Toyota

The new 2023 Toyota Prius plays up power, not fuel economy • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on November 17, 2022Posted in hybrid, prius, Toyota, TransportationNo Comments

Toyota is beefing up the fuel-sipping Prius hybrid, adding more power and quicker acceleration to appeal to a wider range of car shoppers in an increasingly crowded market. The car created – and dominated – the segment when it launched in the U.S. 22 years ago. But the world’s first production hybrid car has steadily lost ground to new models from American, German, Japanese and Korean automakers as it enters its fifth generation. The 2023 Toyota Prius debuted Wednesday evening at the Los Angeles Auto Show with a sportier powertrain and curvier, low-slung silhouette to broaden its appeal to sports car customers who would not have considered a Prius in the past. However, the hybrid won’t become much greener: Toyota said the new model can deliver 57 mpg, similar to the outgoing Prius. 2023 Toyota Prius Toyota said the new model features a lower roofline and wider rear for a more modern, athletic look. The standard, front-wheel-drive model will now produce 194 horsepower, a 60% increase over the previous generation. The new hybrid can travel from 0 to 60 mph in 7.2 seconds – slower than a sports car but still a 26% improvement over the previous Prius’ 9.8 second trip. The power boost comes from the new hybrid’s larger engine and a smaller, lighter lithium-ion battery that increases output 15% over the previous generation’s nickel metal battery, according to Toyota. Prius Prime 2023 Prius Prime plug-in hybrid Image credit: Toyota A lower, longer and wider Prius Prime, the nameplate’s plug-in hybrid version, also debuted at the auto show Wednesday evening , boasting a 50% increase in its electric range. That suggests that the new Prime will be able to travel roughly 37 miles on a fully charged battery before drawing power from its gas engine, compared with the outgoing model’s 25-mile range. Toyota said it will announce pricing and delivery dates for the Prius hybrid later this year and for the Prius Prime early next year.

Toyota unveils all-electric SUV concept under its ‘Beyond Zero’ badge • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on November 17, 2022Posted in LA Auto Show, Los Angeles auto show, Toyota, TransportationNo Comments

Toyota unveiled Wednesday an all-electric SUV concept with plant-based seating and an AI “personal” assistant as the automaker expands its “beyond zero” portfolio. The bZ compact crossover concept that debuted at the Los Angeles Auto Show is meant to showcase Toyota’s vision for its battery-electric future. Toyota has said it plans to launch 30 fully electric vehicles, including five under the bZ (“Beyond Zero”) badge. Last year, the Japanese automaker kicked off the bz brand with the unveiling of the all-electric Toyota bZ4X. That vehicle, which is is nearly identical to the Subaru Solterra thanks to a collaboration between the two companies, came to market earlier this year. The SUV concept car showcases a “possible vision of the very near future” for its EV lineup, the automaker said in a statement. Toyota didn’t provide a timeline for the launch, but said the portfolio will support its goal to go carbon neutral by 2050. Image Credits: Toyota The 2023 Toyota Prius, a mild hybrid, also debuted Wednesday ahead of the auto show. Toyota said the sleek bZ concept pushes the wheels to the corners to achieve an aggressive stance, making it appear in motion when parked. Its silhouette displays short overhangs, sweepback angles and a “narrowed-down cabin design” to create a futuristic look, according to the automaker. Inside, the car showcase seating made from plant-based and recycled materials and a semicircle-shaped steering wheel that looks like the top half has been lopped off. Yui, the name of the AI-based “personal agent,” responds to requests from front or rear passengers using sound and lights that “move around the cabin.”

Toyota exposed 300,000 customer email addresses for 5 years • ZebethMedia

By zebethcontrolPosted on October 12, 2022Posted in cybersecurity, data leaks, GitHub, Security, ToyotaNo Comments

Automotive giant and car maker Toyota has warned that the personal information of roughly 300,000 customers may have been exposed for close to five years. The possible exposure relates to T-Connect, an official Toyota app that allows customers to connect their smartphone to their vehicle’s dashboard infotainment system. In a statement, Toyota admitted that a subcontractor developing the T-Connect website inadvertently uploaded part of the site’s source code to a public GitHub repository in December 2017, where it sat undiscovered until last month. This source code contained an access key to a server that stored customer email addresses and customer management numbers that it assigns to each customer. Toyota said that a total of 296,019 email addresses could have been accessed by anyone who found the access key until the access to the GitHub repository was closed on September 15, 2022. Toyota, which confirmed it has since changed the server’s access key on September 17, said that no other information, such as customer names, phone numbers and credit card information, was affected. But the company was forced to admit that it could not rule out the possibility of someone having accessed and stolen the data during the five-year span. “As a result of an investigation by security experts, although we cannot confirm access by a third party based on the access history of the data server where the customer’s email address and customer management number are stored, at the same time, we cannot completely deny it,” Toyota said in a statement. Toyota advised customers whose details may have been leaked to be on alert for phishing attempts and to avoid opening email attachments from unknown senders that claim to be from Toyota. A similar security lapse recently led to the leak of a huge amount of sensitive data from Shanghai’s police database, including the names, addresses, phone numbers, national identifications, birthplaces, and criminal records of more than 70 percent of the country’s population — approximately 1 billion Chinese residents.