Toyota to Trial i-ROAD Car Sharing Service

Toyota to Trial i-ROAD Car Sharing Service
Lamborghini Aventador SV Teased in Video
Aston Martin Vulcan to Cost $2.3 Million
Bluetooth, Voice Recognition Issues Most Common in JD Power Study
Fiat Finishes Last in JD Power Dependability Study
Fiat, Chrysler Fail on Consumer Reports Brand Report Cards

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Toyota plans to enter its i-ROAD into a car-sharing service trial starting in April.

The Japanese automaker has announced a partnership with Park24 to test out its i-ROAD, an ultra-compact three-wheeled electric vehicle. The i-ROAD will be paired with Park24's "Times Car Plus" service that allows members to share cars at any time of day or night. Toyota will also incorporate elements from its "Ha:mo" optimized urban transport system during the trial.

According to the company, the test run will start April 10 in central Tokyo and run through September. Toyota hopes to gather usage data and user feedback to assess the ease of use of its i-ROAD and also looks forward to assessing changes in user activity patterns and receptiveness to innovative mobility systems like the i-ROAD.

Users looking to test out the car-sharing service will be able to pick up vehicles from the Times Station at Yurakucho ITOCiA and return them to any of five locations: Tokyo Tower, Asakusa, Odaiba Pallete Town, Tokyo Dome City or where they picked it up at Yurakucho ITOCia. Pricing will run 412 yen ($3.46) per 15 minutes with a maximum allotment of two and a half hours.

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Lamborghini Aventador SV Teased in Video

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Lamborghini is teasing something special before its Geneva Motor Show Debut next week.

A video teaser has been released, touting the new vehicle as "the most reactive car." Although Lambo never reveals the identity of the vehicle in the video, it is almost surely the Aventador SV that we recently caught testing in spy photos.

More power and less weight are on tap for the SV model, which will likely have its V12 tuned to produce around 750 hp. From our early spy photos, we can also see some aerodynamic enhancements like the large rear wing along with a four-barrel exhaust setup.

Discuss this story at our luxury lifestyle forum

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Aston Martin Vulcan to Cost $2.3 Million

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No surprise here; Aston Martin's brand new track-only supercar won't come cheap.

The Vulcan has been assigned an official price tag of £1.5M in the UK before local taxes, converting to roughly $2.3M in USD. Official pricing for the Vulcan in the United States has not been released.

Only 24 units of the car will be built and sold around the world, with sales on a "first come, first served," basis said Aston Martin Spokesman Matthew Clarke. He confirmed that there's no set number of units set aside for North America or any other market but did comment that, "we're talking to the existing customer base first."

SEE ALSO: Aston Martin Vulcan Details

Power for the car comes from a 7.0-liter V12 that makes over 800hp, wrapped in a carbon fiber body.

The new car will make its public debut at next week's Geneva Motor Show and AutoGuide will be there to cover it live.

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Bluetooth, Voice Recognition Issues Most Common in JD Power Study

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Bluetooth and voice recognition problems are the most frequently reported according to the 2015 JD Power Vehicle Dependability Study.

The performance of technology in vehicles is becoming a very important part of owners' perception of overall vehicle reliability and a major influence in a buyer's decision to repurchase the same brand according to the study.

For 2015 the study was enhanced to include 177 new specific problem symptoms for respondents to choose, most of which are related to how new technology is working in our vehicles. In total, 34,000 original vehicle owners of 2012 model year vehicles were polled after 3 years of ownership.

Bluetooth pairing issues and voice recognition problems were reported more than any other issue, with 55 percent of people saying that their vehicle does not recognize their phone. "As we've seen in our Initial Quality Study, owners view in-vehicle technology issues as significant problems, and they typically don't go away after the ownership honeymoon period is over," said Renee Stephens, vice president of U.S. automotive at J.D. Power.

Furthermore, 31 percent of respondents complained that their vehicle does not automatically connect to their phone.

Technology is affecting how cars are purchased more than ever before, with 15 percent of new-vehicle buyers saying they avoided a model based strictly on its lack of modern technology, up from 4 percent last year.

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Fiat Finishes Last in JD Power Dependability Study

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Fiat is not having a great week.

After scoring dead last on the Consumer Reports brand report cards just yesterday, the Italian automaker has now been ranked last in the 2015 JD Power Vehicle Dependability study. For the fourth straight year, Lexus captures the top spot.

The study examines issues experienced by the original owners of model-year 2012 vehicles. Each vehicle is ranked by problems experienced per 100 vehicles (PP100), which means a low score is better. New for 2015, the study has added 177 specific problem symptoms for owners to report, most of which are related to new technologies now available in modern vehicles. In total, 34,000 original vehicle owners are polled after three years of vehicle ownership.

Fiat Chrysler Automobile brands make up three of the bottom five in the study. Fiat ranks in the bottom spot with 273 PP100, with Land Rover sitting in the second last spot with 258 PP100. Jeep managed 197 PP100 with the bottom five rounded out by Mini with 193 PP100 and Dodge with 192 PP100.

On the good end of the list, Lexus remains the best rated brand for the fourth consecutive year. Up three spots from last year is Buick with a score of 110 PP100, landing it in the second spot. Following Buick are Toyota with 111 PP100 and Cadillac with 114 PP100, while Porsche and Honda tie for fifth with 116 PP100.

Average for the entire industry in 147 PP100, or about 1.5 problems per vehicle.

Notable improvements in the test include Scion, which jumped 13 ranks, Ram, moving up 11 spots and Mitsubishi which advanced by 10 positions.

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Fiat, Chrysler Fail on Consumer Reports Brand Report Cards

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Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) may have a shiny new name, but its reputation needs some work.

In this year's Consumer Reports Car Brand Report Cards, Fiat came in dead last with Jeep right behind. Of the bottom six brands, four fall under the FCA umbrella. On the flip side, Lexus sits atop the list for the second year in a row.

The publication took a composite of the average road-test scores and predicted reliability across automakers' lineups to give each company an overall score that balances performance with reliability.

With an overall score of 32, Fiat ranks dead last in 28th. Jeep scored 39 overall landing it in 27th place. The 26th spot on the list goes to Mini with a score of 46, followed by Dodge with a score of 52. Finally, Ford rounds out the worst five with 53 points, while Chrysler sits in the 23rd spot with 54 points.

Topping the list once again was Lexus with an overall score of 78 and a road-test score of 76 while having 78 percent of its vehicles recommended. More impressive was Mazda, landing the second spot thanks in part to over half its models having been introduced or redesigned within the past three years. Toyota rounded out the top three while Audi and Subaru placed fourth and fifth, respectively.

Weighing down Toyota as a group was its Scion brand that came in 22nd out of the 28 major automakers with an overall score of 54. Leading American automakers was Buick in the seventh spot ahead of Honda in eighth position.

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Car Reviews

Wednesday, 25 February 2015

Toyota to Trial i-ROAD Car Sharing Service

Toyota to Trial i-ROAD Car Sharing Service

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