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Hyundai tops Toyota in annual CarMD Vehicle Health Index

CarMD has released its third annual Vehicle Health Index, which for the 2013 tracked the frequency and cost of repairs for "check engine" problems of 119-million vehicles built between the 2003 and 2013 model years. For the first two years of the index, Toyota ranked at the top of the list, but this year's results see Hyundai moved to number one, pushing Toyota down a spot.
The Korean automaker's rise to the top has been "fueled by its low repair frequency," according to CarMD. Toyota is second to Hyundai in lowest repair frequency, but Toyotas also have the highest average cost of repair. (Interestingly, General Motors vehicles have the lowest average.) Both Toyota's and Hyundai's manufacturer "health" ratings suffered this year, but Toyota took a bigger hit, which also is what helped Hyundai achieve the top ranking.
While Hyundai is the top manufacturer in the index, the 2012 Toyota Camry is the top vehicle. The best-ranking Hyundai was the 2010 Elantra (behind three Nissan models and four Toyotas), which took the number eight spot. Hyundai has six other vehicles in the top 100.

Refreshed Toyota 86/Subaru BRZ spied running around the Nurburgring

The Toyota 86 and Subaru BRZ are officially confirmed for a second generation, but it looks like this current car will not go softly into the night. One of our spy photographers just caught a camo’d up BRZ/86 pounding around the Nurburgring with a few changes in store. This tester only has camouflage on the front and rear of the car, indicating a light refresh is the extent of the styling changes. In examining the car as a whole, itÂ’s a rather conflicting tester. Both the grille and headlights tell us itÂ’s an 86, but the badge on the rear clearly says “BRZ.”  The Toyota 86 has a different grille than the BRZ, and we can see that style grille flanked by some massaged vents on both sides. Toyota uses a different style of headlight for the 86, and these look similar to those used in the current car. New front-design features are covered up by the camouflage, but the sheet metal doesnÂ’t appear to be changing. Another area of potential change is at the rear of the car. More camouflage on the trunk lid covers the obvious BRZ badge and the taillights. We donÂ’t see much in the way of differences between the taillights on this model and the current BRZ/86 twins, but the manufacturer obviously wants to keep something secret back there. What weÂ’re most excited about is seeing the extra vent behind the front wheels. Current BRZ and 86 trims donÂ’t feature such intense cooling additions. Above it sits what appears to be a badge or protrusion of some sort. The window-level badging is still visible under the wrapping, but the tire-level badge is a new one — itÂ’s similar to the design we see on the WRX and WRX STI.  All things considered, this one is a little confusing. Subaru could be adopting a more Toyota 86-esque design, but we suspect a special edition is in the works. Hopefully it involves more than just design tweaks, and gives this model a hearty send-off before the new generation arrives.

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.