Category Archives: engineering

Toyota Motor N.A. Posts Q3 Sales of 629,137

Posted on 1 October 2025 by Ken Zino

Toyota Motor North America (TMNA. NYSE: TM, 7203T) today reported September 2025 U.S. sales of 185,748 vehicles, up 14.2% on a volume basis and up 9.5% on a daily selling rate (DSR) basis compared with September 2024. Sales of electrified vehicles for the month totaled 85,092 up 8.% on a volume basis and up 3.6% DSR, representing 45.8% of total sales volume.

“Strong customer demand continues across our entire lineup, and vehicles are selling as fast as we build them,” said Andrew Gilleland, senior vice president at Toyota Motor North America. Continue reading →

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Toyota Starts a Strategic Investment Subsidiary

Posted on 30 September 2025 by Ken Zino

Toyota Motor Corporation (NYSE: TM, 7203T) today announced the establishment of Toyota Invention Partners Company, Ltd. (TIP), a new strategic investment subsidiary with ¥100 billion yen (~$670 million) in capital. TIP will focus on accelerating collaborations between Toyota, Woven by Toyota (WbyT), Toyota Group companies, their affiliates, and external partners as part of Toyota’s ongoing transformation into a mobility company. Woven Capital, Toyota’s venture investment arm, has established Fund II with $800 million (~¥120 billion), matching the size of Fund I launched in 2021.*

“To ensure that mobility continues to bring smiles to people and remains vital to society, the Toyota Group has embraced the vision of ‘Inventing our path forward, together’. This vision places a particular emphasis on ‘Invention’, which has always been the foundation of the Group” said Kenta Kon, Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer of Toyota and CFO and Director of WbyT. Continue reading →

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Steering Loss – Ford Recalls F-Series Trucks

Posted on 29 September 2025 by Ken Zino

Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) is recalling ~116,000 model-year 2020-2021 F-250, F-350, and F-450 vehicles. The steering column upper shaft may detach from the steering column and result in a loss of steering control. HL Mando made the part in Korea. During the first half of 2025 Ford Motor booked a $1.3 billion loss from repairs of vehicles under warranty, cancellation of plans to build an electric sport utility vehicle and other one-time costs. Ford is operating under a consent order from NHTSA because of its handing of recalls.

“The steering column upper shaft hard slider does not satisfy anti-pull apart load specifications,” Ford said in the required safety defect recall documents made public by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) this morning. Continue reading →

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Honda, Astrobotic Start Study of Lunar Power

Posted on 29 September 2025 by Ken Zino

American Honda Motor Company and Astrobotic Technology today announced a joint-development agreement aimed at developing a scalable and integrated power supply for sustained lunar surface missions.

“The collaboration between Honda and Astrobotic marks a pivotal step toward creating scalable power solutions for long-term lunar surface missions. Powered by core Honda technologies, our regenerative fuel cell system is designed to provide efficient energy storage and regeneration to support sustained human life on the Moon, as well as advance zero-emission applications on Earth,” claimed Derek Adelman, chief engineer, Space Development Division, American Honda Motor Company. Continue reading →

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Caterham Competitor – New Zenos E10 RZ

Posted on 24 September 2025 by Ken Zino

Zenos Cars today revealed in engineering prototype form the new Zenos E10 RZ. Zenos Cars is a partnership between former Caterham Cars CEO Ansar Ali and COO Mark Edwards. They both also worked together at Lotus. Ali and Edwards have more than 30 years of experience in the niche sports car sector. The Zenos name is a combination of ‘Zen’ to represent purity, and ‘os,’ roughly Latin for ‘vertebra.’

“The start of a new generation of cars for Zenos, the marque will once again focus on innovation and ingenuity as it seeks to do more with less, in the tradition of the Great British sports cars manufacturers that inspired the company’s founding,” Zenos said. Continue reading →

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Failing IPs – Huge Toyota and Lexus Software Recall

Posted on 22 September 2025 by Ken Zino

In the mandatory recall filing [49 CFR § 573] made public by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) today Toyota said, “The subject vehicles are equipped with a combination meter system where various information is displayed (telltale and indicator lights, vehicle gauges, messages, etc.) in a 12.3-inch display monitor in the instrument panel. Due to improper programming of the combination meter, unnecessary data is repeatedly written to a memory device in the combination meter when the combination meter operates, causing the memory device to deteriorate earlier than intended.”

“If this occurs, the 12.3-in monitor will not be displayed at ignition on and will remain in this state. If the vehicle is driven without a working 12.3-in monitor and certain malfunctions occur during that drive, there is a possibility that indicators, such as brake system or tire pressure warning system, for those malfunctions could be missed if the driver does not notice the redundant notification on the center multimedia screen. Depending on the malfunction, continuous driving could lead to an increased risk of a crash or an increased risk of injury in the event of a crash,” Toyota said. Continue reading →

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EV Breakthrough? Peugeot with Embedded Inverter, Charger

Posted on 19 September 2025 by Ken Zino

Stellantis N.V. (NYSE: STLA) said today that in partnership with Saft (a TotalEnergies subsidiary) it has started prototype testing of a Peugeot E-3008 EV that eliminates the need for separate charger and inverter components. This could be a substantial breakthrough for both mobile and stationary energy applications.

“This project reflects our belief that simplification is innovation. By rethinking and simplifying the electric powertrain architecture, we are making it lighter, more efficient, and more cost-effective. These are the kinds of innovations that help us deliver better, more affordable EVs to our customers,” said Ned Curic, Chief Engineering and Technology Officer at Stellantis. Continue reading →

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Hyundai Motor Updates Growth and Profit Strategy

Posted on 18 September 2025 by Ken Zino

Hyundai Motor Company (KRX: 005380 KS) in New York today unveiled its latest growth strategy at the company’s first CEO Investor Day held outside of Korea. The event served as a stage to convey the company’s mid-to long-term strategy to investors and stakeholders, prompted in large part by Trump’s tariff wars.

“In an industry facing unprecedented transformation, Hyundai is uniquely positioned to win through our unmatched combination of compelling products, manufacturing flexibility, technology leadership, outstanding dealer partners and global scale,” said José Muñoz, President and CEO of Hyundai Motor Company. Continue reading →

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Extreme H to Hold First Hydrogen Powered World Cup Race

Posted on 17 September 2025 by Ken Zino

The Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), the global governing body for motor sport has signed a multi-year agreement with Extreme H to deliver the world’s first hydrogen-powered World Cup event.

“The World Cup will test the boundaries of what can be achieved in motor sport and the wider automotive and energy industries, opening up opportunities for further investment into hydrogen infrastructure by showing what is possible, and driving progress towards a low-carbon future,” said Extreme H, which is an extension of Extreme E racing that uses electric vehicles. Continue reading →

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Bad Defrosters – Toyota Motor Recalls Lexus and Subaru SUVs

Posted on 15 September 2025 by Ken Zino

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling ~94,000 2023-2025 model-year bZ4X, Lexus RZ, and Subaru Solterra SUVs. During certain Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning system problems (HVAC), such as electrical compressor failure, the defroster and defogger system may become inoperative because of a software problem in the Denso supplied ECU software. Apparently, Transport Canada originally identified the safety hazard. Continue reading →

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Ford Motor Recalls 1.5M Vehicles for Bad Rear-View Cameras

Posted on 15 September 2025 by Ken Zino

Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) is model-year  2015-2019 Lincoln MKC, Mustang, F-350 SD, F-250 SD, F-450 SD, 2015-2017 Lincoln Navigator, Expedition, 2015-2018 Edge, Transit Connect, 2016-2019 F-550 SD, Transit, 2017-2019 Econoline and 2019 Ranger vehicles. The rearview camera may display a distorted, inverted, or blank image when the vehicle is in reverse. The latest of seemingly endless recalls were made public today by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. It is an expansion of a previous recall involving a Magna produced part. Continue reading →

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Mercedes-AMG Hybrid Wagon Priced – Bring Money

Posted on 12 September 2025 by Ken Zino

Mercedes-Benz USA said today that 2026 Mercedes-AMG E 53 Hybrid* arrives at U.S. dealerships in early fall 2025, starting from $93,3502. That excludes a $1150 destination and delivery charge as well as options. AutoInformed speculates that Trump Tariff chaos had something to do with the price. Green would be an appropriate color under the circumstances. No U.S. photos or the rear interior area of the wagon were provided. Continue reading →

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New Porsche 911 Turbo S Most Powerful 911 Ever

Posted on 12 September 2025 by Ken Zino

Porsche (P911.DE) showed the new 911 Turbo S series at the IAA Mobility motor show in Munich. The twin-turbo powertrain with so-called T-Hybrid technology makes the new 911 Turbo S the most powerful production 911 thus far. The sports car, available as a coupé and cabriolet, claims more intelligent aerodynamics, an optimized chassis and more exclusive equipment. Prices, inevitably high, are thus far are unknown. They will be influenced negatively by the ongoing Trump Tariff economic chaos.

“The 911 Turbo S is the most complete and versatile form of driving a Porsche 911. Whether in daily use, on long autobahn journeys or on the racetrack – we have made the new 911 Turbo S even more comfortable, more individual and significantly faster than its predecessor,” said Frank Moser, Vice President of the 911 and 718 model line. Continue reading →

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Nissan Testing Cooperative Congestion Management

Posted on 10 September 2025 by Ken Zino

Nissan said today that a trial with UC Berkeley and Contra Costa Transportation Authority showed how connected vehicles can help reduce congestion. Nissan’s Cooperative Congestion Management (CCM) trial resulted in 85% fewer hard-braking events and 70% less time stopped in traffic during 600 miles of testing. It’s the latest example of how connected vehicles can yield safety benefits, although there are still huge, unanswered questions about privacy rights and the lack of regulations with the impending monitoring by State and the Federal government entities. Continue reading →

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IIHS Safety Award to Use Risky Driver Behavior Tech

Posted on 9 September 2025 by Ken Zino

Vehicle technology that can detect certain types of risky driver behavior will soon be added to the requirements for a safety award from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the Institute’s president, David Harkey, announced today during a roundtable on impaired driving organized by Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD).

“As part of our 30×30 vision to cut U.S. road deaths 30% by 2030, we are committed to addressing the risky – and often illegal – behavior that underlies most fatalities today,” Harkey said. “One way we plan to do that is to leverage our ratings and award programs to encourage automakers to adopt this new class of safety technology, just as we got them to improve vehicle structures, airbags and collision avoidance systems.” Continue reading →

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