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How Charlotte lost to Plano without even knowing it was dealing with Toyota

With Toyota set to relocate its North American headquarters to the Dallas, TX suburb of Plano following a top-secret, 100-city search, the cities that missed out can now begin asking themselves what happened during a process they apparently knew little about.
That's a particularly brutal task for Charlotte, which, according to North Carolina's Secretary of Commerce, Sharon Decker, finished second to Plano. While Toyota has been fairly open about what it was looking for in a new headquarters city - direct flights to Japan, proximity to its US production facilities, a lower cost of living, high-quality educational facilities and finding a neutral site suitable to the California, Kentucky and New York-based employees that would be relocated - it's been less open about how the finalist cities, which also included Atlanta and Denver, stacked up against each other.
The Charlotte Observer has a few ideas. Part of the problem is the distinct lack of direct flights between Charlotte and Asia. US Airways, which operates a hub at Charlotte/Douglas International Airport, doesn't fly to Asia.

Toyota Pro/Celebrity race switching from Scion tC to FR-S [w/video]

Toyota has announced that the rear-wheel-drive Scion FR-S will replace the front-wheel-drive Scion tC as the racecar used by actors, singers and celebrities of all grades in its annual Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race. It's the first time a rear-drive vehicle has been used for the event in 27 years, with the tC having been in use since 2005, and the FWD Celica before that. This year's race takes place on April 20th amidst the festivities of the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach weekend.
The racing FR-S, which debuted today at the Chicago Auto Show, won't be left stock either, but rather outfitted with a range of official Toyota Racing Development parts and equipment, such as a stainless steel exhaust, new coil overs and springs, upgraded brakes, a bigger air intake and 18-inch wheels, not to mention all of the safety equipment required to keep the celebrities and pro drivers safe. The company says the performance mods have lifted horsepower to 210 from the standard car's 200. Check out the build process for the cars in the video below to see just how much work's been done.
The Toyota Pro/Celebrity race is also about more than just letting celebrities and pros do battle on a road course. The spectacle helps raise money for "Racing for Kids," a non-profit charity that supports children's hospitals in the US.

Toyota GT86 GT4 racer is ready for UK competition

It's about time we saw someone cook up a legitimate race version of the delectable Toyota GT86, and now it looks as if GPRM has done just that. The Buckingham-based race engineering team has built the creation you see here, complete with a turbocharged 2.0-liter, direct-injection four-cylinder boxer cooked up by Nicholson McLaren Engines. The team says the new mill delivers between 360 and 400 horsepower to the rear wheels depending on final testing, which is a sight bit more than the 197 horses the naturally aspirated stock mill offers.
The car will compete in GT4 events, including the Avon Tyres British GT Championship. Technically, the GPRM effort isn't factory backed, but the team says the effort "has the blessing of Toyota Great Britain." How could it not? You can check out the brief press release below below, and be sure to take a closer look at the machine in our gallery.