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Showing posts with label Toyota Sienna. Show all posts

Toyota Mulling a Larger Hybrid Minivan than the Prius V with Seating for Seven

The all-new Prius V five-seater minivan isn’t due to arrive in U.S. showrooms until this fall, yet Toyota is already looking into the development of a larger model capable of seating seven passengers as well as carrying their luggage, according to Bob Carter, Toyota Division general manager. The larger Prius won’t be based on the Japanese market Prius Alpha nor the European specification Prius+, both of which pack a retractable third row of seats into the Prius V’s cargo area.

Toyota said on Monday it will conduct a voluntary safety recall of some 94,000 units of its new 2011MY Sienna minivan (built before early November 2010) because of a potential problem with the brake light switch bracket. According to the Japanese automaker, due to the proximity with the parking brake, the stop lamp switch bracket could be deformed by the driver’s foot during parking brake operation.

Apparently stretched Toyotas are going to be a big thing at SEMA this year. After recently revealing Cartel's "All Stretched Out" Scion xB, it now appears that Toyota will also show off a limousine/rolling office Sienna at SEMA in order to commemorate the popularity of its "Swagger Wagon" video.

Built in partnership with B.A.D. Company, the V6-powered "Swagger Wagon Supreme" wears a coat of Blue Swagger Opal and been stretched 44 inches. Also, this Sienna now rides on 20-inch KMC rims that hide an airbag suspension setup to make it more comfortable and easier to drive on the open road (...).

Due to the 44-inch extension, the roof panel has been replaced with an acrylic unit measuring about 8 feet. The new roof is meant to improve the "functional family vehicle's" interior ambiance.

Ford has barely been moving half of what it predicted at the low end of annual Flex sales. However, since its platform is so spread out through the FoMoCo portfolio, the Flex helps spread some costs around while giving Ford a big people-mover. But there's more to the Flex than just being a box on wheels, and not enough people get it yet.

With the new Explorer "SUV" coming out, people are insinuating that the Flex could be put down if it can't start pulling more of its weight. Some argue that the two vehicles are much too similar, both seating seven, offering AWD, and being "aimed squarely at families".

Yes, they are family cars, but for different kinds of families. Two related products with two unique customers? My goodness, good thing Ford has a marketing division.

In what is shaping up to be a huge corporate nightmare, Toyota today announced that it will launch yet another voluntary safety recall, this time involving approximately 600,000 first- and second-generation Sienna 2WD minivans sold in the U.S. to address potential corrosion in the spare tire carrier cable.

The Japanese automaker said that the recall affects certain 1998 through 2010 model year Siennas that have been primarily driven in cold climate areas with high road salt use.

Toyota has supposedly announced some good news for prospective buyers of the 2011 Sienna as the company said that its all-new people carrier starts lower than the outgoing model with the entry-level model priced at $24,260 (not including a delivery, processing and handling fee of $800) or $280 less than the 2010MY.

What Toyota avoids to emphasize is that, whereas the base version of the 2011 Sienna is powered by a 187HP 2.7-liter four-cylinder engine, the entry-level 2010MY Sienna features a 266HP 3.5-liter V6...

Same goes for the 2011 Sienna LE that is said to start lower at $25,345, but it also comes with a four-banger unlike the 2010MY Sienna LE V6 which is priced at $26,065. If you opt for a V6 on the 2011 Sienna LE, you'll pay $28,900.

But anyway, the third generation minivan's prices top out at $39,770 for the Limited all-wheel-drive model with a 3.5-liter V6 generating 266 horsepower.

Both engines are matched with an electronically controlled six-speed transmission with the Japanese automaker announcing an EPA-estimated fuel efficiency ratings of 19 mpg city / 26 mpg on the highway for the four cylinder model and 18 mpg city/24 mpg highway (AWD: 16 mpg city/22 mpg highway) for the V6.

Toyota said that the new Sienna will go on sale in the States in February with the arrival of V6-powered LE, XLE and Limited models, while the four-cylinder models will begin arriving at showrooms in April.

2011 Toyota Sienna: New 7/8 Passenger Minivan Debuts at LA Auto Show

The third-generation Toyota Sienna minivan was officially revealed today at 2009 Los Angeles Auto show. The new model features a somewhat more aggressive design (note: key word here is 'more'...) that than its predecessor with many styling cues borrowed from the Toyota Venza - we'll leave you to decide if that's a good thing.

The 2011 Sienna's seven- or eight-passenger configurable interior has been redesigned from the ground up and now boasts a more modern styling. Toyota claims that the interior is more than two inches longer, and that the seats now have longer ranges of travel, thus increasing passenger space and making it possible to accommodate a wider range of heights and sizes.

Furthermore, the new Sienna gets wider doors making it easier to enter or exit the vehicle.

A choice of two petrol engines will be available on the Sienna, including an entry-level 2.7-liter four cylinder unit that produces 187HP and returns EPA-estimated fuel efficiency ratings of 19 mpg city and 26 mpg on the highway, and a 3.5-liter V6 with 266HP that delivers 18 mpg city/24 mpg highway.

Each engine is coupled to a six-speed automatic transmission while the V6 model is also offered with all-wheel drive.

The new Sienna will come in five grades, base, LE, XLE, Limited and the new "sporty" SE. The latter gets more aggressive looks with different side skirts, 19-inch alloy wheels, smoked lights, exclusive instrumentation and unique interior colors and trim plus a sportier tuned suspension.

The all-new 2011 Sienna will begin arriving at Toyota's U.S. dealerships in February 2010.