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Next Toyota Prius coming in 60-mpg 'Eco Grade' version?

There's some mystery surrounding the fuel economy level of the next-generation Toyota Prius. The closest we've had to an official number is 55 miles per gallon, which was hinted at by Toyota Motor Corporation's managing officer, Satoshi Ogiso, last year. That number wasn't an official target, but the company even provided a graphic (above) showing how each next generation Prius beat the previous one by four or five mpg. Since the current, third-gen model gets 50, well, we have been left to guess that 55 is the next logical target. But, according to a new report in Automotive News, the new, fourth-generation Prius that's due next year will come in two versions, with one having a bigger ego – sorry, eco – than the other. AN says that the model will arrive with a standard nickel-metal hydride battery pack in a version that gets "about 55 mpg" and then a new "eco grade" version with a li-ion battery that "will be rated at more than 60 mpg." AN says this information came from company executives who were speaking at an August meeting with Toyota dealers. Our sources within Toyota say that they haven't heard anything about two high-efficiency models, so we'll take this with the requisite grain of salt. The current version of the Prius Plug-In Hybrid does use lithium-ion batteries, but this is the non-plug model the dealers are talking about. We think. The dual-battery strategy is certainly a rumor we've heard before. We had thought that the li-ion pack would be for an extended EV range (the current Prius has a barely noticeable EV-only range), but such a pack would be lighter and could boost efficiency, too. In other words, we look forward to hearing more during the upcoming auto show season.

Toyota teases 2016 RAV4 Hybrid for New York Auto Show

Toyota is being extremely enigmatic with its tease for the newly announced RAV4 Hybrid. The Japanese automaker merely has a photo of the model's rear end with a visible hybrid badge on it. The only additional into tells us to look forward to the CUV's debut in just a few days at the New York Auto Show on April 2. Thankfully, Toyota's teaser shot does give away a few more details about this new version of the RAV4. The LED taillights on display aren't the regular ones that wrap around the back of the popular crossover. In the current design, the white portion is placed near the middle of the hatch, and there's amber at the corner. Here, the indicator is clear and two strips of lights run towards the center. The automaker has made its plan clear to sell even more crossovers in the near future, and the RAV4 has already been a strong mover for Toyota. The company shifted 267,698 of them in 2014, a year-over-year jump of 22.7 percent. Through February 2015, it has sold 41,767 examples of the CUV, a 25.3-percent improvement over the same period last year. Still, the decision to launch a hybrid version of the RAV4 now is a bit surprising. The US market for the green segment was soft last year, and it hasn't really turned around yet. Although, rumors of Toyota launching a greener variant of its popular CUV have been around for years. At that time, the company said it would monitor market demand, and maybe the people have spoken. Related Video: A new hybrid joins the Toyota family. 2016 RAV4 Hybrid. See it April 2, 12:30 p.m. EDT at the New York International Auto Show. Featured Gallery 2016 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid: Teasers News Source: Toyota Design/Style Green New York Auto Show Toyota Crossover Hybrid 2015 ny auto show toyota rav4 hybrid

Toyota and Suzuki are looking at an R&D partnership because they admit they're behind

The Chairman of Suzuki Motor Corporation, Osamu Suzuki, and the President of Toyota, Akio Toyoda, have convened at Toyota's Tokyo offices to declare plans to join hands regarding research and development. According to Toyoda, Toyota "hasn't been good at creating alliances," and its partnership with the small carmaker Daihatsu has been the most well-known collaboration so far. Perhaps the comment has a tinge of regret from Toyota and GM's NUMMI days in Fremont, especially as the statement released by Toyota says that "Toyota is conscious of the fact that it may be behind competitors in North America and Europe when it comes to the establishment of standardizations and partnership with other companies." But as different technologies advance at breakneck speed and it is difficult for companies both big and small to stay competitive, let alone ahead of the game, Toyota is accepting the need for collaboration. Toyoda referred to passenger safety, environmental issues, automated driving, and hydrogen technology, all of which are key challenges for any carmaker looking to stay relevant, and all expensive to experiment with. Spreading the cost over more vehicles should help. "We received an offer from Suzuki regarding collaboration possibilities on advanced and future technologies such as in information technology. Suzuki made a frank proposal to us, and in understanding that Toyota is facing the challenges which I had mentioned earlier, we thought that with the relationship between both companies, there is an opportunity for a business partnership to help solve such challenges. As such, we decided to explore such possibilities together," said Toyoda. In the future, Daihatsu will still be Toyota's tool in emerging markets, but now Toyota could have access to Suzuki's small-car know-how. Osamu Suzuki acknowledges that "Suzuki's current business focuses on minivehicles in Japan and India," as Suzuki withdrew from the US and Canada in 2013. A joint effort will help Suzuki remain relevant, and as a manufacturer of predominantly small vehicles it has been focusing on competitive pricing more than cutting edge technology. Related Video: