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2014 Toyota Highlander recalled over seatbelt anchors

Toyota has announced a small recall of its redesigned, 2014 Highlander over issues with one of its seat belts. The affected vehicles, which were built from November 20, 2013 to January 18, 2014, could have a seatbelt assembly in the middle seat of the third row that wasn't properly secured to a floor anchorage at the factory.
In total, 7,067 of the new Highlanders are included in the recall, which was discovered not after a crash, but during a post-build inspection at the factory. It's unclear if there have been any injuries as a result of the faulty seat belts.
Toyota is set to inform owners of the affected vehicles as well as dealers with the recalled Highlander models in their inventory. Naturally, repairs will be performed free of charge. For the full bulletin form the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, scroll down.

2014 Toyota Highlander to start at $30,075*

We now have pricing for Toyota's redesigned 2014 Highlander, which is seeing moderate price hikes across the board. Prices for the popular crossover have been bumped from less than 1 percent to less than 3 percent on lower-end models (anywhere from $125 to $890, depending on trim). Toyota has increased prices on higher-end XLE and Limited models more substantially - between 4.1 and 4.5 percent ($1,480 to $1,700). The Highlander Hybrid sees its price increase 2 percent ($930). The new model will be available in four different trims and with either front or all-wheel drive.
The absolute cheapest member of the Highlander range, the base LE, with a four-cylinder and front-wheel drive starts at $30,075, an increase of just $195. The LE is also available with a V6 and all-wheel drive, with the bigger engine upping the price to $31,380. All-wheel drive models start at $32,840. A slightly pricier LE Plus starts at $33,600 for a V6 FWD model and $35,060 if you add all-wheel drive.
Next up, we have the XLE, which starts at $36,900 for FWD models and moves up to $38,360 for AWD. The top-tier Limited model starts at $40,500 in FWD spec, grips-at-all-fours versions will retail for $41,960. For those that want the very top of the Highlander range, there's the Platinum Pack, which adds the Driver's Tech Pack (adaptive cruise control, pre-collision warning, lane departure warning and automatic high beams), a panoramic moonroof, heated steering wheel and heated second-row seats to the already well-equipped Limited model. Highlander Platinums start at $42,990 and $44,450, depending on how many tires are doing the work. (Note: All prices include an $860 destination and handling charge.)

BMW, Toyota warn about Chinese market slowing down

BMW and Toyota are the latest automakers to become concerned about the closing throttle on the once rapidly accelerating vehicle market in China. There might be drastic effects on their ledgers at the end of the year. With the Chinese stock market no longer looking so healthy, the people just aren't buying as many new cars as in the past. Things got really bad in June after the first drop in deliveries in two years. BMW has already reduced Chinese production by 16,000 units so far this year. Despite the slowdown, the company has kept a brave face. "We experience that volatility in all emerging markets," BMW CEO Harald Krueger said in a conference call, according to Automotive News. The problem for Toyota is a bit stranger. Through July, the automaker's Chinese deliveries were actually up 12 percent. However, the gain was offset by falling sales prices. "This is making our business in China quite difficult. The business environment is getting tougher," Toyota Managing Officer Tetsuya Otake said, Automotive News reported. Much of the weakness in China has come in the middle part of the year, and from January through June deliveries were still up 8.4 percent. This means the effects haven't hit the financial results of some automakers too hard quite yet. In the second quarter, General Motors referenced the "challenging conditions" there but still posted a growing net income of $1.1 billion. Despite falling global sales, Toyota managed record income for the quarter, too.