Toyota Prius

Toyota Motor Corp. has been saying it has a hit with its new Prius c five-door hatchback, the smallest hybrid in the Prius family, and now there's independent analysis that shows it is one of the hottest small cars to hit the market in many years. In its first three days on the market this month, Toyota sold more than 1,200 of the subcompact hybrid. It starts at $18,950, but a mid-grade version has a sticker price of $21,635. To put the 1,200 sales in perspective, Edmunds.com auto analyst Jessica Caldwell pointed out that many cars, including the similarly small but non-hybrid Smart Fortwo and even Toyota's Scion XD, didn't sell even 1,000 units last month.

It would be impossible to count the number of automotive makes and models that have come and gone since the car was first invented - or the number of books that have been written about them. The inescapable ubiquity of the automobile has made them, for better or worse, a sort of cultural fodder that Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Paul Ingrassia inventively exploits in "Engines of Change. " The question at the center of his nonfiction treatise: Do cars shape the culture, or does culture shape the cars?

Just as in past gas spikes, the prices for used compact cars and hybrids are starting to rise quickly, according to auto information company Kelley Blue Book. While the average price of used fuel-efficient compacts at auction rose just a modest 0.4% in February, the values jumped 1.3% in the last week of the month. Hybrid prices rose by 3.6% in the last week, Kelley Blue Book said. “The 2010 Toyota Prius led in gains, increasing in value $1,370 through the month of February,” said Alec Gutierrez, an analyst at Kelley Blue Book.  “Dealers have been aggressively bidding on fuel-efficient vehicles at auction as consumer demand increases in response to rising gas prices.

Although the number of hybrid models in the U.S. continues to grow, few people who own one are sticking with the technology when they go to buy another car. Only 35% of hybrid vehicle owners chose to buy another hybrid when they returned to the market in 2011, according to a study by R.L. Polk & Co., the automotive consulting firm. About 75,000 hybrid owners went new car shopping last year. If you factor out the super-loyal Toyota Prius buyers, the repurchase rate drops to less than 25%. Consumers in regions such as Southern California and Seattle, where hybrid sales are strongest, are no more likely to be repeat customers than buyers in other parts of the nation, according to the Polk study.

While stronger-than-expected auto sales are prompting industry analysts to raise their forecasts of how many cars Americans will buy this year, automakers are simply raising prices. Toyota Motor Corp. said it will take a midyear price increase of $90 to $250 on six models starting with vehicles produced in May. Depending on the model, the increase represents a hike of 0.3% to 1.5%. The models receiving price increases include the 2012 Toyota Prius v, Camry and Camry Hybrid, Highlander Hybrid, Tacoma pickup truck and the 2013 Scion tC. They are all fuel-efficient vehicles, which so far this year have been the hottest segment of the U.S. auto market, a result of how higher gas prices have shifted consumer preferences.

Apple Inc. co-founder Steve "Woz" Wozniak has seen his share of software glitches in the gadgets he has created and in those he collects. But Wozniak said he was surprised several months ago when his 2010 Toyota Prius started accelerating on its own -- to as much as 97 mph -- when he used cruise control to increase the vehicle's speed. He said he had to tap the brakes to stop the car from accelerating. Wozniak, 59, wanted to alert Toyota Motor Corp. and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to the possible safety issue, but he grew frustrated when no one would listen.

Rising gas prices have reignited sales of the fuel-sipping Prius hybrid, and dealers are getting more money for the Toyota sedan. There's just one problem — they are starting to run out of cars. Some don't have any in their showrooms for shoppers to drive home. Others say their stock is dwindling quickly. Continuing disruptions caused by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami in Japan are rippling across the globe. Toyota Motor Corp. restarted the Prius factory early this week but closed it down again Wednesday to reassess its part supply.

Reacting to Toyota Motor Corp.'s decision to recall 2010 Prius and Lexus hybrids, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on Tuesday advised owners of the affected vehicles to contact a dealer immediately if they noticed a change in the performance of their brakes. "Loss of braking is most likely to occur when traveling over an uneven road surface, pothole or bump," the agency said in a statement. "If this occurs, the agency advises owners to continue to firmly press on the brake to stop the vehicle.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said Wednesday that the government now is looking into complaints about problems with brakes on Toyota's popular Prius hybrid sedan, after reports that Japan's government has asked the company to investigate the issue. LaHood also advised drivers of Toyota vehicles recalled because of sudden acceleration problems to get their vehicles fixed quickly, which will be a major task for the automaker given the number of vehicles involved. Toyota Motor Corp.

In another serious blow to Toyota, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Thursday morning that is opening a formal defect investigation of the 2010 Toyota Prius, examining allegations that the hybrid vehicle momentarily loses braking when it goes over uneven roads or hits potholes. The investigation, launched after the agency had received 124 reports from consumers, is another blow to Toyota's eroding reputation for quality and safety. It comes after the company was forced late last month to suspend sales and production of its most popular vehicles because of defects that could cause sudden acceleration.

A self-driving car being developed by Google Inc. took a blind man for a ride this week, driving him to a Taco Bell and then to a dry cleaner in San Jose. On Thursday, Google posted a video of a modified Toyota Prius driving Steve Mahan, who is legally blind, saying it shows one of the possibilities and benefits that could come from the technology. "Where this would change my life is to give me the independence and the flexibility to go to the places I both want to go and need to go when I need to do those things," Mahan says in the video.

While stronger-than-expected auto sales are prompting industry analysts to raise their forecasts of how many cars Americans will buy this year, automakers are simply raising prices. Toyota Motor Corp. said it will take a midyear price increase of $90 to $250 on six models starting with vehicles produced in May. Depending on the model, the increase represents a hike of 0.3% to 1.5%. The models receiving price increases include the 2012 Toyota Prius v, Camry and Camry Hybrid, Highlander Hybrid, Tacoma pickup truck and the 2013 Scion tC. They are all fuel-efficient vehicles, which so far this year have been the hottest segment of the U.S. auto market, a result of how higher gas prices have shifted consumer preferences.

Toyota Motor Corp. has been saying it has a hit with its new Prius c five-door hatchback, the smallest hybrid in the Prius family, and now there's independent analysis that shows it is one of the hottest small cars to hit the market in many years. In its first three days on the market this month, Toyota sold more than 1,200 of the subcompact hybrid. It starts at $18,950, but a mid-grade version has a sticker price of $21,635. To put the 1,200 sales in perspective, Edmunds.com auto analyst Jessica Caldwell pointed out that many cars, including the similarly small but non-hybrid Smart Fortwo and even Toyota's Scion XD, didn't sell even 1,000 units last month.

Just as in past gasoline cost surges, the prices for used compact cars and hybrids are starting to rise quickly, according to auto information company Kelley Blue Book. Although the average price of used fuel-efficient compacts at auction rose a modest 0.4% in February, it jumped 1.3% in the last week of the month. Hybrid prices rose 3.6% in the last week, Kelley Blue Book said. "The 2010 Toyota Prius led in gains, increasing in value $1,370 through the month of February," said Alec Gutierrez, an analyst at Kelley Blue Book.

Just as in past gas spikes, the prices for used compact cars and hybrids are starting to rise quickly, according to auto information company Kelley Blue Book. While the average price of used fuel-efficient compacts at auction rose just a modest 0.4% in February, the values jumped 1.3% in the last week of the month. Hybrid prices rose by 3.6% in the last week, Kelley Blue Book said. “The 2010 Toyota Prius led in gains, increasing in value $1,370 through the month of February,” said Alec Gutierrez, an analyst at Kelley Blue Book.  “Dealers have been aggressively bidding on fuel-efficient vehicles at auction as consumer demand increases in response to rising gas prices.

2012 Toyota Prius v Base price: $26,000* Price as tested: $27,500* Powertrain: Hybrid system uses a 1.8-liter, DOHC, four-cylinder, 16-valve gasoline engine with a pair of high-output motors and a nickel metal hydride battery pack; electronically controlled continuously variable transmission Net horsepower: 134 Torque (gas, electric): 105 pound-feet at 4,000 rpm, 153 pound-feet Overall length: 181.7 inches Wheelbase: 109.4 inches Curb weight: 3,274 pounds 0 to 60: 10.4 seconds Top speed: 103 mph EPA estimated fuel economy: 44 mpg city/40 mpg highway Final thoughts: Amazing fuel efficiency for its size *estimated

Question: My husband and I bought a 2002 Toyota Prius hybrid in April. We thought it would be perfect for our lifestyle--great for driving short distances and terrific fuel efficiency. Unfortunately, the car, which is propelled by a combination of gasoline and electric power, kept losing its charge. Twice my handicapped, 76-year-old husband was almost stuck in garages because the Prius wouldn't start.

A Cyclopsian video screen, mounted dead center in the dashboard, welcomed us to Prius. "On-board Nintendo," breathed Mrs. Dean, knowing nothing about this algae-green sedan that met her at LAX. "Donkey Kong in the Kingdom of Prius?" Not quite. Prius, as may be remembered by graduates of arcane academies, is Latin for "to go before."

Rising gas prices have reignited sales of the fuel-sipping Prius hybrid, and dealers are getting more money for the Toyota sedan. There's just one problem — they are starting to run out of cars. Some don't have any in their showrooms for shoppers to drive home. Others say their stock is dwindling quickly. Continuing disruptions caused by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami in Japan are rippling across the globe. Toyota Motor Corp. restarted the Prius factory early this week but closed it down again Wednesday to reassess its part supply.

New-car shoppers could see prices for some of the more popular hybrid and fuel-efficient vehicles such as the Toyota Prius and the Honda Fit rise in the coming weeks. The cost of the imports is likely to go up because earthquake-related production shutdowns in Japan are reducing supply of the autos at a time when consumers are increasingly shopping for gas-sipping models. "The Prius will go from selling under invoice just a couple of weeks ago to over the sticker price a couple of weeks from now," said Jesse Toprak, an analyst with car price information company TrueCar.com.