

In a modern race car small lamps typically show you when you’ve reached the engine speed at which you need to shift gears. Green, yellow and red LEDs light up one after the other. On red, we shift, which in the R15 is done by means of an electro-pneumatic system.

The steering wheel is cut at the bottom to make it easier for us to get in and out of the car. Just looking at pictures, you get no idea of how tight things are inside a cockpit and how difficult it is to pull our legs out from under the steering wheel when it’s time for a driver change.

The seating position in the R15 plus is comparable to that of a Formula 1 car. The nose of the vehicle points upward to ensure optimum airflow underneath the car. This means your feet are in a very high position. Your heels are just below the level of your heart. This also influences your blood circulation, but you get used to that.

As you know, the R15 plus is an open-top vehicle. A small windshield that is optimally adapted to the seating positions of all three drivers keeps our helmets from being overly exposed to the air flow. Of course the aerodynamicists make sure that the windshield isn’t too high or too wide because that costs top speed on the straights, which is a crucial factor at Le Mans.

The windshield, by the way, can be exchanged very quickly during a pit stop in case it’s gotten too dirty - yes, believe it or not, we actually look through it - or if it’s been damaged by stone chips or rubber from tire wear flying around the track.

Overall, the seating position in the R15 is very important. All three drivers have to sit similarly, even if their heights and builds differ. And of course you’ve got to be firmly strapped in to really get a good feel for the car.

The starting function of the R15 plus is another interesting feature: when it’s turned off, the engine runs in regular mode. But when you push the button, the engine will run at a predefined rpm. That helps us move off quickly after a pit stop.

‘Cut’ is primarily used to reset the electronics. The ‘event’ button serves to flag a certain event, such as shifting event that didn’t go perfectly, in the data logging system. This makes it possible later on for the technicians to take an especially close look at the data logged at that particular point in time to locate a potential fault.

The pedals are just like those in a production vehicle: the gas pedal is on the right, the clutch on the left, and the brake pedal in the middle, but we only use the clutch to start off from rest. Also, like in any road-going Audi, there’s a footrest on the left which supports me while cornering.

In the DTM car I used to primarily brake with my left foot, but in the R15 I usually brake with my right one - particularly in front of the chicanes at Le Mans. Only when braking for a very short time like in front of fast corners I use my left foot.

By the way, compared to a ‘normal’ race car, conditions in the cockpit of the R15 plus are unusually quiet which is very pleasant for us drivers. The V10 TDI engine is a bit noisier and harsher than the V12 TDI from the R10. From a certain speed onward, you couldn’t even hear the V12 TDI anymore at all, just the wind noise.

You perceive the engine of the R15 plus in all rpm ranges. But when you lift in a long bend, you can actually hear the squealing of the tires - and that’s definitely unusual in a race car.

I’d really like to take you out on a lap in the R15 plus but there’s simply not enough room on the passenger’s side. But, from now on, when you see the pictures from our onboard cameras at Le Mans, you may have a better idea of the things that go on in our cockpit day and night.”

Source: http://www.audiusanews.com/newsrelease.do?id=1749

Right in time for the start of the new season Audi puts the DTM and all other racing series in which the brand with the four rings is active on the iPhone, the iPod Touch and the new iPad: the “Audi Sport” App is now available for downloading from the App Store – free of charge of course.

The new application offers the latest news, results, point standings, photos, sound bites, videos and background information on Audi AG’s extensive motorsport commitment.

The reports cover the DTM, the Le Mans project and the GT3 customer sport program. The Audi A4 DTM, the R15 TDI diesel race sports car and the Audi R8 LMS are presented in detail as well as all Audi drivers and Audi “factory” teams. A live ticker keeps users up to speed on all major racing commitments.

The App offers media representatives a dedicated service area from which TV footage may be ordered, for example.

During the next few months the App will be progressively extended and enhanced by additional features.

Source: http://www.audiusanews.com/newsrelease.do?id=1748