2007 Toyota 4runner Sr5 Sport Utility 4-door 4.0l on 2040-cars

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Toyota reaches $1.2B unintended acceleration settlement in criminal probe

UPDATE: Just like that, Toyota has released an official statement confirming its $1.2-million dollar settlement with the US Attorney's Office. Our story has been updated to reflect this development and the automaker's official statement has been added below.
Toyota has reached a settlement over the criminal probe into its unintended acceleration problems, and the outcome is more expensive than first expected. The Japanese automaker has agreed to pay $1.2 billion to close the investigation among other settlement terms. The criminal inquiry focused on whether the company kept information from regulators and how it handled drivers' complaints about the problems, according to the sources.
Between 2009 and 2010, Toyota ended up recalling over 10 million vehicles worldwide over sudden acceleration fears. Fixes include modifying floor mats, gas pedals, and installing brake override software on affected models. In addition, Toyota made the latter standard on all of its new vehicles.

Toyota delves into the history of its Land Cruiser

One of the longest-produced, most widely distributed vehicles in all of automotive history is also one of its most rugged: the Toyota Land Cruiser. With 60 years of continuous production, 14 different model lines and thousands of variations of the Jeep-like sports utility vehicle, the Land Cruiser became a success worldwide and developed a cult following among enthusiasts here in the US.
We'll be the first to admit that tracing the vehicle's lineage from its humble beginnings as a prototype for Japan's National Police Reserve in 1951 to what it is today isn't an easy task, especially when one considers that the types of Land Cruisers produced traditionally have varied from market to market. For example, the Land Cruiser sold in the US is very different from the US-only 40 series Land Cruiser-inspired FJ Cruiser, which is itself different from the Land Cruiser Prado sold in other world markets.
To cover the Land Cruiser's sixty-plus year history from start to present, someone over at Toyota UK was thoughtful enough to devote a plus-size blog post to it. It's worth a read if you have a spare 10 or 15 minutes - and even if you don't, you can check out our historical gallery above. Enjoy!

Toyota gives up more information on Frankfurt-bound Yaris Hybrid-R concept

Toyota has undeniably carved out a niche for itself as the industry's leader in hybrid propulsion. What started out with the original Prius in 1997 has, over the past sixteen years, ballooned to what Toyota reports as a global hybrid portfolio of 23 models. But few (if any of them) are particularly exciting.
That's where the Yaris Hybrid-R concept comes in. Set to be showcased along with the rest of Toyota's hybrid and fuel-cell lineup at the upcoming Frankfurt Motor Show next month, the concept starts with one of the Japanese auto giant's least exciting models and upgrades it to more enticing territory. Toyota Motorsport GmbH - the same Cologne, Germany-based division that operated the company's F1 team, currently runs its Le Mans program and gave us that bonkers 650-horsepower Lexus LS - has slotted in a version of Toyota's new 1.6-liter Global Race Engine and paired it with a couple of electric motors for hybrid propulsion and through-the-road all-wheel drive.
Like the TS030 Hybrid LMP1, the Yaris Hybrid-R concept uses a super capacitor (instead of a conventional battery) to store the regenerated brake energy and give it upwards of 400 horsepower. That's about all Toyota is revealing at this point, but this is the first time it has confirmed the project is based on a Yaris, of all things, and the confirmation comes with the solitary teaser rendering you see above. Check out the press release after the jump and watch this space for more as Frankfurt fast approaches.