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Toyota wants 30 percent of China sales to be hybrids

Two years ago, China set tough fuel economy standards for passenger cars, taking another step toward addressing its smog and pollution problems; average fuel consumption was mandated as 6.9 liters per 100 kilometers (about 34 miles per gallon) by this year and five liters per 100 km (47 mpg) by 2020. Toyota wants more of its fleet to help its numbers there, and is working to make 30 percent of its sales by 2020, according to a report in Japan's Nikkei. The Japanese carmaker sells 21 passenger cars and vans in China but only two of them are hybrids, the Prius and the Camry Hybrid (in the US Toyota sells 20 passenger vehicles in but seven of them are hybrids). It unveiled two more hybrids at the Shanghai Motor Show that will be built in China, the Corolla Hybrid (pictured) as part of its joint venture with FAW Group, and the Levin HEV as part of its joint venture with Guangzhou Automobile Group (GAC). There is also an electric vehicle on the way as part of the GAC partnership, to be sold under the China-only Lingzhi brand. It will still be a gigantic hurdle to make that 30-percent target even after doubling the hybrid line-up. Toyota sold 1.03 million vehicles in China in 2014, but has sold only 90,000 hybrids in total during the ten years the Prius has been on the market and five years of the Camry Hybrid. News Source: Nikkei, Nikkei Green Auto Shanghai Toyota Electric Hybrid

Manga stylized Toyota Aygo takes on Godzilla

Japan has given the world so much to enthuse over. We're not sure the Toyota Aygo is necessarily one of them as much as, say, the Scion FR-S or Lexus LFA (especially since it's actually made in Europe), but for many Nipponophiles, the centuries-old artistic discipline of Manga certainly is. And now the two have come together in this two-and-a-half-minute animated short.
In Toyota's own take on the classic narrative, an Aygo animated by celebrated artist Sonia Leong takes on Godzilla. As in, a giant lizard rampaging through a Japanese city, not the Nissan GT-R, against which the little Toyota would certainly stand even less of a chance by any metric other than affordability, fuel economy or ability to park in tight spots.
In any case, watch this Manga-fied video above, and feel free to read through the related press release below.

Toyota's 'green bond' an industry first, quickly rises to $1.75 billion

Toyota is greasing the skids for more green car purchases with the announcement of a $1.75-billion bond designed to finance the purchase of high-efficiency Toyota and Lexus models. The Asset-Backed Green Bond is a first for the automotive industry and is making a lot of money available to buy or lease the following vehicles: any of the four Prius variants, Camry Hybrid, Avalon Hybrid, RAV4 EV, Lexus CT 200h and Lexus ES 300h. Originally, the bond was set at $1.25 billion, but Justin Leach, manager of public relations for Toyota Financial Services (TFS), told AutoblogGreen that demand was high and it was quickly oversubscribed. TFS has been looking at more ways to diversify its portfolio after a Diversity & Inclusion Bond that was announced in early 2013 and, with the new Green Bond, TFS is offering something for the "number of investors out there who are looking for investment opportunities in green." The way the money from the bond is used, basically, is that TFS takes the $1.75 billion and uses it to finance the purchase or lease of the nine vehicles listed above. As of right now, all the eligible vehicles are plug-in or hybrids, but the rules simply say that the cars in the program have to meet certain "powertrain, fuel efficiency and emissions" criteria. That means: Minimum EPA estimated MPG (or MPG equivalent for alternative fuel vehicles) of 35 city / 35 highway California Low-Emission Vehicle II (LEV II) certification of super ultra-low emission vehicles (SULEVs) or higher, which would include partial zero emissions vehicles (PZEVs) and zero emissions vehicles (ZEVs). TFS raises plenty of billions in other ways for the rest of the lineup, and got into asset backed securities in 2010, Leach said. Given the success of this first Green Bond, Leach said he expects TFS to keep this idea in its arsenal. "This one was so well received, I would be surprised if we didn't see it again," he said. "If anyone was going to do it, it should be Toyota, right?" Toyota Financial Services (TFS) Issues Auto Industry's First-Ever Asset-Backed Green Bond Bond Proceeds to Fund Consumer Loans and Leases for Toyota's Leading Portfolio of Green Vehicles TORRANCE, Calif., (March 24, 2014) – Toyota Financial Services (TFS) issued the auto industry's first-ever Asset-Backed Green Bond in the amount of $1.75 billion.