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Toyota temporarily idles pair of Indian plants due to labor unrest

The Detroit News reported today that Toyota will restart production at two Indian plants, following a shutdown on Monday.
Factory labor, management and police in Asia engage in the kind of violent altercations that we're not used to, having almost entirely walked away from the overtly brutal relations epitomized by the Pinkerton Detective Agency and the Flint Sit-Down Strike. In India, a plant owned by a Ford transmission supplier plant was shut down in 2009 after incidents between workers and armed men around the same time as Ssangyong workers occupied a factory in South Korea, in 2012 Suzuki Maruti workers rioted over wages around the same time upset employees beat a ceramics factory president to death in retaliation for a labor leader's killing.
Toyota is the latest to company trying to avoid that road. The Detroit Free Press reported earlier this week that it shut down two plants in India after 11 months of acrimonious wage negotiations and arbitration have gone nowhere. Toyota said the plant workers in Bidadi, near Bangalore, had deliberately stopped production at times over the past 45 days and threatened management. The workers said they wanted their wages raised by an amount already agreed to by management, but that management had reneged; news reports weren't clear on the amount, some saying nearly 10,000 rupees ($165 US) more per month, another saying 4,000 rupees ($65 US), but reports agree that Toyota has said it will only go as high as 3,050 rupees ($50 US).

Volvo S90 Recharge, Lexus RX 350 and spring beer picks | Autoblog Podcast #679

In this episode of the Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Consumer Editor Jeremy Korzeniewski. They start off discussing the Volvo S90 Recharge and wonder out loud why the brand's plug-in technology isn't also offered with a wagon body style. They then discuss the Lexus RX350 and why it's likely an ideal premium crossover for a large percentage of buyers. From there, Greg and Jeremy cover some recent news items, including the current state of BMW's coupes and rumors that Toyota's next Land Cruiser will lose its V8 engine in favor of a turbocharged V6. Then it's time to go over some of our current favorite spring beers before turning to the mailbag and spending some listener's money. Autoblog Podcast #679 Get The Podcast iTunes – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown Cars we're driving 2021 Volvo S90 Recharge 2021 Lexus RX 350 News BMW 2 Series preview Land Cruiser powertrain rumors Spring beers Mailbag Spend My Money Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on iTunes Autoblog is now live on your smart speakers and voice assistants with the audio Autoblog Daily Digest. Say “Hey Google, play the news from Autoblog” or "Alexa, open Autoblog" to get your favorite car website in audio form every day. A narrator will take you through the biggest stories or break down one of our comprehensive test drives. Related Video:

Toyota Aygo X-Wave pops its top

Chop the top off a car and you'll let the sunshine and warm air in, but you'll also get a car that's heavier, less rigid and costlier. That's why European hatchbacks in particular have been increasingly favoring retractable fabric roof panels that keep the structural integrity in tact while letting the sunshine in. The Fiat 500C, Citroen DS3 Cabrio and Renault Twingo all offer this type of setup – as do the Peugeot 108 and Citroen C1, and now their Toyota platform-mate is following them down the same path. Recently announced in the UK is this Toyota Aygo with X-Wave roof option. It's a black canvas panel that opens up the space above both rows of seats at the push of a button. Unlike the roofs on some of the other aforementioned European city cars, it doesn't extend all the way down to the base of the back window, but that just means it doesn't stack up and impede cargo space and rearward visibility. Toyota is bundling the X-Wave roof option with additional equipment like upgraded lighting, infotainment system and alloys for GBP895, taxes included (equivalent to $1,355 at today's exchange rates). That's a lot less than Fiat, for example, gets for upgrading from a 500 to a 500C on either side of the Atlantic. It's also even less than Peugeot and Citroen charge for similar options on their versions of the same vehicle in the UK, and that strikes us as a pretty cost-effective way to go motoring with the top down. LESS METAL, MORE FUN WITH AYGO'S X-WAVE OPEN TOP OPTION How do you make driving a Toyota Aygo even more fun? One sure-fire way is to provide some classic open-top enjoyment with a new retractable x-wave canvas roof. Looking ahead to longer, warmer days, Toyota has launched the x-wave as an option on the five-door Aygo x-pression model. Finished in black, the roof is factory fitted and is full length, ensuring that anyone travelling in the rear seats also gets to enjoy some of the wind-in-the-hair experience. The roof is electrically operated, using a simple switch next to the map light control in the headlining. Specifying the x-wave adds even more appeal to the Aygo x-pression, which also features 15-inch alloy wheels, front fog lamps, projector headlights with LED daytime running lights, the x-touch multimedia system with DAB and Bluetooth, reversing camera and air conditioning.