Before you get all freaked out about the thought of a person sitting inside this Toyota Yaris when a huge boulder fell on it, we’ll spare you from that God-awful news. Thankfully, nobody was inside the car when this happened. If there was someone there, there’s a remote chance that that person would have made it out alive.
The accident occurred in the Derbyshire Peak District in the UK when a truck carrying those mammoth boulders accidentally dropped one straight into a poor Yaris that was clearly at the wrong place, at the wrong time.
The car’s owner, a lovely young female, parked the car and ran a seemingly innocuous errand only to return to her car to see what’s pretty much left of it. There’s no word yet on what the proceedings will be as a result of this accident although the truck company responsible for this boulder-sized error should do the right thing and open up their wallets to buy the young lady a new car.
We’re still perishing with the thought of a person inside that car when this happened. We’re thankful that nobody was there, but if there was someone inside, that would’ve been a really sucky way to lose a life.
Just like any warm-blooded, auto-loving homo sapien, we appreciate smart and witty car commercials when we see one. Unfortunately, this particular Toyota Yaris commercial from the Land Down Under can be described in neither of those terms.
While we have no problem with a little subtlety, the sexual undertones in this commercial are a little too blatant, which also raised some alarm bells in Australia, prompting the sanctioning folks to ban the ad from airing on TV.
Fortunately, no such ‘bans’ exist on the Internet and you can watch the entire commercial in all its entirety.
Toyota came at the SEMA SHow with a customized Yaris, designed especially for the female buyers. The Hard Kandy Toyota Custom Yaris is painted in shades of pink, which includes swirling ribbons for movement, and flames to add an element of strength.
The Hard Kandy Yaris concept features a sport body kit, Toyota CAD roof end spoiler, and an Inalfa 845 Signature Series built-in sunroof, that features a one touch open and close illuminated switch that allows you to fully open, close, or vent the solar tinted glass panel, and convenient standard auto close.
Toyota today announced prices for the 2010 line-up, including Avalon, Yaris, Highlander, FJ Cruiser, Rav4 and Tacoma. All cars will go on sale in August, with the exception of Highlander (September).
The 2010 FJ Cruiser will come with dual VVT-i and roller rocker arms on the 4.0-liter V6, which add 19 hp and a one mpg increase. Prices will range from $23,680 for the 2WD automatic to $25,270 for the 4WD automatic.
The RAV4 will go on sale with prices ranging from $21,500 for the base model 2WD four-cylinder to $27,810 for the 4WD Limited V6. The base MSRP for the 2010 Highlander ranges from $25,705 for the base four-cylinder 2WD to $41,020 for the Limited 4WD hybrid model.
For the 2010 Avalon prices will range from $27,945 for the XL to $35,285 for the Limited. Tacoma’s prices will range from $15,170 for the Regular Cab with a five-speed manual transmission to $27,075 for the V6 4x4 Double Cab Long Bed with a five-speed automatic transmission. And finally Yaris’s rpices will range from $12,355 for the three-door model with manual transmission, to $13,915 for the four-door sedan with an automatic transmission.
Contrary to earlier reports, Toyota has no plans of introducing the Yaris in a hybrid variant to the Japanese, American and European markets - or any other market, for that matter.
It was reported earlier this week that the Japanese automakers were in the process of producing a hybrid version of the Yaris, which it was supposed to sell in France and Japan.
According to the source from Toyota, “the company has not had any discussions on the possibility of producing a Yaris hybrid in France or anywhere else. The hybrid system we have works well in the bigger cars like the Lexus as it helps to cut CO2 emissions and improve fuel economy next to its competitors.”
This latest news comes a few days after word was leaked that the ‘supposed’ Yaris hybrid would become an important fixture among Toyota’s hybrid line-up in Europe.
Apparently, that piece of news is nothing more than just a rumor, which Toyota shot down before it had the chance to pick up some steam.
