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Toyota GT86 gets TRD treatment in UK

As dearly as we love the Toyota GT86 / Scion FR-S / Subaru BRZ franchise, we readily admit we wouldn't look sideways at a model with a bit more firepower. And while that's not quite on the table yet, Toyota has been busy amping up the visual firepower of its rear-drive coupe with a whole host of TRD parts. To this point, that's been a largely à la carte affair, but the automaker's UK outpost has just announced a special-edition model that allows our British friends to pick up the whole shooting match all in one go.
The Toyota GT86 TRD will only be available in black and white, and just 250 examples are to be built. As you can see from the excellent gallery above, the catalog of look-faster bits include a more aggressive front air dam, side skirts, rear bumper fascia, spoiler and unique 18-inch forged alloys. Additional flourishes include a TRD shift lever and branded radiator cap. The sole concession to actual performance? A "fast-response quad exhaust" that might only improve things audibly - 0-62 mph is apparently unchanged at 7.7 seconds, and the top end is still 140 mph for the manual transmission model. (The auto gets by with 8.4 seconds and 130 mph).
Pricing? Glad you asked. £31,495 for GT 86 TRD manual, £32,995 for the automatic - that's nearly $50,000 US for the tripedalist and just over for the automatic. (Those are heady prices, but bear in mind that UK MSRPs and taxes are generally significantly higher than their US counterparts). If the standard GT86 is more your speed, it still rings up at a more affordable £24,995 - roughly $39,500 - leaving plenty of budget for actual performance parts. No word yet on North American availability of a special TRD model, but we've got a call in...

Toyota recalling 10k vehicles to fix wiper switches

Toyota has announced a voluntary recall covering approximately 10,000 cars in the United States. Affected models include the 2013-14 Camry and Camry Hybrid, 2013-14 Avalon and Avalon Hybrid, and the brand new 2014 Corolla.
The problem, as Toyota explains it, is that, "During manufacture of the wiper switch assembly in the involved vehicles, certain contacts on the switch terminal could have been manufactured incorrectly." This could lead to a short in the circuit when the wiper switch is moved between "off" and "mist," and thus, cause the windshield wipers to stop working. Not good.
Toyota will contact owners via first class mail, and the vehicles can be repaired at dealerships, free of charge. Have a look below for the automaker's official statement.

Toyota, Mazda partner to build EVs at new $1.6 billion U.S. plant

TOKYO — Toyota and Mazda plan to build a $1.6 billion U.S. assembly plant, the two said on Friday, as part of an alliance that will also see the Japanese automakers jointly develop electric vehicle technologies. The two will take small stakes in each other as part of the tie-up: Toyota, the world's second-largest automaker by vehicle sales last year, will take a 5 percent share of Mazda, extending its dominance in Japan's auto sector. Mazda will take a 0.25 percent share of its larger rival. The plant, something of a surprise at a time of overcapacity in the U.S. market, will be a boost to U.S. President Donald Trump, who campaigned on promises to increase manufacturing and expand employment for American autoworkers. The plant will be capable of producing 300,000 vehicles a year, with production divided between the two automakers, and employ about 4,000 people. It will start operating in 2021. The electric vehicles cooperation, meanwhile, comes as the tightening of global emissions regulations prompts more automakers to develop battery powered cars, as the industry struggles with hefty research costs and intense competition from technology companies over technology like self-driving cars. As part of the agreement, Toyota and Mazda will also work together to develop in-car information technologies and automated driving functions. Toyota, Japan's biggest auto company, has been forging alliances with smaller Japanese rivals for several years, effectively engineering a loose consolidation of the Japanese auto sector. It already owns a 16.5 percent stake in Subaru, Japan's No. 6 automaker, with which it also has a development partnership. Toyota is also courting compact car maker Suzuki to cooperate on R&D and parts supply as Toyota seeks to tap its smaller rival's expertise in emerging Asian markets. A stake in Mazda may also prevent future incursions by tech companies, one analyst said. "For a technology company which lacks the expertise in making cars, Mazda could look like a very interesting acquisition. They're very good, they're not too expensive. Maybe Toyota realizes this," CLSA managing director Chris Richter said. "By buying a 5 percent stake, Toyota takes Mazda off the table rather than having it sit out there like a free agent which could someday be used against them." COROLLA PRODUCTION SHIFT Mazda stands to gain from a deal that gives the small automaker a production foothold in the United States.