Later this August, car lovers all over the U.S. will get a chance to bring the 2008 Lexus SC 430 Pebble Beach Edition on their garage. Unveiled at the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance Lexus Fashion Preview last August 17, the 2008 Lexus SC 430 Pebble Beach Edition comes with a unique interior and exterior design package exclusively made for the event.

Outside, the retractable hardtop reflects the main highlight of the vehicle along with other exterior features including Adaptive Front lighting System headlights, daytime running lights, fog lamps, projector High-Intensity Discharge (HID) headlights, sleek rear spoiler, special-edition brushed chrome badging on the front fenders, and 18-inch six-spoke chrome wheels covered with all-season or summer run-flat tires. The car only comes in one exterior color - Smoky Granite Mica.

Inside, you could see the luxurious and sporty characteristics of this limited edition model. The exclusive two-tone Camel and Ecru leather trim interior, along with the Espresso Bird-eye maple wood trim offers riding comfort for both the driver and passengers. These trim is highlighted by other interior features like the Ecru Pebble Beach logo embroidered on Camel carpeted floor mats, illuminated scuff plates, and Mark Levinson Premium Sound System.

On the technical side, the 2008 Lexus SC 430 Pebble Beach Edition is equipped with a 4.3-liter DOHC V8 engine under its hood, capable of pumping out 288 horsepower, with Variable Valve Timing with intelligence (VVT-i). This monstrous engine is combined with a six-speed sequential-shift ECT-i transmission, powering the car's rear-wheel drive system. With this powertrain package, the  2008 Lexus SC 430 Pebble Beach Edition can sprint from 0 to 60 mph in just 5.8 seconds and can reach an electronically limited maximum speed of 149 mph. Whew!  

Other technical feats of the 2008 Lexus SC 430 Pebble Beach Edition Anti-lock Brake System (ABS), Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD), Brake Assist, traction control (TRAC) and Vehicle Stability Control (VSC).

Only 360 units of this very limited edition model will be produced, so you should hurry and place your orders. Lexus did not yet released the manufacturer's suggested retail price of this model.

From a Mobile Hybrid Experience tour around the U.S., let us now take a look on what Toyota got in store for our fellow Aussie can fans, shall we?

Toyota Australia's Aurion mid size sedan now comes with enhancements from TRD (Toyota Racing Development). The TRD Aurion is now equipped with a monstrous 3.5-litre V6 engine that is capable of pumping out 241 kW and mated to a six-speed automatic gearbox with sequential shift. This powertrain package enables the TRD Aurion to sprint from 0 to 62 mph in 6 seconds, and can reach a maximum speed of 155 mph.  

"It offers new levels of efficiency and quietness," said David Buttner, Toyota Australia's senior executive director sales and marketing. "The standard Aurion engine is already at the forefront of technology - the most powerful naturally aspirated six-cylinder powerplant in its class. The Eaton supercharger lifts performance to a new plane with instant throttle response and excellent acceleration at low engine speeds. The power is delivered consistently and evenly throughout the rev range, rather than suddenly producing a neck-breaking surge. At the same time, it's so fuel-efficient you don't need to be a 'petrolhead' to enjoy exhilarating performance."

"The TRD involvement elevates Aurion's dynamic capabilities while retaining Toyota's traditional quality, durability and reliability. You've got Toyota - plus added style and performance. TRD Aurion will provide a balanced driving experience for a sophisticated market, integrating its power with dynamic cornering ability, precise steering response and impressive stopping performance. It will distinguish itself by delivering its ample reserves of all-round performance in a way that is enjoyable and relaxing to drive - whether in traffic or on the open road." he added.

The Toyota TRD Aurion comes in two model trims: the 3500S and 3500SL. Check out the main features of both models:

-    241kW supercharged engine
-    sports suspension
-    performance brakes
-    19-inch alloy wheels
-    TRD front and rear bumpers
-    side skirt and rear spoilers
-    sports seats, power driver's seat
-    alloy pedals
-    TRD scuff plates
-    air conditioning
-    leather-wrapped steering wheel

The TRD Aurion 3500SL adds:
-    Smart Entry
-    TRD Smart Start
-    full leather interior
-    clearance and reverse parking sonars
-    dual-zone automatic air conditioning
-    six-way power front passenger seat and TRD floor mats

the manufacturer's suggested retail price for the TRD Aurion 3500S is $56,990, and $61,500 for the TRD Aurion 3500SL.

Starting August 17, Toyota will conduct a nation wide tour to educated individuals about the significance and benefits of Toyota's hybrid system. The tour, which is called the "Highway to the Future: Mobile Hybrid Experience" will on the Missouri State Fair until August 19th.

According to Toyota, the Highway to the Future: Mobile Hybrid Experience is "designed to provide attendees with the opportunity to experience Toyota's Hybrid Synergy Drive system, which is found in the Prius, Camry hybrid and Highlander hybrid vehicles, for themselves."

Toyota will bring the state of the art 53-foot trailer (the Mobile Hybrid Experience), featuring interactive hands on exhibits. Participants can learn about hybrid technology and alternative fuels inside the Mobile.

The four interactive learning areas in the Mobile Hybrid Experience include:

- "Alternative Fuels: Fueling the Future"
- "Environment and Resources: Small Steps, Big Difference"
- The Prius Driving Experience
- The "Hybrid Technology: Not All Hybrids are Created Equal"

With "Highway to the Future: Mobile Hybrid Experience", participants can:

- See how Toyota Hybrids generate electricity with regenerative braking.
- Find out how much carbon you emit with the Carbon Footprint Calculator.
- Learn about the future of energy in the Alternative Fuels exhibit.
- Try the Hybrid Savings Calculator and see how much money you'll save by driving a hybrid vehicle.
- Experience Toyota Hybrid Synergy Drive technology for yourself in the Prius Driving
- Experience or demo drive one if the Toyota Hybrids n display (where available)

Watch out for Highway to the Future: Mobile Hybrid Experience visit your area soon.

Vehicle brands and models from Toyota Motor Sales (TMS) U.S.A have conquered the recent 2007 Vehicle Dependability Study (VDS) from J.D. Power and Associates. Toyota's Lexus luxury division once again ranked as the highest vehicle nameplate in 13 consecutive years. Beat that!

J.D. Power and Associates' 2007 Vehicle Dependability Study was based from the responses from more than 50,000 vehicle owners during a survey. J.D. Power asked these owners to state some problems of their vehicles during the three years of ownership. Problems are measured by "problems per 100 vehicles" or PP100. Lexus scored the highest with only 145 PP100. This only proves that Lexus models offer high residual value and strong reliability.

"There are many studies conducted throughout the year, but VDS remains one of the most significant measures of long-term vehicle quality and reliability. Any studies that don't take into consideration the durability of a vehicle over an extended period of ownership are not true indicators of overall quality and customer satisfaction," said Jim Lentz, TMS executive vice president.

"Internal studies show that dependability is consistently the top purchase reason for Toyota, Lexus and Scion buyers, and we will continue to prioritize quality as our product offerings and sales volume increase." he added.

Toyota and Scion brands also earned high positions in the vehicle nameplate rankings. Toyota was in the 5th place with 178 PP100, and Scion in the 17th place with 220 PP100. For the segment awards, Lexus earned five awards, Toyota with four, and Scion with one award for the xA, which ranked as the highest in the Sub-Compact Car segment.

Check out the complete results of the 2007 Vehicle Dependability Study (VDS) below.
 
2007 Nameplate Ranking
Problems per 100 Vehicles

Buick - 145
Lexus - 145
Cadillac - 162
Mercury - 168
Honda - 169
Toyota - 178
BMW - 182
Lincoln - 182
Subaru - 192
Oldsmobile - 196
Jaguar - 197
Acura - 207
Mercedes-Benz - 212
Infiniti - 215
Industry Average - 216
Jeep - 219
Pontiac - 220
Scion - 220
Ford - 221
GMC - 222
Chevrolet - 226
Hyundai - 228
Mitsubishi - 228
Volvo - 230
Audi - 234
Dodge - 236
HUMMER - 242
MINI - 247
Chrysler - 249
Porsche - 252
Nissan - 274
Saturn - 274
Kia - 288
Mazda - 289
Volkswagen - 298
Saab - 319
Isuzu - 322
Suzuki - 324
Land Rover - 398

Top Three Models per Segment
Car Segments

Sub-Compact Car
Highest Ranked: Scion xA
Hyundai Accent
Chevrolet Aveo

Compact Car
Highest Ranked: Honda Civic
Toyota Prius
Toyota Corolla

Compact Sporty Car
Highest Ranked: Mazda Miata
Mitsubishi Lancer/Lancer Sportback
Toyota Celica

Midsize Sporty Car
Highest Ranked:
Chevrolet SSR (tie) / Ford Mustang (tie)
Toyota Solara

Midsize Car
Highest Ranked: Buick Century
Buick Regal
Mercury Sable

Large Car
Highest Ranked: Ford Crown Victoria
Mercury Grand Marquis
Buick Park Avenue

Compact Premium Sporty Car
Highest Ranked: Honda S2000
BMW Z4
Mercedes-Benz SLK-Class

Entry Premium Car
Highest Ranked: Infiniti I35
Cadillac CTS
Lexus IS 300/IS 300 SportCross

Midsize Premium Car
Highest Ranked: Lexus GS 300/GS 430
Acura RL
Lexus ES 330

Large Premium Car
Highest Ranked: Lexus LS 430
Lincoln Town Car
Cadillac DeVille

Premium Sporty Car
Highest Ranked: Lexus SC 430
Ford Thunderbird
Chevrolet Corvette

Top Three Models per Segment
Truck / Multi-Activity Vehicle (MAV) Segments

Compact MAV
Highest Ranked: Toyota RAV4
Honda CR-V
Honda Element

Midsize MAV
Highest Ranked: Oldsmobile Bravada
Buick Rainier
Toyota 4Runner

Large MAV
Highest Ranked: Toyota Sequoia
GMC Yukon
Chevrolet Suburban

Large Pickup
Highest Ranked: Toyota Tundra
Ford F-150 Heritage/F-150 Lightning
Ford F-150 LD

Midsize Pickup
Highest Ranked: Toyota Tacoma
Ford Ranger
Mazda B-Series

Van
Highest Ranked: Oldsmobile Silhouette
Mercury Monterey
Honda Odyssey

Midsize Premium MAV
Highest Ranked: Lexus GX 470
Lexus RX 300
Infiniti FX-Series

Large Premium MAV
Highest Ranked: Lexus LX 470
Toyota Land Cruiser
Cadillac Escalade EXT
 

Toyota will honor and commemorate the automotive and motor sport history by sponsoring the 34th Rolex Monterey Historic Automobile Races that will be held at the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California this coming August 17 to 19. There will be lots of vehicle presentations and other historical activities in the event, so you better watch out for it. Along with Toyota, General Racing Ltd., will also sponsor the event and will serve as the racing organizer.

Steven Earle, President of General Racing Ltd said: "The Monterey Historic Races are a proper way to honor and celebrate the beauty of these vehicles and the legacy of motorsports at a premier racing venue. The anniversary of the raceway and seeing these remarkable Indy roadsters take the track will make for a truly special weekend."

"By conquering the great challenges of the Indy 500 races, the Roadster left an innovative mark in the history of automotive engineering. Our event will not only honor the various Roadster models but those who participated in the entire Indy Roadster Era, including drivers, mechanics and team owners." he added.

Let me give you a sneak preview of some of the events.

Toyota will present the "Race of Legends". Here, motor sport fans will have a chance to see the veteran race car drivers that once paved the way in motor sports history in various types of racing series. Former racers like Bobby Unser, Al Unser Sr., Johnny Rutherford, Bobby Rahal, Parnelli Jones, Vic Elford, Emerson Fittipaldi, Ove Andersson and Derek Bell will compete with each other at Laguna Seca aboard a 215 hp Scion tC sport coupe. This will be one hell of an exciting race.

Originally introduced in 1952, Toyota will also display the Indy Roadster at the 34th Rolex Monterey Historic Automobile Races. Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca will also celebrating its 50th anniversary. In connection with this, Rolex will present their Motor Sports History "Moments in Time" display. Rolex will be displaying bunch of race cars from the year 1957.

More than 400,000 individuals of various age group are expected to participate in the event. Are you one of them?

If you are waiting for Toyota to announce the manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP), availability, and features of some of their 2008 model year vehicles, then you better read this.

Eight Toyota vehicles of the 2008 model year will roll out in dealerships all over the U.S. this August. These vehicles include the Prius hybrid, Yaris subcompact car, RAV4 compact SUV, Fj Cruiser SUV, 4Runner mid size SUV, and Tacoma truck, as well as Sienna pick up truck model.

You better get your pen and papers ready and jot down these prices and features of the 2008 Toyota models.

2008 Toyota Avalon
The 2008 Toyota comes with updated AM/FM/CD changer with nine speakers, MP3 playback capability and auxiliary audio input jack as a standard feature. The MSRP for the Toyota Avalon XL is at $27,075, and $34,415 for the Avalon Limited.

2008 Toyota Prius
For the 2008 model year, the Prius based model will roll out in dealerships carrying a base MSRP of $20,950, and $23,220  for the Prius Touring model.

2008 Yaris Liftback
The 2008 Yaris features several new components like standard tire pressure monitoring system,color-keyed front and rear under-bumper spoilers and side rocker panels, front passenger sport seats, leather-trimmed steering wheel and shift knob. The Yaris Liftback with manual gearbox carries a MSRP of $11,300. For the Yaris Sedan, the MSRP is $12,900.

2008 Toyota RAV4
With the RAV4, you can get front passenger seat-mounted side airbags, first- and second-row side-curtain airbags with roll-over sensor as standard equipment. The 2008 RAV4 2WD has a base MSRP of $21,100, while the RAV4 4WD Limited V6 costs $26,670.

2008 Toyota FJ Cruiser 2WD (AT) - $22,545
2008 FJ Cruiser 4WD (AT) - $24,135
The 2008 FJ Cruiser comes with a number of key upgrades like an anti-theft system, an illuminated entry system, and side-curtain airbags for both rows. Automatic gearbox is standard. Price is at $22,545 for the FJ Cruiser 2WD model, and $24,135 for the 4WD model.
 
2008 Toyota 4Runner
The 2008 4Runner 2WD SR5 V6 is priced at $28,015. The more powerful
4Runner 4WD Limited V8 carries a base MSRP of $38,735.

2008 Toyota Tacoma
The Tacoma 2WD four-cylinder model with manual gearbox is priced at $14,280, while the Tacoma Double Cab 4WD V6 is at $26,115.

2008 Toyota Sienna
Lastly, the Sienna 2WD CE rolls out this August carrying a MSRP of $24,340.  The MSRP for Sienna AWD Limited is $37,665. Features include Vehicle Stability Control (VSC), Traction Control and rear disc brakes on all models, and Bluetooth.
 

The month of June and the first half of the year 2007 is considered as the all-time best ever sales results for Toyota Motor Sales (TMS) USA Inc. Toyota Motor Corp's US division has sold 1,331,074 vehicle units, up by 6.1% compared to last year's first half sales figures.

According to Jim Lentz, executive vice president of Toyota Motor Sales:
"Tundra really hit its stride this month, posting a record sales pace. In a short five months the new truck's earned its stripes with both loyal Toyota owners and those new to the brand."

Check out the June 2007 sales highlights of Toyota's US division and other Toyota brands.

Toyota Division: posted best-ever June sales of 216,870, 6.9% increase.

Best sellers for the Toyota brand include:
Toyota Camry sedan - posted best-ever June sales of 46,630, up by 8.4%
Toyota Camry Hybrid – posted sales of 5,530 units in June 2007
Toyota Prius hybrid gas-electric mid-size sedan - posted best-ever June sales of 17,756, 76.3% sales increase
Toyota Yaris subcompact - posted best-ever June sales of 9,155 units, an increase of 28% compared to last year
Toyota Corolla - reported June sales of 36,499 units
Toyota Tundra full-size pickup truck – posted all-time best-ever sales of 21,727, up by 137.2%
Toyota RAV4 compact sport utility vehicle (SUV) - reported best-ever June sales of 14,677, up by 7%
Toyota Highlander and Highlander Hybrid - posted a combined June sales of 11,253, a 3.8% sales increase compared to last year

Meanwhile, Toyota's Lexus luxury division also reported the best-ever June 2007 sales of 28,869 units, up by 0.4% compared to the same period last year.  Check out some of the sales highlights for the Lexus brand.

Lexus ES 350 luxury sedan – posted June sales of 7,232 units
Lexus LS 460 and LS 460 L - posted a combined sales of 2,631, up by of 149.9%
Lexus IS 250 and IS 350 - posted best-ever June sales of 5,182 units, up by 11.9%
Lexus RX 350 and RX 400h – obtained a combined June 2007 sales of 9,349 units
Lexus RX 400h hybrid luxury utility vehicle - reported sales of 1,562 for the month of June, up by 26%

And lastly, Scion division posted 12,536 units sold for June 2007. I think this strong sales result proves why Toyota is the current reigning number 1 automaker in the world.