Does your car reflect your viewing choice?

A recent article in USA Today compared car owners with their late-night TV show of choice.  They teamed up and created a poll with Penn Schoen Berland, market research and consulting firm, to showcase the demographics of viewers and their cars.

According to the results of the poll fans of Conan O’Brien are most likely to be between the ages of 18 and 34 year old and drive Volkswagens.  Those who prefer to watch Jay Leno are typically age 45 or older and lean toward domestics, especially Pontiac and Chevrolets.

Change the channel to watch David Letterman and you are likely somewhere in the neighborhood of 25 to 44 years old, and cruising around in a Toyota.  Lastly, people who prefer to get their news and entertainment from Jon Stewart fall between the ages of 35-54 and favor GMC trucks.

Prius - A Decade in North America

This year, the Toyota Prius celebrates a decade of sales in North America. The Prius remains the best selling hybrid in both the U.S. and around the world. Since its Japanese market introduction back in 1997, drivers have purchased more than 1.8 million of the gas-electric vehicles, with approximately half of those ending up in the United States. The first-generation Prius was an awkward looking four-door sedan that was slow and often didn’t meet up with customer’s fuel economy expectations. It wasn’t until the second-generation model arrived in 2004 with a new tear-drop shaped hatchback body style that the Prius really took off. By 2007, sales topped half a million, with the third-generation model arriving two years later offering even more improved efficiency and better dynamic performance. This year, Toyota has begun to set up a test-fleet of plug-in Priuses with lithium ion batteries with full series production of those versions planed for 2012.

The concept, which is called the Auris HSD Hybrid, is a step forward in the carmaker’s plan to expand its hybrid lineup, the company said in a statement Tuesday.

Toyota will begin production of the Auris hybrid at its factory near Derby, about 200km north of London, starting mid-2010.

Toyota says the hybrid Auris uses 19 percent less fuel and emits 17 percent less carbon dioxide than the standard version.

The company builds most of its hybrid vehicles in Japan, but also produces a small number of Prius hybrids in China and the Camry hybrid in the United States.

In July, Toyota President Akio Toyoda said the carmaker would shift its focus in the diesel-heavy European market to hybrid vehicles as part of a new effort to use its resources more selectively.

Toyota Europe CEO Tadashi Arashima said making hybrids in Europe would help ensure that full hybrids “become more accessible to a wider range of customers.”

Toyota has a goal of selling at least 1 million hybrid vehicles a year within the next few years.

Toyota also will give its Prius plug-in electric car a world debut in Frankfurt. The car is based on the new, third-generation Prius.

The carmaker said it will offer 150 Prius plug-in cars to fleet customers to test next year.

Toyota will start making the Auris hybrid at its U.K. factory in mid-2010.

-AutoNews.com

The Venza is a (mostly) carlike, (not too) small (high-utility) passenger vehicle. It’s based on the Camry platform, with which it shares some specifications, and has a high level of standard equipment. That makes it more than a Camry station wagon, and maybe less, in some respects, than a Toyota Highlander SUV. But what it does, it does well, and frankly, we think a lot of people are going to like it.

The All New 2009 Toyota Venza

Toyota marketing sources say that the Venza is ideally designed to capture outflow from disenchanted SUV owners, who have been abandoning the truck market in droves. The base four-cylinder model comes standard with 19-inch wheels and tires. The V-6 comes standard with 20-inchers. That’s too big for most SUVs these days – the Highlander comes with standard 17-inch wheels. While large rims look good, smaller wheels and tires – even18-inchers – would improve the Venza’s ride quality and the tires would be cheaper to replace.

There are a few surprises that make the Venza stand out. The shifter is mounted in the center of the dashboard instead of lower in the console, between the driver and passenger seats. This allowed Toyota to create a huge cargo area in the center console, covered with a sliding cup holder tray. It’s a really interesting way of doing things.

A trip computer that displays the time, outside temperature and either driving range, mileage or average speed, along with air-conditioning settings, sits squarely atop the dash. This location is the perfect place for such a screen in terms of keeping the driver’s eyes trained on the road, and it’s unbelievably crisp and clear. This is also where the backup camera is located if you opt to get it as part of a $570 security package, without adding navigation. If you do get the nav system, the camera’s image appears in the nav screen lower on the dash.

Toyota’s biggest problem may be educating buyers, especially boomers, on what exactly the Venza is. It looks like an SUV, it has wagon utility, and it gets car-like gas mileage. It’s basically the car SUV drivers would want to drive – quite possibly making it the perfect car for today, when few people still want to buy an SUV.

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Fuel economy ratings may sell cars these days, but it’s really just one piece of a much larger puzzle that determines the cost to own and drive a car. According to IntelliChoice, the true cost includes depreciation, financing, insurance, state fees, maintenance and repairs, and of course, fuel. We’ve used these numbers to calculate a total cost of ownership over a five-year period with 14,000 miles of driving each year in order to determine which of our test cars offers the best value. Is it worth sacrificing top-of-the-ladder fuel economy ratings for a bargain price? Or is hybrid technology the end-all for the fuel and money frugal? Here’s what it takes to own these five subcompacts and one miserly hybrid.

Photo Gallery: Small Car Comparison – 2008 Suzuki SX4, 2008 Hyundai Accent SE, 2009 Chevrolet Aveo5 LS, 2008 Honda Fit Sport, 2008 Toyota Prius, and 2008 Toyota Yaris S – Automobile Magazine

Expensive gas is today’s black cloud of despair for motorists, but there is a ray of light shining through the gloom. Costly energy drives higher efficiency and environmental interest, and it also provides car companies with the motivation to design better products. Toyota began its serious quest for higher mileage and lower exhaust emissions in 1997 with the release of the Prius in Japan. Since its launch in the U.S. market in 2000, the Prius has set the standard for fuel-efficient midsize sedans by delivering exceptional mileage with little comfort or convenience sacrifice. Automobile Magazine test drove the 2008 Prius Touring.

Photo Gallery: 2008 Toyota Prius Touring Edition – Toyota Hybrid Sedan Review – Automobile Magazine

Our tester was a two-door hatchback, a stripper. Seldom do we drive cars anymore with no power mirrors, windows, or locks. No keyless remote, either! Although the Yaris two-door is mildly cute, or funky I suppose, and it might make a good city car for someone who seldom has passengers, I would prefer the four-door hatch. The Yaris has none of the cheekiness and attitude that have made the Honda Fit the darling of the subcompact crowd. Instead, the Toyota simply feels like a basic economy car. Nothing offensive here, but nothing inspiring, either.

Photo Gallery: 2008 Toyota Yaris – Toyota Subcompact Hatchback Review – Automobile Magazine

Strong sales of the Prius have forced Toyota to consider building the hybrid within the United States, but now it’s official: the car will be built in Mississippi for U.S. consumption.

Photo Gallery: Mississippi Plant to Build Toyota Prius Hybrids – Latest News, Features, and Reviews – Automobile Magazine

The Toyota Yaris has suddenly become a hot seller thanks to its excellent fuel economy and solid Toyota build quality. Through the first half of 2008, Yaris sales are up 39 percent compared to 2007 (sales of the Honda Fit, Hyundai Accent, and Suzuki SX4 are up even more), yet Yaris pricing remains competitively low. The liftback version starts at only $11,550 (our liftback tester with a four-speed automatic transmission sells for $14,125), and buyers can order their new Yaris econo-hatch with everything or seemingly nothing.

Photo Gallery: 2008 Toyota Yaris – Toyota Compact Sedan Review – Automobile Magazine

True to its character

Photo Gallery: 2008 Toyota Avalon XLS – New Toyota Midsize Sedan Review – Automobile Magazine