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100-year-old Yellowstone ranger station now powered by Camry Hybrid batteries [w/video]

With a new project, Toyota is bringing power to the prairie and finding a way to reuse nickel-metal hydride batteries at the same time. The automaker recently completed assisting Yellowstone National Park's installation of a solar power station at the Lamar Buffalo Ranch to electrify the ranger station and education center there for the first time. Toyota's major part in the system is an array of 208 batteries that are repurposed from old Camry Hybrid sedans, and they can store 85 kilowatt-hours of energy at a time. That's as much as one 85-kWh battery pack from one top-of-the-line Tesla Model S. Toyota figures that the whole setup should generate enough annual electricity for six average US homes, which is plenty for the ranch. For a constant source of power, the site plans to install a micro-hydro turbine in a nearby stream in 2016. Prior to creating the wall of batteries to store all of this energy, Toyota disassembled and tested each one. It also installed a new management system on them to maximize their lifespan. You can get a better idea of what the whole system looks like in the automaker's video, below. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Toyota Flips the Switch to Sustainable Power at Yellowstone National Park Lamar Buffalo Ranch Renewable, Zero Emission Energy System Is Now Online System Features 208 Re-used Camry Hybrid Batteries May 12, 2015 Torrance, Calif. (May 12, 2015) – The lights are on where the buffalo roam. At the Lamar Buffalo Ranch field campus in Yellowstone National Park, an innovative distributed energy system that combines solar power generation with re-used Camry Hybrid battery packs is now online. The result: reliable, sustainable, zero emission power to the ranger station and education center for the first time since it was founded in 1907. Announced in June 2014, the partnership among Toyota, Indy Power Systems, Sharp USA SolarWorld, Patriot Solar, National Park Service and Yellowstone Park Foundation is an innovative effort to extend the useful life of hybrid vehicle batteries while providing sustainable power generation for one of the most remote, pristine areas in the United States. Solar panels generate the renewable electricity stored within the 208 used Camry Hybrid nickel-metal hydride battery packs, recovered from Toyota dealers across the United States.

Toyota, Honda, Mazda and Nissan recall 3.4 million vehicles for faulty airbags

Most vehicle recalls that take place these days are a result of some problem that happens during the manufacturing process by the automaker, but as we see here, parts suppliers can also factor in to problematic safety issues. Automotive News is reporting that a total of 3.4 million vehicles produced by Japanese automakers between 2000 and 2004 are being recalled globally due to faulty airbags produced by an outside supplier, Takata Corp.
According to the report, vehicles from Toyota, Honda, Nissan and Mazda are being recalled because of passenger front airbags that do not inflate properly. Globally, Toyota is said to be recalling around 1.73 million cars including 510,000 in the US composed of Toyota Corolla, Matrix, Sequoia and Tundra as well as the Lexus SC430 for the 2001 through 2003 model years; this is the second time this year the 2003 Corolla and Matrix have been recalled for an airbag problem. Honda is recalling 1.14 million models, Nissan another 480,000 and Mazda 45,463. The article says that Takata supplied faulty airbags to non-Japanese automakers, but it did not specify which ones.
Honda and Toyota have released information on their own websites about the recall, while Nissan and Mazda have not yet commented. Read official press releases from Honda and Toyota, below, and look for updates as we have word from the others.

Toyota reveals updated TS040 Hybrid LMP1 for 2015 [w/videos]

Toyota has yet to defeat Audi at Le Mans. In fact, nobody has in the past fifteen years except for Peugeot (which won in 2009) and Audi's own sister company Bentley (which took the checkered flag in 2003). But Toyota did win the broader FIA World Endurance Championship last season, beating its German rivals in five out of eight rounds. That means the Japanese automaker is returning to top-level endurance racing this season as the reigning champions, and this is the car with which it aims to defend its title. The 2015 Toyota TS040 Hybrid is closely based on last year's winning version, but has been updated to comply with the latest tweaks to the regulations. A new crash structure meant redesigning the front end, the aerodynamics package has been thoroughly revised, the suspension reconfigured and extra weight has been cut. All told, Toyota says it redesigned 80 percent of the parts on board. Each team running a hybrid prototype has an array of choices over what combination of internal-combustion and electric boost it will run, but Toyota opted to stay in the 6MJ category for 2015, the electric boost working in tandem with the 3.7-liter V8 to give the TS040 a combined output of over 1,000 horsepower. The team also developed two aero kits: one for high-speed circuits like La Sarthe that warrant reduced drag, and the other for tighter tracks requiring increased downforce. The revised TS040 has already undergone over 15,000 miles of testing in southern Europe over the winter. But the real test will come at Silverstone in two weeks for the opening round of the 2015 championship when it will have to fend off a two-pronged German assault from both Audi and Porsche ahead of the headline event at Le Mans in June. We'll be watching to see who comes out on top this year, but for now you can watch footage of Toyota's latest in the pair of videos below. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Mar. 26, 2015 A New Era for the World Champions Toyota Racing enters the 2015 World Endurance Championship ready to start a new era with the defence of its two titles. Toyota became the first Japanese company to win the World Championship during a very successful 2014 season, which saw Anthony Davidson and Sebastien Buemi also win the drivers' title.