1996 Toyota Corolla Dx Auto Runs Great on 2040-cars

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Toyota Tells Dealers To Stop Selling Six Models

Toyota has told North American dealers to stop selling six popular models with heated seats because the fabric doesn't meet flammability standards. One soft material beneath the seat covers does not comply with U.S. safety standards, company spokesman John Hanson said. No fires or injuries have been reported, but Toyota can't legally sell cars that don't comply with U.S. safety codes, Hanson said. The company is still totaling how many vehicles are affected, but it will be in the thousands, according to the spokesman. The stop-sale order could mean trouble for Toyota and its dealers because it covers the company's top-selling vehicles. Dealers can no longer sell certain Camry, Avalon, Sienna and Tacoma models from the 2013 and 2014 model years, as well as Corollas and Tundras from 2014. The Camry, for instance, is the top-selling car in the U.S. with more than 408,000 sales last year. It depends on how long the repairs will take. Hanson said the company already has a new material that's being installed at factories and will be put in cars that are on dealer lots. "We don't think it will take long to get the parts and make the changes," Hanson said, without getting more specific. As for vehicles already on the road, Hanson says Toyota has reported the problem to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which will decide if the sold vehicles should be recalled. A NHTSA spokesman said he would check into the matter. "We don't believe that there is a safety issue here because there have been no reports of any problems," Hanson said. The stop-sale order affects cars and trucks distributed to dealers in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. In addition, some vehicles were exported outside North America, Hanson said. The problem was discovered by safety regulators in South Korea, who disassembled seats and tested individual fabrics, Hanson said. U.S. safety standards require fabrics to resist flames at a certain rate, but the one fabric didn't meet the standard, Hanson said. Toyota spokesman Naoki Sumino in Japan said the affected vehicles were sold since August of 2012, when the fabric supplier was changed. Toyota has been struggling to regain its once sterling reputation for quality after announcing massive recalls over several years, starting in 2009, for a variety of defects including braking, accelerators and floor mats. The company was fined for being slow on recalls, which affected more than 14 million vehicles, and faces lawsuits.

Scion trying to build business case for FR-S convertible as Subaru bows out

Hope may remain for a convertible version of the Scion FR-S, according to a report from Ward's Auto. You'll recall that rumors were swirling about the feasibility of a rear-drive Toyobaru convertible as early as October, and that back in November, Subaru - which makes the FR-S, Subaru BRZ and Toyota GT86 - essentially nixed the idea of an open-topped variant.
"We make the car, so if we don't make it, it can't happen," brand chief Yasuyuki Yoshinaga told Automotive News, according to Ward's, at the Tokyo Motor Show. "Our engineering department told me that losing the entire roof requires a complete redesign of the structure. It would need a big change."
Despite Yoshinaga-san's arguments against a droptop variant, Toyota is apparently still considering the model. Speaking to media at the 2014 North American International Auto Show, Scion's US vice president, Doug Murtha, hinted that the rear-drive droptop was in the works.

Sunday Drive: Subaru Ascends up to the hottest market segment in America

Utility vehicles – in other words, crossovers and SUVs – are so hot right now. Two of our top stories from last week revolve around the utilitarian vehicle, but besides their jacked-up, five-door bodystyles, they couldn't be more different. The 2019 Subaru Ascent is headed into an extremely crowded and competitive segment, where it'll have to go up against industry stalwarts like the Toyota Highlander and Honda Pilot, not to mention upstart contenders like the Volkswagen Atlas. The Mercedes-AMG G63, on the other hand, has very little competition – there simply aren't very many ultra-luxurious, off-road-ready SUVs in the world vying to attract the dollars of the wellest-to-do customers across these United States. Moving on from crossovers and SUVs, our readers remain attracted to classic front-engine, rear-wheel-drive sportscars. The Toyota Supra's upcoming rebirth earns two places on our list of stories worth highlighting from the week that was; one with leaked information from a Japanese magazine, and another with rumors indicating that maybe we shouldn't be quite so excited. And finally, there's the strange case of the long-lost 2009 Chevy Corvette Z06 that one lucky individual happened to find squirreled away in a storage container with just 720 original miles. A high-horsepower head scratcher if we've ever seen one. As always, stay tuned to Autoblog this week for all the latest automotive news that's fit to print. 2019 Subaru Ascent vs Honda Pilot vs Toyota Highlander: How they compare on paper 2019 Mercedes-AMG G63 set to bare its 577-horsepower heart in Geneva Toyota Supra leaks in Japanese magazine ahead of Geneva debut Toyota Supra to be little more than a rebodied BMW Z4? Forgotten 720-mile 2009 Corvette Z06 emerges from storage Chevrolet Mercedes-Benz Subaru Toyota Coupe Crossover SUV Luxury Off-Road Vehicles Performance barn find sunday drive subaru ascent mercedes-amg g63