Toyota moves production of Lexus ES350 to Georgetown, KY

In an effort to create jobs and to reduce production costs, Toyota has officially announced that they’ll be manufacturing the Lexus ES350 in Georgetown, Kentucky after investing $360 million to produce 740 new jobs at the plant.

“Lexus was founded in the United States, so it is only fitting that we are bringing the production of luxury sedans for our U.S. customers back to where the brand was born,” said Akio Toyoda, Toyota’s current president. “Today’s announcement is a major step in our Global Vision to make ever better cars and trucks, give regions greater autonomy to make the products their customers want and achieve sustainable growth globally.”

The Lexus ES350 won’t be the only car made at the Georgetown plant as the Toyota Camry has been manufactured there since 1986. Not to mention, last year, the 25^th millionth Toyota built in North America was made in good ole Kentucky.

Courtesy of egmCarTech.

First Toyota Prius Hybrid National Car Meet Announced For June

Toyota has now sold more than 1 million Prius hybrids in the U.S. over 12 years.

Now their owners can get together to celebrate their cars, and all the fuel they didn't burn.

For the first time ever, a national gathering of Prius owners is being held from June 14 through 16 in Riverside, California, about 50 miles east of Los Angeles.

The event, called "To Go Before" (a translation of the Latin word prius), kicks off the evening of June 14 with a welcome gathering at the Sunkist Center in the California Citrus State Historic Park.

During the following two days, participants can socialize with other owners, attend technical sessions, and look over a variety of products and accessories specifically for the Prius.

They can also take test drives of all four models in the 2013 Toyota Prius lineup: the original Prius Liftback, the Prius V wagon, the Prius C subcompact hatchback, and the Prius Plug-In Hybrid.

On Sunday, Prius drivers will bring their Toyota hybrid cars--of every model and year from 2000 through 2013--together for a caravan drive up to nearby Lake Arrowhead.

The event has been organized by longtime Prius advocates Danny Cooper, who founded PriusChat.com in 2003, and Russell Frost, who started PriusOwnersGroup.com in 2005.

Frost and Cooper say they've planned the event for more than 18 months, and hope to create a gathering that differs from both typical enthusiast meetups and traditional car shows.

"Our focus has been simply to give Prius owners a chance to spend time together," say the organizers, "learning more about their cars and each other."

"We've intentionally created a small, exclusive event."

Nonetheless, Cooper and Frost hope that they will attract owners from all over the country--not just Southern California Prius partisans.
 
And the Riverside area may be an apt location for a gathering of fuel-efficient, low-emission hybrid cars.

The Inland Empire region has some of the worst air pollution in California, and now offers buyers of plug-in electric cars additional local purchase rebates on top of Federal income-tax credits and California state rebates.

The organizers note that Toyota is the presenting sponsor of the event, helping to make it possible--although To Go Before 2013 is a private enterprise.

More information on the schedule of events, along with directions, is available on the event's website. Interested Prius owners can also register online to take part.

Courtesy of Green Car Reports.

Toyota Launches Spy Theme Ads for New Avalon with Former Star of ‘The Wire’

After launching a sleek redesign for its top-of-the-line Avalon, Toyota has unleashed a slick new campaign for the Georgetown made vehicle.

The campaign, titled “Only the Name Remains,” will play out over the next year in a series of “spy themed” commercials according to Toyota Motor Sales’ National Manager of Target Advertising and Strategy, David Chung.

“We wanted to create a campaign that matched those exciting emotions behind the launch of this product. So we worked closely together with our agency partner, Burrell [Communications] in trying to come up with a campaign that tries to match that excitement,” Chung said.

To accomplish that, Toyota and LA and Chicago-based Burrell enlisted Golden Globe winning and Emmy nominated British actor Idris Elba. Perhaps best known for his role as a Baltimore drug kingpin who sought to turn his ill-gotten gains into a legit fortune as Stinger Bell on HBO’s The Wire, Elba has starred in numerous movies and other TV shows including a seven-episode role on the American version of The Office and his award winning role as London detective John Luther on BBC/BBC America’s Luther.

“One thing we really liked about Idris is the diverse roles he’s taken on and in reviewing some of the other candidates he exuded most of the attributes of the Avalon we wanted to highlight like distinctive styling, the excitement, the aura of sophistication.” Chung said. “Based on the range that Idris had, I think the final execution, he played that perfectly.”

The ads, which started airing at the first of the month, will target an African American demographic in their late 30s to late 40s, Chung said. While a series of three ads are available on You Tube in addition to an interactive site www.OnlytheName.com, the spots will roll out on TV networks such as BET, OWN, Bounce TV and TV One.

“We realized it was such a radical new styling both the with interior and exterior we really wanted to kind of capture the development of the campaign that understood how significant the product’s changed,” Chung said.

“Really the only thing that’s a carry over is the name. Everything’s dramatically improved from the technology inside the vehicle to the driving characteristics to the sexy styling of the vehicle,” he added.

Another characteristic of the new generation of the Avalon that was apparent in its past is its relatively low price point for being a loaded flagship vehicle. The entry level edition of the new Avalon is listed just north of $30,000, though Chung said he expects the price to stay separate from the Only the Name spots as dealer commercials will tackle value.

Courtesy of Business Lexington.

Maintenance Monday Tip: Spark Plugs

Spark plugs do need changing!
 
The advent of electronic ignition and on-board computers has eliminated the need for regular tune-ups, but you still need to change your spark plugs. Many manufacturers recommend changing plugs every 30,000 or 40,000 miles (48,000 or 64,000 km) to ensure good fuel mileage and engine performance. Some new cars come with long-life plugs (sometimes called double platinum plugs) that can last for 100,000 miles (160,000 km). If your car isn’t so equipped, make the switch after 30,000 miles. The extra cost is only a few dollars per spark plug. While you’re at it, change your spark plug wires as well. Their typical life is 50,000 miles (80,000 km). Deteriorated wires can cause those high-tech new spark plugs to foul.

Courtesy of Reader's Digest.

This Might Be the Most Valuable Toyota on the Planet

The 1967 Toyota 2000GT is easily the best car you've never heard of—it's also one of the best-looking Japanese sports car ever made, according to us.

Developed in partnership with Yamaha, this two-passenger coupe has a two-liter inline six-cylinder engine with a cast-iron block and double overhead cams, producing 150 horsepower at 7,000 rpm and a top speed of over 135 mph. 

This 2000GT, one of 351 examples made, will be selling at no reserve at RM's upcoming auction in Fort Worth, Texas. The company estimates the car will sell for between $600,000 and $850,000. 

Courtesy of Complex.com.

Travis Tritt to perform summer concert

BECKLEY (WVVA)-- The YMCA and "Friends of Coal"  announced Monday that Travis Tritt will be taking the main stage for their auto fair concert this summer.

The tenth annual festival will be taking place the weekend of July 19 - 21. The concert is that Saturday at 7:30.

Plus West Virginia natives, "The Davisson Brothers" will be opening up the show.
Tickets go on sale April 1 at 10am.

Courtesy of WVVA.com

Toyota Celeb Race in Long Beach Debuts New Car

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- The Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race is right around the corner, and it's one of the fan favorites each year at the Long Beach Grand Prix. 

Stars of all kinds get to have some fun, raise money for charity and give the fans a thrill.

This year, the lucky celebs chosen to drive in the race will get new cars. Scion's sporty FR-S has been transformed into an FR-S celebrity racer.

"When they get in these cars, they're going to be blown away by how neat they drive," said Chuck Wade with Toyota Motorsports.

The FR-S has been a big hit with enthusiasts since going on sale last year. The enthusiastic celebrities who take on the streets of Long Beach next month will get upgrades like safety equipment, a tighter suspension and more durable brakes.

But before this year's thrill-seeking stars get to check them out, Scion held a media event to show the cars off at Willow Springs Raceway, where the celebrity race participants have been training for years.

Not only is the FR-S different looking, it's a different type of car underneath. For the past seven years, the celebrities have raced in the Scion tC, which is a front wheel drive car. The FR-S is rear wheel drive. Ask anybody who knows about racing or performance driving, and they'll tell you that rear wheel drive really is the way to go. But it presents a special challenge for the celebrity race.
The configuration can be unforgiving in the hands of a novice. But Toyota's race engineers thought ahead.

"We worked hard on the old front wheel drive cars to get them to where the back end would come around some. With these new cars we've done just the opposite. We worked hard with the back end so that it doesn't come around. So I don't know if it's going to be a real big learning curve for these celebrities to get in these cars and drive them hard," said Wade.

To really get an idea of how the new Scion performs, Raul Moreno took me for a spin. Moreno has been teaching the celebrities for many years. As it turns out, most check any ego at the door.
"The nice thing that we've always liked about all the celebrities, most of them, they all are very humble. So when they come, they come to learn," Moreno said.

Then it was my turn to get behind the wheel, in a seat that will soon be occupied by a celebrity. And as the real drivers of these cars take to the streets next month in Long Beach, they'll each try to be the first celebrity to put the Scion FR-S into the winner's circle.

The celebrities chosen for the race will be revealed next week.

Courtesy of ABC7.