Making Your New Toyota Run Cleaner Before You Even Start It

Toyota’s Latest Car Hauler Runs on Compressed Natural Gas

Toyota Transport, the automaker’s in-house vehicle transportation trucking company, now has its first car hauler that runs on Compressed Natural Gas (CNG). The Long Beach, CA based truck/trailer does what any other car hauler can do, except it does it while emitting 85 percent less overall particulate matter and 10 percent less carbon dioxide. The CNG truck was commissioned by Toyota and designed and built in a joint collaboration with Peterbilt and Cottrell, Inc., the truck and trailer manufacturers.

“We started exploring the CNG option more than three years ago, and it has been worth the wait,” said Kirk Welch, Senior Analyst, Toyota Transport Compliance. “Natural gas is the cleanest burning fossil fuel and will help Toyota advance our environmental efforts to reduce fleet emissions.”

Initially, the placement of alternate fuel tanks presented a challenge for car haulers utilizing a 9-car trailer with an over-the-cab head rack.  However, working with Toyota’s specifications, Peterbilt and Cottrell were able to develop a tractor/trailer combination that accommodated the alternate fuel tanks, without compromising the extra vehicle hauling space of the head rack. The achievement marks the first full car hauler trailer with head rack that Cottrell has manufactured onto a CNG truck.

“Cottrell, Inc. is proud to help Toyota become the first domestic carrier to employ a CNG fueled car hauler. This was a first for Toyota Logistics but also for Cottrell. We were able to work with Peterbilt and Agility Fuel Systems to alter the design of our headrack to accommodate the natural gas tanks while still maximizing payload,” said Adam Strong, Western Regional Sales Manager for Cottrell, Inc.

Toyota Transport’s southern California Vehicle Delivery Operations in Long Beach and Mira Loma have 32 trucks in service, and the group delivers approximately 200,000 vehicles annually. Most of its car hauler trucks average more than 100,000 miles per year. With plans to deploy the truck locally out of Long Beach as a test, the company will evaluate the performance as well as compare the efficiency versus the current diesel trucks. The CNG truck is expected to drive an average of 7,000 to 8,000 miles per month.

The purchase of the truck advances Toyota’s own environmental endeavors and efforts in its support of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) SmartWay program, the public-private initiative to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution created by freight transportation in corporate supply chains. Toyota’s environmental commitment has been widely recognized, most recently with a SmartWay Excellence Award/Truck Carrier from the EPA in October 2015.

EPA’s SmartWay Transport Partnership is a market-driven initiative that empowers businesses to move goods in the cleanest, most energy-efficient way possible, while protecting public health and reducing the impacts of climate change. Since 2004, SmartWay Partners have saved 144.3 million barrels of oil and $20.6 billion in fuel costs. SmartWay’s clean air achievements (61.7 million metric tons of carbon dioxide, 1,070,000 tons of nitrogen oxides, and 43,000 tons of particulate matter emissions avoided) help to protect the well-being of citizens.

About Maita Toyota in Sacramento, CA

Maita Toyota is a full service Toyota & Scion dealership offering New Toyota and pre-owned vehicles as well as a full Service Department.  We treat the needs of each individual customer with paramount concern. We know that you have high expectations, and as a car dealer we enjoy the challenge of meeting and exceeding those standards each and every time. Allow us to demonstrate our commitment to excellence!

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2016 Toyota Tacoma Designed to Handle All Types of Off-Road Adventures | New & Used Car Dealership

The all-new Tacoma is being manufactured by Toyota in its plant in the US to ensure that its design and features are suited to the needs of the American pickup enthusiasts.

The Toyota Tacoma can only be found in the North and South American markets as the Japanese carmaker is producing the Toyota Hilux outside of those two major markets.

The 2016 Toyota Tacoma has undergone a major makeover from its previous look while keeping its tradition of durability, strength and monstrosity as far as power and offroad capability are concerned.

The pickup truck draws strength from the all-new 3.5-liter Atkinson cycle V6 engine with direct injection and six-speed transmission, which is the first in the midsize pickup market. This superb power drivetrain makes the 2016Toyota Tacoma more powerful and fuel-efficient than ever before.

Traditional pickup enthusiasts however were somehow dismayed uponlearning that the Japanese carmaker has done away with the six-speed manual transmission in the Tacoma’s base model that is being powered by a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine.

2015 Toyota RAV4 Looks Ready For Rallying | New & Used Car Dealership

Now this is an unlikely contender: Toyota has introduced the RAV4 rally car at the Monster Energy Supercross Championship finale this weekend at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas.

The muscled-up RAV4 will be driven by Ryan Millen at various rally events, including some of the 2015 Rally America 2WD-Open Class season. Millen won the 2014 Baja 1000 in a Toyota Tundra TRD Pro.

Toyota admits that a RAV4 competing within a professional racing series is rare, as the unibody-construction, Small-Sport Utility Vehicle (SSUV) will have to go head-to-head with Rally America’s modified street cars.

As you can imagine, the RAV4 rally car is not entirely stock. Based on a 2015 Toyota RAV4 LE, the vehicle sports a stock transmission and a stock 2.5-liter, four-cylinder, double-overhead cam engine that produces 176hp and 172lb-ft (233Nm) of torque.

However, it is more than 500 lbs (227 kg) lighter than the stock car, despite getting a roll cage. Other modifications include the addition of BFGoodrich all-terrain DOT 215/75R15 tires and a front and rear TEIN suspension.

“I’ve driven just about everything Toyota has to offer. And I’ve been very impressed with the RAV4’s tight, compact body and smooth handling. I’m looking forward to putting it through the paces this season,” Millen said.

Toyota says the RAV4 rally car’s purpose is to demonstrate the off-road capabilities of the stock car, which performs and handles “quite effectively for desert, beach and other outdoor excursions.”

Toyota Explains what names like Camry and Yaris mean | Maita Toyota Sacramento CA

By Noah Joseph
Ever wonder where automakers get the names for their cars? You're not alone. The sitcom Seinfeld opened Episode 94 – the one where George Costanza buys a Chrysler LeBaron instead of a Volvo – with a bit about nameplates like Integra, Supra and Impreza. Toyota, clearly, is not exempt from choosing evocative but enigmatic names for its models, and now the Japanese automaker is taking us through the etymology of some of its nameplates.
Names like Supra may require no clarification, but what about Camry? That comes from the Japanese word kanmuri for Crown (which is, incidentally, the name of another Toyota sedan).
Yaris? According to the company, it's "an amalgamation of words from Greek mythology and German. In Greek mythology, 'Charis' was a symbol of beauty and elegance. Toyota swapped the 'Ch' with 'Ya' – German for 'yes' – to symbolize the perceived reaction of European markets to the car's styling."
Uh-huh. By comparison, Corolla couldn't be simpler – its name refers to the innermost ring of pedals around the center of a flower. Previa is derived from the Latin word for providence (as in foresight, not capital city in Rhode Island).

From Backing Biodiversity to Leading on LEED: Toyota Tackles Environmental Priorities | Maita Toyota Sacramento CA

Who isn’t worried about water these days? Concerned about carbon? Count us in.

That’s why we've sold more than 2.4 million Toyota and Lexus hybrids in North America, which save approximately 500 million gallons of gasoline annually.

That’s why we will soon be manufacturing the Camry Hybrid and Avalon Hybrid using a green energy source: landfill gas.  

And that’s why we’ve conducted decades of research that will culminate in the launch of the hydrogen-powered Toyota Mirai fuel cell vehicle in 2015, a sedan that emits nothing but water vapor.

Toyota’s commitment to producing ever greener vehicles through more sustainable processes has never been more apparent. To see how we’re working toward these goals, check out our latest North American Environmental Report at http://www.toyota.com/usa/environmentreport2014. The report focuses on five priority issues carbon, water, materials, biodiversity and outreach. Here are highlights from each:

Carbon

• Toyota's first-ever production fuel cell car uses hydrogen as fuel and emits only water vapor. The Toyota Mirai will be available for sale to customers in California in fall 2015.
• Beginning in 2015, Toyota's Georgetown assembly plant will generate green power from local landfill gas, enough for the production of 10,000 vehicles per year.
• We received our 10th consecutive ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year — Sustained Excellence Award from the U.S. EPA. Our 14 manufacturing plants have reduced energy use by almost 11 billion kilowatt hours in the last decade.

Water

• Toyota saved over 93 million gallons of water in North America during fiscal year 2014.
• Team members at Toyota's assembly plant in Cambridge, Ontario, found a way to capture, clean and recycle over 12 million gallons of water used to rinse vehicles during the painting process.
• Since opening in 2007, Toyota's Texas assembly plant has used about 1.9 billion gallons of recycled water instead of drawing fresh water from the Edwards Aquifer.

Materials

• Toyota's North American facilities reduced, reused, recycled or composted over 95 percent of non-regulated waste during calendar year 2013.
• Toyota has 32 North American facilities that meet the U.S. Zero Waste Business Council's definition of a "Zero Waste Business" — one with a 90 percent or greater diversion of all waste from landfill, incineration or the environment.

Biodiversity

• Since 2010, Toyota's Kentucky assembly plant has established 10 beehives onsite. Some 85,000 happy honeybees produced more than 100 pounds of honey in 2014, which was given away to visitors.
• Over 130,000 trees have been planted at Toyota's Indiana assembly plant over the last six years. The area has become a thriving habitat for wildlife.
• Toyota currently has over 1,000 acres across seven North American sites certified to the Wildlife Habitat Council's Wildlife at Work program.

Outreach

• Toyota is helping develop a battery storage system for the Lamar Buffalo Ranch at Yellowstone National Park. Featuring 208 used Camry Hybrid battery packs, the system will provide a sustainable power source for one of the most remote and pristine places in the U.S.
• More than 23,000 folks across the U.S. pledged to save over 1.4 billion gallons of water as part of the National Mayor's Challenge for Water Conservation, supported by Toyota.
• We have assisted 42 Toyota and Lexus dealers with LEED^® certification. We have more LEED-certified dealers in the U.S. and Canada than any other auto manufacturer.