Cars! Cars! Cars!

East Bound And Down

The New York Times reports: Toyota to Increase Imports to Meet Demand for Prius.

Even so, Toyota’s imports as a percentage of its American sales have risen in the last three years, figures criticized by some supporters of Detroit’s carmakers.

In 2006, 46 percent of Toyota’s vehicles were imported from Japan compared with 38.4 percent in 2005 and 37 percent in 2004.

East bound and down, loaded up and shippin',
Toyota's gonna do what they say can't be done.
They've got more sales acomin' and a short inventory here now.
They're east bound, just watch ol' Katsuaki Watanabe run.

Keep your foot hard on the pedal. Son, never mind them brakes.
Let it all hang out 'cause we got a record to break.
The boys are thirsty in Atlanta and there's sales in Texarcana.
And we'll bring it back no matter what it takes.

More Priuseseses headed our way. Good thing, too, since gasoline at the fillin' station is gonna be pushing $4/gallon soon.

I Must Break You

Autoblog reports: Toyota forecasts continued U.S. sales growth. You just know that Katsuaki Watanabe has said (in regards to Ford and GM): "If he dies, he dies." Katsuaki Watanabe is a bad ass.

Open Mic

Bloomberg News reports: Toyota's Watanabe Comments on Interest Rates, G.M., U.S. Market. At a mid-year press conference, Toyota president Katsuaki Watanabe offered his thoughts on several topics, including General Motors:

"The Nummi factory is a very important venture for Toyota. Operating the factory with GM really helps us learn a lot."

"We haven't even thought whether we will participate in a GM-Renault-Nissan alliance or not. We are not considering how we can participate."

Not knowing his microphone could still be picked up by the Cars! Cars! Cars! audio techmologists, Mr. Watanabe was also (not really) heard saying, as he buttered a lap dancer:

Yo, Fukui! See the irony is that what they [GM] need to do is get their heads out of their arses and stop building this shit.

All this despite Mr. Watanabe's doctors saying to lay off the butter.

Challenger A-Comin'?

We've written about the upcoming Pony Car wars. We think we're over it before it even started. And now we're greeted with the very interesting news that Dodge just may have its act together enough to announce the Challenger today and, get this, maybe have it ready for a 2007/2008. Jalopnik reports: Da-GUM! Chrysler To Announce Challenger At Pepsi 400; Could Be A 2007/2008 Model! We'd be shocked (not in the good, sexy way*) if the Challenger was a 2007 model. If it was, however, it changes the whole dynamic of the Pony Car Wars. Why? Because we think most people will still be interested in them in 2007, but if the car(s) wait until 2009... yawn. The Detroit News reports: Muscle car is reborn.

"It's a pure retro car," said Csaba Csere, editor in chief of Car and Driver magazine**. "It's a dead ringer for the original 1970 Challenger."

Chrysler plans to build the Dodge Challenger off the same basic chassis as its rear-drive Chrysler 300 and Dodge Charger. Both of those vehicles are built in Brampton, Ontario.

What's also interesting to us is that Ford is now challenged (ha!) to make the Mustang even more retro. What can they do? Maybe an AM radio?*** So if the Dodge Challenger is indeed announced to go into production**** it's going to put a lot of pressure on GM to announce the Chevy Camaro is good to go.

General Motors Corp. is widely expected to resurrect the Chevrolet Camaro -- which went out of production in 2002 -- in the next few years.

A striking concept version of the Camaro arguably drew even more attention and praise than the Challenger at the Detroit auto show this year.

Anyway, the timing of these very un-fuel efficient dealies is pretty danged interesting to us. Why? The Detroit News reports: $3 gas arrives in time for 4th. It's not like gas is going to get cheaper.

*Jesus! This is what she wears to pump gas? What does she wear to cook? Please make us a chicken pot pie, please make us a chicken pot pie, please make us a chicken pot pie.
**What's a magazine?
***What's a radio?
****Katsuaki Watanabe: They're reviving muscle cars when the planet is getting hotter, gasoline is over $3/gallon, and we're all trying to make cars look contemporary?
Takeo Fukui: Jesus, did you see Mena?
Mater: Da gum!

Saab Stayin', Hummer Hangin'

GM had its annual shareholders meeting yesterday. It was chock full of goodness, too. With old white dudes, hillbillies, and nuns, a good time was had by all. Autoblog reports: GM Chairman upbeat in "State of the Business" address.

Tops on Wagoner's "to do" list going forward:

• maximizing the UAW employee buyout program
• the Delphi restructuring
• closing the sale of General Motors Acceptance Corp.
• new product launches (Saturn Aura, Outlook and Vue hybrid, GMC/Chevy full-size trucks, GMC Acadia, and Buick Enclave)
• ramping up E85 production

Ha! First things, first: can the help. We're pretty positive on the rest, however. The vehicles listed above are all quite good (as far as we can tell) and we are hopeful the Enclave looks a lot like the concept shown at the auto show—if it is, it'll rock.

The Detroit News reports: GM chief trumpets progress.

Wagoner delivered a largely upbeat message to shareholders after one of the toughest years in the company's history. He said he is still optimistic about negotiations with the United Auto Workers and Delphi Corp. over wage cuts for hourly workers. He also firmly denied GM would ever become a Toyota Motor Corp. subsidiary.

What's that last sentence? You know, back in Toyota City there was a scene like this:

Setting: steamroom
(TV is on, GM CEO Rick Wagoner is speaking)
Hiroshi Okuda: What did he just say?
Katsuaki Watanabe: I believe he said that they'd never be a part of Toyota.
HO: What does that mean?
KW: I think he is saying that if GM lost enough money, we'd consider buying them.
HO: Really?
KW: I think so.
HO: Really?
KW: That's what the man said, meng.
HO: Why would we buy a company losing money?
KW: I sure as hell wouldn't.
HO: Why would we buy a company that is losing money because people don't want their products?
KW: Look, H, we're on the same page here.
HO: Did you want to buy GM?
KW: Hells, no!
HO: Very good, Grasshopper.
KW: I told you, only the ladies can call me that. And don't say it in the steamroom. People will talk.
HO: Not that there's anything wrong with that.

We don't know if there are hills in Mississippi, but after a small vote, we voted that hillbilly was funnier than Mississippian.

From Green To Black

AutoWeek reports: Toyota plans to profit from hybrids within two years. Let's assume they aren't fibbin'—wow, nice work, mates. Lots of automakers (Nissan, for one) have complained that hybrids aren't profitable and so to hell with them (Nissan has said as much, but they're going to make them anyway). The article goes into all sorts of detail as to what Toyota president Katsuaki Watanabe plans to do, but what we found most interesting was:

Toyota Motor Corp. wants to slash the electronic complexity of its cars by cutting a vehicle's electronic control units from about 60 to four.

Wow. What is that, like a 400 billion percentage reduction? Think of how less complex the systems will be (and how much simpler to service). We'd tend to think more reliable, too, because there are few pieces to break. Unless those 60 pieces never break to begin with. Anyway, we'll check back with Toyota in '08 to see if the hybrid stuff is profitable. Ford still claims to be on track for its massive hybrid rollout, you know, any day now.