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Toyota confirms C-HR crossover to debut at Geneva

With the compact crossover segment booming with new entries, Toyota soon intends to burst into the popular market with a production version of the C-HR concept. The rakishly styled, little CUV will show off its final face at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show next March, and European sales will start before summer, Autocar reports. Customers in the US will likely get to drive the angular model, too. The C-HR concept's chiseled shape is expected to make the transition to the road largely unaltered. According to Autocar, customers reportedly really dig the razor-sharp look versus a more conventional CUV design. A hybrid is also expected to be included in the production powertrain lineup, but non-electrified options could be available, too. The Japanese automaker last displayed the C-HR at this year's Frankfurt Motor Show. Underneath the avant-garde shape, the Toyota New Global Architecture provided the underpinnings, and a hybrid powertrain was there for propulsion. The concept's general design idea was actually the revival of a three-door crossover from the 2014 Paris Motor Show. In addition, the production C-HR is expected eventually to arrive in the US but likely wearing a Scion badge. Spy shots highly suggest that a crossover is already under development, and the entry would give the division a much-needed challenger to the Nissan Juke, Honda HR-V, Mazda CX-3, and plenty of others. Plus, the brand is keeping it absolutely no secret that a third, new model is on way to join the iA and iM.

Toyota settles complaints with states Attorneys General for $29 million

Toyota announced today that it has reached a settlement with the Attorneys General of 29 states and one US territory that will resolve their complaints relating to recalls performed by the automaker from 2005-2010, including those related to sticky accelerators and malfunctioning floor mats that may have contributed to cases of unintended acceleration.
The settlement includes a payout of $29 million to be divided among the states and US territory, as well as a commitment from Toyota "to take steps to make vehicle information more easily accessible to consumers to help them operate their vehicles safely and make more informed choices." The settlement also has Toyota continuing its rapid-response service teams and quality field offices that were put in place shortly after the largest of the recalls from 2010, as well as a "range of customer care amenities for owners of vehicles subject to certain recalls," though the press release below isn't specific about what those amenities might be.
This settlement marks the second major step in the last few months that Toyota has taken to settle legal disputes surrounding the unintended acceleration recalls, the first being a $1.4 billion settlement to address economic loss suffered by owners of current and past Toyota vehicles that may have lost value on account of these recalls.

2020 Toyota Highlander vs other 3-row crossovers: There can only be one!

We've done quite a few spec comparison posts involving three-row family crossovers, and when included, the Toyota Highlander has always been the runt of the group. While the rest increasingly seemed to be benchmarking each other toward greater girth, the Highlander was the outlier.  That changes a bit for the 2020 Toyota Highlander, but only a bit. It's now larger and more competitive, specifically in regards to the amount of cargo space aft of the third-row seat. As you can see below, this aligns the Highlander most closely to its long-time competitor the 2020 Honda Pilot. However, let's see how it stacks up to others in the segment, which is heavily populated now, so for the sake of space, we've selected the newest entries: Kia Telluride, Hyundai Palisade, Subaru Ascent and Ford Explorer. The order in which they are presented is random.  Performance and fuel economy The 2020 Highlander is more than 200 pounds lighter than its predecessor, but has the same 295-horsepower V6 engine that was already one of the strongest in the segment. We'd say that would give it a leg up, but the Pilot and Explorer have proven to be sprinters, delivering 0-60 times in the low-6 range by some publications' stopwatches (or VBoxes, whatever). We don't expect the Highlander to beat them, but it may dip into the 6's. The heavy, less-powerful Subaru Ascent is most likely to take up the rear. It's fuel economy of 23 mpg combined also matches the Highlander and Explorer for segment-best. Remember, however, that the Explorer's turbocharged inline-four engine is likely more susceptible to differences in driving style (read: a heavy foot).  Of course, if you're really interested in fuel economy, the Highlander and Explorer are the only vehicles in the segment to offer hybrid versions. The Ford Explorer Hybrid puts a greater emphasis on performance, however, resulting in lower estimates of 25 mpg combined (AWD) and 28 mpg combined (FWD). By contrast, the new 2020 Toyota Highlander Hybrid is estimated to return 36 mpg combined.  Passenger and cargo space According to Highlander chief engineer Yoshikazu Saeki, he had a choice of two directions with the new Highlander. He could have indeed made it bigger, matching these very competitors, especially in terms of third-row and cargo space. Or, he could have maintained a smaller-than-average size. He obviously chose the latter. First, it was the size customers had come to expect. Would they be put off by something bigger?