Tag Archives: Toyota

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Toyota’s Homecoming Showdown: Rally Japan Set to Crown a Champion

Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team returns home this week with everything to play for and everything to celebrate. Rally Japan (November 6–9) isn’t just the final act of another long, bruising World Rally Championship season—it’s a victory lap for the team that’s already clinched its fifth straight manufacturers’ title, and a pressure cooker for the three drivers still locked in a knife-edge battle for the ultimate prize.

A Championship on a Razor’s Edge

Elfyn Evans arrives in Toyota City with a 13-point lead over his two heavyweight teammates: eight-time world champion Sébastien Ogier and the prodigiously quick Kalle Rovanperä. The pair are tied for second after Rovanperä’s slick performance on the asphalt of Central Europe, setting up a finale that feels like a championship-deciding kart race in rally-sized chaos.

Evans has history on his side. He’s won the last two editions of Rally Japan, leading a Toyota 1-2-3 last year and a one-two finish the year before. But the Welshman knows better than anyone that Japanese tarmac is no playground. The stages—twisting, claustrophobic, hemmed in by dense forest—leave little room for error. “It’s not an easy rally,” Evans said. “Even when it’s dry, the margin for error is tiny. You just have to stay clean and keep your focus through what feels like an endless stream of corners.”

Ogier, ever the methodical tactician, is chasing one last push after a frustrating Central European round. “These roads are incredibly demanding,” he noted. “Narrow, technical, and with weather that can turn everything upside down. But we still have the speed—and the motivation—to fight for this one.”

Rovanperä, meanwhile, is approaching Japan with his trademark cool confidence. “The fans here are amazing,” he said. “I’m feeling really good with the car on asphalt, and hopefully we can keep that momentum. It’s going to be a fight to the finish.”

A Rally with Heart—and History

Since its return to the WRC calendar in 2022, Rally Japan has developed a reputation for being beautiful and brutal in equal measure. The event snakes through the mountain roads of Aichi and Gifu prefectures, near Nagoya, with stages so tight that the co-drivers’ pacenotes sometimes sound like medical instructions.

The service park, once again set at Toyota Stadium, will be the beating heart of the weekend. Thursday’s shakedown at Kuragaike Park opens the action before a full-blown welcome show in Toyota City. From there, the rally dives deep into the forest stages—Inabu/Shitara, Shinshiro, and Isegami’s Tunnel—before new sections like Obara and a Toyota City super special keep things unpredictable.

It’s a layout that tests precision as much as bravery. Crews who survive the narrow asphalt ribbons will end the rally near Okazaki on Sunday, with the championship still possibly hanging in the balance.

Home Heroes and Rising Stars

For local hero Takamoto Katsuta, Rally Japan is personal. The 32-year-old has carried the hopes of Japanese fans since Toyota’s return to the WRC, and he’s already shown his capability with a podium finish in 2022. “It’s my home rally—it means everything,” Katsuta said. “After our result in Central Europe, I’m confident we can push for something special here.”

He’ll be joined by Sami Pajari, stepping up to Rally1 machinery for the first time after taking the WRC2 title last year on these very roads. “These stages demand precision,” Pajari said. “They’re narrow, twisty, and unlike anywhere else in the championship.”

And then there’s the army of GR Yaris Rally2 entries—eight in total—making up more than half of the Rally2 field. Leading that charge is this year’s WRC2 champion, Oliver Solberg, alongside Spanish squad Teo Martín Motorsport and Japanese regulars including national champion Heikki Kovalainen, proving again that Toyota’s rally roots run deep, from global stars to grassroots icons.

A Celebration in Motion

Deputy Team Principal Juha Kankkunen, a rally legend himself, summed up the mood: “Rally Japan is always special for us. This year we go there with the manufacturers’ title already secured, but the fight between our drivers is still wide open. Any of them could win—and that’s exactly how we like it.”

In other words: don’t expect anyone to take it easy. With Toyota already crowned champion, Rally Japan isn’t about protecting points anymore—it’s about pride, precision, and maybe a little payback between teammates. On the slippery mountain roads outside Nagoya, every corner could write the next chapter of WRC history.

Source: Toyota

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Toyota Faces Explosive Allegations Over Mirai Hydrogen Sedan

Toyota, the automaker that helped define modern reliability, now finds itself at the center of a lawsuit that reads more like a crime novel than a consumer complaint. A new class action filed in California accuses Toyota of running what plaintiffs call a “criminal enterprise” designed to hide serious safety defects in its hydrogen-powered Mirai sedan. The requested damages? A staggering $5.7 billion.

Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California by the Ingber Law Group, the 142-page complaint invokes the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) — the same law once used to dismantle the mob. The suit alleges that Toyota, its financing arm, and several California dealerships engaged in a coordinated cover-up of what technicians reportedly described as “ticking hydrogen bombs.”

Hydrogen Dreams Turned Headaches

According to the filing, Toyota and its hydrogen partners concealed multiple flaws in the Mirai, including potential hydrogen leaks near hot engine components, posing an explosion risk. The plaintiffs also allege repeated instances of sudden power loss, erratic acceleration, and braking failures.

One Mirai owner reportedly pressed the brake pedal only for the car to surge forward. Others described multi-second delays between hitting the throttle and any response from the powertrain — a terrifying experience in traffic. In at least one case, dealership technicians allegedly told customers to seek legal action after experiencing repeated failures.

Adding insult to injury, Toyota Motor Credit Corporation, the company’s financing arm, is accused of “aggressive financial collection tactics” against affected owners. The suit also points to the limited and unreliable hydrogen refueling network in California, which remains the Mirai’s only viable market.

A Hydrogen Meltdown in Torrance

The complaint highlights a particularly damning episode at a Torrance, California, hydrogen station, which allegedly dispensed contaminated fuel that left at least 75 Mirais permanently inoperable. Plaintiffs claim Toyota failed to disclose the issue publicly, instead burying affected vehicles and compensation claims under corporate bureaucracy.

“This lawsuit isn’t about a simple defect — it’s about organized fraud,” said lead attorney Jason M. Ingber in a statement. “Toyota engineered, financed, and controlled California’s hydrogen network, then used that control to hide safety failures and financial harm to consumers.”

The RICO Angle: From Mobsters to Motors

Originally written to prosecute mafia bosses, the RICO Act allows plaintiffs to argue that a corporation engaged in a pattern of criminal activity. In this case, the lawsuit suggests Toyota operated a white-collar version of organized crime, using its corporate ecosystem — dealerships, financiers, and fuel partners — to disguise safety risks and protect profits.

The proposed class includes all Californians who purchased or leased a 2016–2025 Toyota Mirai in the past four years. Plaintiffs claim Toyota “ingeniously concealed catastrophic safety defects so their fraudulent scheme remains undetected.”

A Hydrogen Story Hollywood Never Wrote

If this all sounds like a sequel to Who Killed the Electric Car?, that’s because Hollywood never got around to writing the hydrogen one. For now, the Mirai remains a niche symbol of Toyota’s zero-emission ambitions — but this lawsuit could turn it into a case study in how not to launch an alternative-fuel future.

Toyota has not yet filed a response to the complaint. The company previously touted the Mirai as a technological triumph — the world’s first mass-produced hydrogen fuel-cell sedan — and a key part of its long-term carbon-neutral strategy.

But if even part of the lawsuit’s explosive allegations prove true, the Mirai’s future could look far less like a vision of tomorrow and far more like a cautionary tale about overpromising technology before the world is ready to fuel it.

Source: Reuters

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Toyota’s Solid-State Revolution: The Future of Performance EVs Is Closer Than You Think

By 2028, Toyota might just rewrite the rules of electric performance. The Japanese automaker has confirmed that its long-awaited solid-state battery (SSB) technology will finally reach production—and the first car to wear this next-generation power source will be a high-performance EV.

For years, solid-state batteries have been the holy grail of electric mobility: smaller, lighter, and vastly more energy-dense than the lithium-ion packs powering today’s EVs. They promise dramatically longer range, faster charging, and less degradation over time—all while reducing the environmental toll of production and disposal.

Toyota’s been chasing this breakthrough for nearly a decade. Now, according to Keiji Kaita, president of Toyota’s Carbon Neutral Engineering Development Centre, the company is “sticking on schedule” to put the first SSB-equipped model into production by 2027 or 2028.

“For the all-solid-state battery, the characteristic is high power, compact and long range,” Kaita said at the Tokyo motor show. “The cars will leverage these attributes.”

Why Solid-State Matters

Unlike traditional lithium-ion batteries that rely on liquid electrolytes, solid-state packs use a solid ceramic material to transfer ions between the electrodes. The payoff? More power and range in a smaller footprint, with the added benefits of improved safety and longevity.

Toyota claims its prototype SSB can triple driving range, double power output, and last four times longer than current EV batteries. The company has already tested packs capable of delivering up to 745 miles on a single charge—numbers that could make even today’s most efficient EVs seem obsolete overnight.

But range is only part of the story. The compact dimensions of SSBs allow engineers to rethink vehicle proportions entirely. With thinner floor-mounted packs, designers can lower rooflines and seating positions, reclaim interior space, and craft sleeker silhouettes that were once the sole domain of supercars.

A Supercar Launchpad

That’s why the first Toyota SSB model won’t be a commuter crossover—it’ll be a halo performance machine. All signs point to the upcoming Lexus electric supercar, a spiritual successor to the LFA, as the technology’s debut platform.

With an ultra-low stance and lightweight structure, the Lexus EV will reportedly serve as a battery-powered sibling to the V8-engined Toyota GR supercar that’s also in the works. If the rumors hold true, we could be looking at a dual-pronged attack from Toyota: one celebrating combustion’s last stand, and the other ushering in a new era of electric performance.

When pressed for details, Kaita played coy. “Whether it will be a Lexus or Toyota, we will leave that to your imagination,” he teased.

Greener, Longer, Smarter

The benefits of solid-state go beyond speed and range. According to Toyota, the technology could cut the total carbon footprint of an EV battery by up to 75%—thanks to longer lifespans and cleaner production processes.

“We will try to reduce the carbon footprint, and the key here is reducing the CO₂ output in manufacturing the material,” said Kaita. “But the most important thing is producing a battery whose life is longer.”

A longer-lasting pack not only means fewer replacements, but also less waste—a major step toward Toyota’s broader goal of carbon neutrality across the product life cycle.

The Road Ahead

Toyota’s chief technology officer, Hiroki Nakajima, confirmed that solid-state batteries could, in theory, slot into the company’s existing EV platforms—offering the same range in half the space. However, he hinted that SSBs will shine brightest in new, dedicated architectures designed to fully exploit their advantages.

Meanwhile, for more mainstream models, Toyota is developing a next-gen lithium-ion battery with a lower height and innovative packaging. This version, showcased in the sleek Corolla EV concept, helps lower the center of gravity while freeing up interior volume—proof that efficiency and style don’t have to be mutually exclusive.

Toyota’s patient, methodical approach to solid-state batteries might finally pay off. If the company can deliver on its promise—a high-performance EV with 700+ miles of range, supercar agility, and long-term sustainability—it won’t just be catching up to Tesla or Porsche. It’ll be redefining what an electric vehicle can be.

And if the first car to carry that technology happens to wear a Lexus badge, we may be witnessing not just a new battery, but the rebirth of Japan’s most iconic supercar spirit—this time, powered by electrons.

Source: Toyota