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How new car shortages may impact your buying experience

If you want further proof that the auto industry is bouncing back, look no further than the empty lots and forecourts of your local dealership. According to a story by The Wall Street Journal, continued high demand for mainstream cars is overtaxing automakers' ability to produce enough models. Several dealers interviewed for the story are reporting two-week supplies as opposed to the typical two-month allocations.
With sales expected to hit 1.4 million units when August numbers arrive shortly and incentive spending down to its lowest amount since January, these limited supplies are pushing prices even higher. For example, according to the WSJ, the average price of a Ford Fusion is up past $26,000. Unfortunately, it's difficult for manufacturers to increase production quickly. If it invests in its facilities, as many manufacturers have done, it risks wasting cash if growth suddenly slows. At the same time, the momentum gained over the past several years could be short lived if vehicle supplies continue to dwindle. "Manufacturers are in a precarious situation," notes Karl Brauer, a senior director at Kelley Blue Book.
Low interest rates and a wealth of desirable features are also allowing customers to purchase more expensive vehicles while justifying their higher overall price tags, a situation that is compounding supply shortages. Even now, during the annual end-of-summer clearance season, deals on new vehicles are remarkably difficult to come by. According to the report, the Toyota Corolla is in a self-inflicted state of shortage, as Toyota clears out inventory in anticipation of the new 2014 generation arriving in dealers. Ford's supplies should rebound as Fusion production comes on line at its Flat Rock, Michigan factory. The Chevrolet Impala, Honda Odyssey, Civic, and Accord and Subaru Forester are also facing shortages.

Recharge Wrap-up: Mazda, Toyota earn environmental awards

Electric mobility nonprofit Drive Oregon has launched a campaign to invite the electric car industry to perform testing in the state. The campaign tells companies to, "Test Drive the Future in the Living Lab," citing Oregon's density of EV owners and charging infrastructure, varied terrain and climate, funding opportunities, and the state's technological reputation as the "Silicon Forest." Plus, as Drive Oregon Executive Director Jeff Allen, points out, "if you really screw things up here, it doesn't make as much noise as it would in California." Already, Jaguar Land Rover has announced plans for an Innovation Incubator in Oregon. Read more at Green Car Reports. Mazda's new paint system has won the Prime Minister's Award in the category of Manufacturing and Production Process at the 6th Monodzukuri Nippon Grand Award ceremony. Mazda's Aqua-tech paint system significantly reduces emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and CO2. The Aqua-tech system uses a water-based color basecoat and a urethane clear coat to reduce VOC emissions by 57 percent. It consolidates the painting process and reduces energy in paint-booth air-conditioning and flash-off processes to reduce energy consumption. It also allows Mazda to create such colors as Soul Red, which looks quite nice on the MX-5 Miata. Read more at Green Car Congress, and learn all about the Aqua-tech paint process from Mazda. The Toyota Mirai has received a 2015 Environmental Award from Austrian automobile club ARBO. The hydrogen fuel cell car took the prize in the category of Current Innovative Environmental Technologies. "At Toyota, we believe that various technologies will co-exist, ranging from EVs to hybrids to the most innovative of all, the fuel cell car," says Gerald Killmann, Vice President R&D of Toyota Motor Europe, in a comment thanking ARBO. "Mirai is a core component of Toyota's vision for a sustainable mobility society, one that allows us all to move freely in comfort and safety in an environmentally friendly, sustainable manner." Read more in the press release below. Vienna, Austria- November 5th - The Austrian automobile club ARBO* (Auto-Motor und Radfahrerverbund Osterreiche) has awarded the Toyota Mirai with the "2015 Environmental Award". This Award was received during a gala ceremony held yesterday in Vienna, where the Toyota Mirai was awarded in the category of "Current Innovative Environmental Technologies" . The jury consisted of ARBO automotive experts.

PSA: Toyota wants to save your life, needs an hour of your time

Toyota wrote Autoblog to ask if we could spread the word about the Takata airbag inflator recall. Defective inflators remain installed in tens of millions of cars made by 19 carmakers, with manufacture dates that go back to the year 2000. Each inflator compounds the risk of serious injury or death in an airbag-activating crash. With a new ad campaign called "in about an hour," Toyota wants to make sure that unaware owners, or overly busy owners, know they can get their Toyota, Lexus, and Scion vehicles repaired free of charge in about the time it takes to do a load of laundry. The campaign focuses on cities in three so-called Zone A states where hot, humid climates worsen the threat of the ruptured inflators: Los Angeles, Dallas, and Miami. However, every owner everywhere who cares about his life, or his child's life, should at least check to see if his car is affected. All it takes is a quick VIN entry at the dedicated recall site at Toyota.com/Recall. The results will let you know if your car is affected and, if so, locate a local dealer for the free fix. The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration said the Takata affair has become "the largest and most complex safety recall in U.S. history." The numbers so far suggest the recall covers more than 42 million vehicles and more than 60 million airbags. Autoweek keeps an updated list of Takata information, including every make and model on the recall list. Consumer Reports published a list of frequently asked questions covering issues directly related and tangential to the recall. The 19 automakers maintain pages dedicated to the issue; Fiat Chrysler lists every relevant model and how it prioritizes repairs by Zone, Honda says it offers a free rental car while owner cars are repaired, Daimler vans says its fix only takes about an hour. And of course NHTSA serves all owners with its own VIN lookup site. We encourage you to check your vehicle — the life you save could be your own. Related Video: