Toyota Aurion 2014 News

None of us wants to crash our shiny new car but, if we do, we want to know we're safe. That's where the Australian New Car Assessment Program's standardised crash-testing analysis is invaluable, providing comparable ratings for vehicles of all types.The ANCAP site notes that a one-star car is twice as likely to kill you as a five-star model. Carsguide examines ANCAP's results to find the best of breed in each segment. It's worth noting the advanced software in some cars that readies the vehicle if a crash is imminent are disabled during the official tests. Cars are scored out of 37 points after the following tests.FRONTAL OFFSET TEST: The subject vehicle is accelerated to 64km/h and rammed into a deformable alloy barrier to simulate a head-on crash. To increase the severity and reproduce real-world conditions only 40 per cent of the car hits the wall - equating to a driver swerving to avoid an oncoming vehicle.SIDE IMPACT TEST: The T-bone hit rams a 950kg trolley into the side of the car at 50km/h. The sled has an alloy face to simulate the front of another vehicle, which deforms and absorbs some of the impact.PEDESTRIAN TEST: Simulates the results of hitting a pedestrian at 40km/h. The test assesses adult and child impacts, given their heads and limbs strike different areas of the car.POLE TEST: This is the most demanding test in the ANCAP repertoire. Trees and poles don't deform, so all the crash energy is transferred to the vehicle. The car is put on a sled and propelled towards a fixed steel pole at 29km/h.SAFEST SMALL CARSAUDI A3 36.41 See reviews of this carOfficially the best small car to occupy in an accident. Impressively, the windscreen pillar didn't move after a 64km/h hit with the concrete block.  HONDA INSIGHT 36.39 See reviews of this carIts score reflects a 3mm movement of the pillar in the frontal offset test and "slight risk" of serious leg injury for driver and passenger.   BMW 1 SERIES HATCH 36.33 See reviews of this carThere's a slight risk of serious chest injury for the driver in the frontal and side crash test and a slight risk of serious leg injury for the passenger in the frontal crash.   SAFEST MEDIUM CARSMERCEDES B-CLASS 36.78 See reviews of this carTops the charts with the highest score of any car in ANCAP database. Technically there's a 4mm movement of the front pillar and a slight risk of injury to the passenger leg closest the door.  BMW 3 SERIES 36.76 See reviews of this carBarely behind. It showed a 1mm movement of the pillar and there was a slight risk of serious injury to the driver's and passenger's legs.VOLVO V40 36.67 See reviews of this carThe only loss of points occurred during the frontal crash test, with a slight risk of serious injury to the front occupants' legs closest the door and the driver's chest.SAFEST LARGE CARSTOYOTA AURION 36.59 See reviews of this carFirst place in this class makes it the only locally built vehicle in any top-three line-up. There's a slight risk of lower leg injury for driver and passenger.   BMW 5 Series 36.53 See reviews of this carNot a bad place to be in the event of an accident either. It blitzed the side impact tests and only lost fractions of points in the head-on hit.    VOLVO S60 36.34 See reviews of this carSweden maintains its safety credentials. The passenger compartment stayed intact with only a 1mm movement of the front pillar.    SAFEST COMPACT SUVS SUBARU XV 35.53 See reviews of this carLike the slightly lower-riding Impreza, the XV scored highly in all crashes, with a slight risk of injury to the front occupants' chests and legs.    HOLDEN TRAX 35.18 See reviews of this carThe surprise packet. One of the smaller cars in the class has only a slight risk of serious leg injury for those in the front in a head-on crash.   Skoda Yeti 34.67 See reviews of this carDepite being one of the older examples in this segment, the Yeti still rates well for safety, with only a slight risk of serious leg injury for those in the front in a head-on crash.    SAFEST MEDIUM SUVSVOLVO XC60 36.53 See reviews of this carANCAP says the cabin 'held its shape extremely well" in the frontal test, with the pillar shifting just 3mm. There was a slight risk of serious chest and leg injuries to the driver.  FORD KUGA 36.33 See reviews of this carA solid second, posing a slight risk of serious chest injury for both front seat occupants. The front pillar moved 15mm.   HONDA CR-V 35.91 See reviews of this carPlaced well despite being penalised for the foot-operated park brake moving upwards and back. Structurally there was only a 2mm movement of the pillar.  SUBARU FORESTER 35.64 See reviews of this carTested this year, it scored highly in all crashes, with a slight risk of injury to the front occupants' chests and legs.   SUBARU OUTBACK 35.52 See reviews of this carFills the brand's quinella. Crashed in 2008 and at the time topped the charts as the safest vehicle ANCAP had tested. SAFEST LARGE SUVSMERCEDES-BENZ ML 36.34 See reviews of this car Luxury SUV has a slight risk of serious chest injury for driver and passenger in the head-on hit and a slight risk of serious leg injury for the passenger. The pillar moved 2mm. RANGE ROVER 36.19 See reviews of this carBig Brit has a slight risk of serious chest injury for the driver and the pillar shifted by 15mm.   NISSAN PATHFINDER 35.73 See reviews of this carSlight risk of serious leg injury for the driver. Unlike the other two, it applies to the upper leg as well as the expected lower-leg hits. Docked points for a marginal pedestrian impact result.

Appealing to our national identity to support local product is the Toyota’s latest lure to entice buyers into showrooms. Toyota is pushing the “buy Australian” line with a 0 per cent finance deal on its locally assembled Camry, Camry Hybrid and Aurion sedans. Camry sales are still more than solid, with the sedan accounting for almost one in three cars sold in the mid-sized market. The Aurion, though, is being hammered by the move away from large sedans and sales are down 23 per cent so far this year. Toyota's executive director sales and marketing Matthew Callachor says the finance offer is an extension of the company's Local Pride advertising campaign, which features staff from the Altona production line in Melbourne’s west extolling the virtues of the vehicles. "Zero per cent (finance) is a way to encourage Australians to rediscover the value and other attributes of cars we build here," Callachor says. "Over many years, we have exported several times more Australian-built Toyota cars than we sell locally. Our long-term aim is to shift this balance closer to 50:50. We are supporting that objective by reminding local motorists that Camry and Aurion are built by Australians for Australians." Toyota built 96,618 cars at the plant last year, most of which were exported and will open a new $330 million engine facility in Victoria later this year to build the 2.5-litre four-cylinder engines that power the Camry range. The financial promotion is a means of offsetting the continued strength of the Aussie dollar, which effectively gives importers a default discount on their vehicles. Toyota isn’t the only carmaker with a 0 per cent finance deal. Renault and Nissan are pushing the interest-free loan on a three-year term for selected models. Kia and Mitsubishi are both touting 0.9 per cent finance and Honda has a 1.5 per cent rate on the Civic hatch. LOCAL VEHICLE PRODUCTION  

Toyota’s new large, front-drive sedan is not for Australians, and that's a good thing.Toyota USA took the wraps off the 2013 Toyota Avalon at this week’s New York Auto Show. Toyota USA spokesman Bob Carter said the new Avalon is more refined, more spacious, more technically advanced and more dynamically competent than the seven-year old model it replaces.But, before Toyota-philes get too excited, we should tell you up front that the fourth-generation Avalon will not come to Australia. Even though Toyota did build the (second-gen) Avalon in Port Melbourne from 2000 to 2006, Toyota Australia abandoned the Avalon program to develop the Aurion large sedan off the Camry platform.But still, we thought you’d like a look at the Avalon we ‘could’ have had, although any suggestion we’d be better off with this one is a long bow to draw, especially in light of the Avalon’s struggles in the USA. Sales of the third generation model which this one replaces have dropped from a first year high of 95,318 in 2005 to just 28,925 in 2011.By comparison Toyota Australia sold 9,815 Aurions locally in 2011. That’s just one-third the volume in a market one-fifteenth the size of America. It’s some consolation to Toyota USA that they have the best selling passenger car in the country in Camry, which sits in second overall behind the Ford F-Series utility truck. Where Avalon does 28,000 a year, Camry does around 42,000 a month.The American Avalon and Australian Aurion siblings may be similar insofar as they both are large front-drive sedans with the same 3.5-litre V6 petrol engine up front, but the American car is significantly larger overall — some 14cm longer and 2cm wider, thought it roofline sits 1cm lower — and therefore heavier.Last time I sat in an Aurion, I’m pretty sure it had loads of legroom. So, anyone who wants 14cm more is just being greedy. So, now you know. Ours is better than theirs.

A survey of car running costs for more than 600 popular models, to be released today by the NRMA, shows that motorists are saving $2 a week on the overall costs of running a car compared to last year. It now costs motorists an average of $183 a week to buy, fuel, repair, insure, and allow for car maintenance costs,

Australia's first hybrid, a petrol-electric Camry, is set for production in 2010 and work is nearly finished on the extra assembly stations at Altona. But, before the Camry hybrid, Toyota also has a minor tweak for the Camry and Aurion in the third quarter of this year. It's mostly about improved efficiency and value, but there will be changes to the front and rear bodywork. Toyota Thailand gave a hint on the new direction when it unveiled its version of the Camry hybrid last week, although the headlight and tail lamp treatments are sharper and more edgy than the Australian car. The local Camry will get new-style headlamps, most likely projector beams, and will have a new type of tail lamp cluster produced on an all-new production line at Hella Australia in Mentone. The facelift design work has been done at Toyota Style Australia under the direction of Paul Beranger and should be more acceptable to Australian tastes. But Toyota Australia refuses to make any comment on the upcoming updates, or the exact timing of the hybrid Camry. "Yes, there will be an update to the Camry and Aurion this year. But you will have to wait to see what we have," says Toyota spokesman, Mike Breen.

Ripping around Albert Park last weekend in a couple of racing cars was rare old fun.There is something special about cutting loose in the 21st century with no restrictions and no speed cameras.It's the automotive equivalent of clearing your sinuses after a terrible head cold. You can breath again, your eyesight is better, your head is clear and things just seem to be crisper and sharper.I was lucky to be asked to sprint a BMW 135i in a three-way run-off against a V8 Supercar and a Formula One racer in the Ultimate Speed Challenge and even luckier to be given a miniature Toyota Aurion to run in the Aussie Racing Car contests at the AGP.Track time in the 135 convinced me I was right to rate it as a real-world alternative to an M3. The baby BMW is quick, balanced and real fun - particularly with the traction control switched off and all the space at Albert Park to throw it around.The track car was very mildly tweaked with a free-flow exhaust, but was lapping quicker than a Z4M I drove a year earlier. This time I managed a win over the real racing cars, although Greg Murphy scored the overall win with two victories in his Sprint Gas Commodore.The Aussie car was something else again.I was not sure what to expect from the scaled-down V8 Supercar, because lots of people joke that they should be carrying clowns from the circuit.But there is nothing silly when you strap inside and uncork the 1.2-litre motorcycle engine fitted to a race-bred chassis. Except, perhaps, your smile.The Aussie Aurion was of the most demanding and rewarding cars I have driven, with supercar punch and cornering grip that trumps a real V8 Supercar. The braking distances at Albert Park, after topping 220km/h down the straight, were stupidly short.I never got close to the front-runners in the Aussie class but my race on Saturday was the best I have had in more than 25 years of motorsport, with more passing between two cars than you often see in a whole V8 Supercar contest.

He is the man you definitely want on your side. Senator Carr is the most impressive politician I have met, at least on the car business, since the late Senator John Button in the early 1980s. Button set the original review agenda for the car business and now Carr is driving the motor industry into the 21st century with a clear picture, incredible energy, and a genuine understanding of what it's all about. His enthusiasm was obvious this week as he helped open a new production line at Hella in Mentone which will supply lamps for the update of the Toyota Camry and Aurion later this year. "I'm only here as eye candy today, and I'll let our hosts tell you about the plant and what it means for Hella, Toyota and Australia," Carr says, weaving humour into a serious message. "But I can't pass up this opportunity to re-affirm the government's central messages about manufacturing. "First, that we want Australia to be a country that makes things. And, second, that we want it to be a country that makes cars." That is great news for all the people in the motor industry, but also the Australians who share a common history that is wrapped around the ability of the automobile to conquer the vast distances in our country. Carr has found money and support for the industry but stresses that companies must also work together as part of his new Car Plan. "The success of any industry depends on what companies do together - how much they can rely on each other and how closely they collaborate. If anyone wants to know what a vigorous, creative and competitive Australian component sector would look like - well, it would look like this: "Hella delivers the inputs Toyota needs, at the right price, to the right standard and - as Toyota has taught every manufacturer in the world to say - "just in time". It took the German-owned lighting specialist just nine months to get its new Kaizen line operational and global boss Dr Juergen Behrend says the benefits will flow well beyond the two founding partners. "What we have learned with Toyota will also benefit our other customers, like Ford and Holden," Behrend says. So it's becoming more and more of a family affair, with the Godfather stressing the need for a shared commitment. "The industry is only as strong as its weakest link, so we have to ensure that every link is rock solid," says Carr.

It seems the Toyota's supercharged TRD Aurion is ready for the road, judging by this example spotted on the Hume Highway between Yass and Gundagai. While Toyota has issued a frontal photo of its high-performance Aurion, this is the first glimpse of its rear spoiler and hi-tech-looking peepholes for the twin exhausts. Check out also the big wheels - 19-inches by the look of them - and TRD-issue red calipers. As previously seen, the frontal treatment introduces a stronger-jawed look than the mainstream Aurion. The relatively restrained rear treatment looks like its keeping with TRD's philosophy for its go-fast Aurion, a position somewhere between Subaru's Sti division and the V8-powered glorious excess of HSV and FPV. “TRD stands for an optimal blend of performance, refinement, handling and Toyota's traditional quality, durability and reliability,” Toyota marketing chief David Buttner says. The TRD Aurion's door badges, bearing the Mercedes-like designation of 3500 SL, are no doubt calculated to add to its up-market image. With about 235kW and substantial torque lift from its 3.5-litre supercharged V6, Buttner compares the TRD's performance with refinement formula to the Alfa Romeo 159 or Volkswagen Golf R32. We'll be able to decide for ourselves when the TRD Aurion is launched next month; it is expected to be priced about $60,000. Aside from the usual local Holden SS and Ford XR suspects, there's not a surfeit of biggish sedans to offer comparable bang for these kind of bucks, with Mitsubishi having shelved plans to put the hot supercharged TMR version of its 380 into production. A front-wheel-drive and presumably cheaper version of Alfa Romeo's currently all-paw-only 159 V6 is part of the revision planned for the 2008 range. Volkswagen says the R36 version of its Passat V6 4Motion will arrive either by the end of 2008 or early 2009. With Toyota having long since expunged any remotely stirring models from its line-up (who'd have thought it possible to feel nostalgia for the Celica or the last MR2?) it will be amusing to see if buyers cotton-on to what seems the borderline bizarre idea of a high performance car with this maker's badge. Indeed, if it's only half-decent, the TMR would serve to provide the only spark of excitement in Toyota's utterly vanilla line-up. It's not as though a company whose perennial sales success seems as assured as the coming of the dawn actually needs such a gadget, which makes it all the more gratifying that they're having a bit of go. Still, Lexus money for an Aurion?  

The countdown has begun for Toyota's push into Ford and Holden's heartland. The new TRD contenders will be in showrooms within four months and the Aurion V6 and HiLux have been out for final verification work, as they are prepared for battle against SS Commodores and XR Falcons. More signs are also pointing to a V6 RAV4, that shares its 3.5-litre engine with the Aurion, becoming the third TRD model. The two confirmed starters are familiar to anyone who has been to a major motor show this year, but still the HiLux looked impressive when photographed last week. The TRD operation is now moving from test and development into full-scale assembly work being done in Melbourne by Prodrive, which also holds the rights to fast Ford road cars in Australia. The Aurion will be out first and, even though the HiLux is confirmed for November, Toyota Australia is still trying to keep full details secret. The car is likely to be available from September; the press preview drive is scheduled for late August. “The car is coming in the third quarter. At this stage, that's all I can say,” Toyota spokesman Mike Breen says. “It's all done. It's ready to go. You have basically seen it at the motor shows. It's supercharged V6 et cetera.” The first TRD Aurions have already been ordered, Queensland police taking 11 for highway patrol work. They will join a batch of regular Aurion Sportivo V6s already in police paint. The HiLux is more subdued than that unveiled at the Melbourne Motor Show in March, but still promises plenty of go with a similar supercharged engine. “The HiLux is in November,” Breen says. “It is undergoing final testing. It's the 4.0-litre petrol engine, supercharged.” Toyota has confirmed the TRD Aurion is quicker than expected, using a new Eaton twin-vortices supercharger packaged in Melbourne by Harrop Engineering. “Total engine performance is one of the key positives of the TRD Aurion package,” TRD Australia chief engineer Stephen Castles says. “The TVS unit has performed really well and definitely helped deliver the engine performance we need.” Work on the engine has also been done by the Orbital Engine Company in Perth, which focused on testing and component development.  

A third model, not a TRD Corolla but probably something in the 4WD family, will follow. Toyota's objective is simple but difficult, even for Australia's No.1 carmaker — it must attack the special vehicles heartland occupied by Holden Special Vehicles and Ford Performance Vehicles. Toyota Australia says it is not directly aiming at the homegrown heroes with TRD (Toyota Racing Developments), but it's obvious to anyone who knows the car business that the cars will be measured against the V8 hotrods from HSV and FPR. Toyota is taking a different path with its TRD Aurion and HiLux, partly because it must (they have no V8 engines or rear-drive cars for the job) and partly because it believes it can win a slightly different following by going with supercharged V6 engines, more emphasis on comfort and refinement, and a slightly less obvious styling direction. However, the message is the same. "This is how we show people we have thrown off the cardigan — forever," TRD corporate manager Greg Gardner says. Gardner leads a team of 15 at TRD, but is able to tap the talent at Toyota Style Australia and will rely on Prodrive, the British company that controls Ford Performance Vehicles, for final assembly of the TRD Aurion and HiLux in Melbourne. The mechanics of the job are relatively straightforward: V6 engines, bigger wheels and tyres, improved brakes, upgraded seats and cabins, and predictable body bits. But it is the packaging that is really tough, and doing it without any heritage. Gardner and his team have to win new customers without driving existing owners away. "We don't want Toyota drivers to think it's too loud, but Toyota buyers must think it's more sporty. The key to attracting people to the Toyota brand is to have something different," he says. TRD has been in the works for more than two years, as has the Aurion. It is the final development of a project started with a supercharged Camry for motor show display and technical testing in engine bay, suspension, brakes, and more. "The basics are there in the Aurion. It's a good chassis and a good base vehicle," Gardner says. "It is pointing in the right direction. It responds well. "And the driving has come out well." On the HiLux front, the TRD model is a double-cab four-wheel-drive with a supercharged 4.0-litre V6 engine. The final pricing is still being set, together with the TRD presence in Toyota Australia showrooms, but Gardner is aiming for about 1000 cars in total in the first year and much more than that in impact. "It's not huge volumes. But it is hugely important," he says. "We see this as a brand-building exercise, not incremental sales. "I will be happy if a TRD car brings someone into a Toyota dealership and they buy something else in the range." TRD is not talking about price or performance just yet. But the Aurion will have at least 235kW to be fed to the front wheels through its six-speed automatic gearbox. The focus for the HiLux is on torque. The Aurion has 18-inch alloy wheels, special sports seats and a body kit. The HiLux, meanwhile, gets similar treatment — but with underdone alloys — and is pitched as a work-and-play family hauler. "The TRD Aurion will be on sale on August 13 and the TRD HiLux on November 12." Gardner is prepared to hint about Aurion pricing, but without going into details. He says: "It's going to be more expensive than a Falcon XR6 Turbo or a Commodore SV8 ... but it won't be as expensive as an HSV or FPV car. It will not be priced against the Falcon XR6 turbo, though. It's a lot more than just an engine upgrade." TRD has been a semi-official hot-up business in Japan since the 1970s, and made a successful transition to the US in the 1980s. The TRD logo has been on racing cars and came to Australia in 2006 on the sides of the championship-winning Corollas campaigned by Neal Bates and Simon Evans in the Australian Rally Championship. It is also attached to all sorts of go-faster parts for cars throughout the Toyota range. The chief designer employed on the TRD project certainly knows a bit more than most about special vehicles. Long before he joined Toyota Australia, Paul Beranger headed Nissan Special Vehicles and was the man who brought the Skyline GT-R to Australian showrooms as a local model.