PUMP BREAK

MOTORISTS ARE EXPECTED TO FINALLY CATCH A BREAK THIS SUMMER WITH MODESTLY ... http://p.ost.im/dg9h8b

PUMP BREAK

BY JIM GORZELANY

Vacationers should continue to see some welcome relief at the pump between now and Labor Day as gasoline prices are expected to be more affordable — albeit nominally — than they’ve been in the last three summers.

Retail gas prices are anticipated to average $ 3.63 a gallon during this summer’s driving season, according to the Short Term Energy Outlook compiled by the U. S. Energy Information Administration in Washington, D. C. This figure is slightly below the $ 3.69 figure recorded last year and the average $ 3.71 in summer of 2011.

This sunny forecast is based largely on an expected decline in crude oil prices combined with higher gasoline inventory levels and a continuing drop in demand due to increased small- car sales and other factors. The EIA predicts the price of Brent crude oil ( a benchmark that’s tied to wholesale gasoline costs in the U. S.), will average $ 107.50 per barrel this summer, which would be around $ 1.50 less than it was during the same period in 2012.

Of course, gasoline prices continue to vary by region, often wildly. For example, those living in Chicago suffered the highest prices in the nation this spring despite sizable drops elsewhere in the country. Those living on the West Coast will likely see the highest gas prices during this year’s vacation season with the EIA predicting an average of $ 3.89 a gallon, while residents of the Gulf Coast will enjoy the lowest fuel costs at an average of $ 3.47. At that, gasoline will still tend to cost more in larger U. S. cities where pricier summer- blend fuel is mandated for environmental reasons.

What’s more, gasoline taxes vary from state to state, further affecting the price. Though the average state gasoline tax is 23.5 cents per gallon, Alaska and Georgia charge just eight cents per gallon, and California charges a whopping 38.2 cents per gallon. And this is on top of a federal gas tax of 18.4 cents per gallon and any county and city taxes that may apply.

But will less- volatile gas prices give consumers the itch to jump back into big cars and trucks with the same vigor as they did back in the early 2000s? Not likely. Consumers, perhaps numbed by the rollercoaster behavior of fuel prices over the past

continue to be fuelefficient small and midsize cars and crossover SUVs ( including compact models), which together account for around twothirds of all new- vehicle sales. Meanwhile, the large car market, which dropped from 5.8 percent of the market in 2008 to 3.5 percent last year is anticipated to further deflate to just 2.7 percent by 2015, according to the research company R. L. Polk in Southfield, Mich.

Large pickup truck sales, which enjoyed modest increases during 2012, should continue to rally, though gas prices are not expected to be a five or six years, don’t seem to be particularly reactive to even relatively major swings these days.

A one- dollar variation in gasoline prices can be expected to account for just a 0.7 difference in small car sales at the one end of the new- vehicle spectrum and a 0.5 percent difference in fullsize pickup truck sales at the other, according to a study conducted by the research company Experian Automotive in Schaumburg, Ill.

Experts say the hottestselling segments in the auto business should major factor. According to the Wall Street Journal, the economic recovery — particularly in the housing sector — is driving pickup sales, with builders and contractors, punished by the drop in new- home building caused by the economic crash of 2008, now meeting a pent- up demand to replace old vehicles. Pickups will further enjoy a boost with redesigned versions of the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra and the updated Toyota Tundra later this year, followed by a new version of the segment leading Ford F- 150 during 2014.

PUMP BREAK

Beware of bad gasoline choices

Beware of bad gasoline choices Continue reading ... http://p.ost.im/dgAUaw

Beware of bad gasoline choices

By Mark Phelan: McClatchy Newspapers

 

Let the driver beware: Not all gasoline is created equal. As the summer vacation driving season begins, paying attention at the pump can add miles per gallon to your fuel economy, and protect your engine.

Differences in octane level and the amount of ethanol added to gasoline can have a dramatic impact on fuel economy and emissions. In a worst-case scenario, using bad gas could even void the manufacturer’s warranty.

The key risks:

■ Lower than expected octane

■ Higher mixes of ethanol.

Low-octane fuel — rated 85 or 86 as opposed to the 87 for regular gasoline — is common in the Rocky Mountain states, said General Motors fuel specialist Bill Studzinski. The practice goes back to the days of carbureted engines, when lower octane helped vehicles run smoothly at altitude. The electronic engine controls that have replaced carburetors make the lower octane unnecessary and potentially harmful.

“I felt like a fool,” said Rodney Gutzler of Sioux Falls, S.D., former owner of a 2012 Scion iQ. “Here I was in a little bitty car that was supposed to get 36 m.p.g. in the city, and I was getting 25.”

The 85 octane gas spread from the mountains of western South Dakota into the eastern plains last year, said David Montgomery, a reporter for the Sioux Falls Argus Leader. The state legislature has since passed a law restricting sales to the west and requiring a warning label on pumps: “This octane level may not meet minimum manufacturer specifications. Consult your owner’s manual before fueling.”

Automakers would prefer a total ban on 85 and 86 octane gasoline. Less than 2% of the vehicles in the U.S. have carburetors, according to GM. The other 98%-plus have computer controls that adjust for altitude and require manufacturers’-spec gasoline to meet emissions, fuel economy and performance standards.

“We do not endorse the use of 85 octane or lower,” Studzinski said.

A lawsuit pending in South Dakota seeks damages for drivers who were “knowingly and fraudulently charged inflated prices” for 85 octane gas, which costs less at the pump than 87, Montgomery said.

“My Scion iQ clearly stated that no gasoline lower than 87 octane should be used because it could damage the engine,” Gutzler said. “The pumps where I got 85 octane weren’t labeled. Who knew what we were buying?”

The other potential problem is less geographically widespread, but unlike 85-octane gas, which seems to be waning, higher alcohol mixtures are likely to become more common to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and boost use of renewable fuels.

Virtually all gasoline sold in the U.S. has 10% ethanol. Vehicles are engineered to run easily on it. But a new 15% blend, called E15, could be problematic. Only a handful of service stations sell E15 now. None is in Michigan. The closest are in Illinois and Wisconsin.

The EPA says E15 works fine with the emissions systems of vehicles dating to the 2001 model year, but automakers didn’t certify other systems for it that long ago. GM, for instance, only approves E15 for 2012 and later model years. The mixed signals from EPA and automakers’ recommendations create room for user error.

“A recent AAA survey finds a strong likelihood of customer confusion, and the potential for voided warranties due to E15,” said Nancy Cain, spokesperson for AAA Michigan. “We want more education so customers know what they’re buying and what their vehicles need.”

Beware of bad gasoline choices

Driverless cars should slow down, some say

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Driverless cars should slow down, some say

By: Jayne O’Donnell and Ben Mitchell, USA TODAY

The road to automated driving may turn out to be a “near-term collision course,” says Massachusetts Institute of Technology researcher Bryan Reimer.

Reimer will be keynote speaker at an autonomous vehicle conference this week in Detroit and many there are expected to join him in echoing the go-slow mantra outlined in the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s policy announcement on such vehicles two weeks ago.

Reimer, who consults for clients including Toyota, says that one fatal crash involving a self-driving vehicle would become front-page news, “shut down the robotic industry” — and lead automakers to a “major pullback in automatic safety systems” like collision avoidance technology going into conventional cars now.

“Everybody is getting cautious except for one organization – Google – which thinks it’s going to change the world” with its self driving car, says Reimer.

Google has used the Toyota Prius and the Lexus RX 450h modified with radar, lasers, cameras, and computers to send a driverless car between locations without incident. The company vows it will have some for sale within a couple years.

“There will always be a set of circumstances that was not expected, that the automation either was not designed to handle or other things that just cannot be predicted,” says George Mason University professor Raja Parasuraman, director of the university’s human factors and applied cognition program.

The Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems International, which is sponsoring the conference in Detroit, has vehicle suppliers, car companies, the robotic industry and even drone makers among its members. It calls the conference a “Driverless Car Summit,” which by itself highlights a key challenge for the industry: “We don’t know what we we’re going to call these things,” acknowledges AUVSI CEO Michael Toscano.

The word “driverless” may conjure scary images, but the term “autonomous” might be confusing.

Toscano, a former Defense Department official who worked on ground robotics, is enthusiastic about the promise of self-driving cars, but agrees with Reimer that “the thing that will slow down the introduction of this technology in our everyday life on a global scale is safety.”

Toyota debuted its first semi-autonomous Lexus at the 2013 Consumer Electronics Expo in January. The vehicle can sense, avoid, and stop short of three dimensional objects on the road. However, during the presentation, group vice president and general manager of Toyota’s Lexus Division Mark Templin said he doesn’t believe cars will truly become driverless, but rather the vehicle will be a “skilled co-pilot” capable of minimizing risks on the road and protecting drivers from traffic collisions.

“We’re taking a very careful, cautious. step by step, incremental approach,” says Toyota spokeswoman Cindy Knight. “Most people think of it as a driverless car, but we’re using our autonomous test vehicle to further develop high level driver assistance features.”

Despite widespread concern, no one wants to be left behind when it comes to at least partially autonomous vehicles.

•Audi is developing a traffic jam feature that can take over driving at up to 40 miles per hour. The car would scan up to 820 feet ahead and monitor surrounding vehicles to keep the car in the lane, accelerate or brake. The company has also demonstrated a car that parks itself at the press of a cell phone button and will return to the driver with another press of the button. Says spokesman Brad Stertz: “We think these technologies will be available within a decade, but a lot still depends on the legal and regulatory environment.”

•Ford has a feature for heavy traffic jams that would allow a car to keep up with traffic and stay in its lane without the driver’s instruction. It says “Traffic Jam Assist” will be available in the next few years.

•General Motors’ “Super Cruise” feature would allow a vehicle to steer, brake, and keep itself in a lane at highway speeds. It is being designed for Cadillac and could be ready by the decade’s end.

• Mercedes-Benz.’s “Intelligent Drive” system is capable of scanning up to 165 feet ahead of the car to look for moving objects, and uses a radar-based system to stop itself before an impact. The company is also developing a “Steering Assist System,” which is able to carry out “frequently occurring” driving maneuvers, including lane changes and passing slower vehicles, says a company statement. It can’t navigate corners, but is designed for highway travel and will be included in the 2014 Mercedes-Benz S Class.

•BMW has developed a semi-autonomous Traffic Jam Assistant, similar to Mercedes’ Steering Assist, and hopes to have fully autonomous vehicles on the road by 2020.

Toscano agrees about going slow now, but he remains decidedly gung-ho.

“This is going to be a technology that will change humanity,” he says. “It is a revolutionary technology. Some people call it disruptive, but it will change the world, save lives, save time and save money.”

Driverless cars should slow down, some say

Young Americans Lead Trend to Less Driving

By JOHN SCHWARTZ CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Dan Mauney keeps misplacing his ca ... http://p.ost.im/dbgSk5

Young Americans Lead Trend to Less Driving

By JOHN SCHWARTZ

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Dan Mauney keeps misplacing his car.  Mr. Mauney, 42, lives in an apartment tower in this city’s Uptown neighborhood, a pedestrian-friendly quarter with new office buildings, sparkling museums and ambitious restaurants. He so seldom needs to drive that when he does go to retrieve his car in his building’s garage, he said, “I always forget where I parked it.”

Charlotte and other American cities have not abandoned their cars or their sprawling growth. But people like Mr. Mauney are part of the reason that American driving patterns have downshifted — perhaps for years to come.

For six decades, Americans have tended to drive more every year. But in the middle of the last decade, the number of miles driven — both over all and per capita — began to drop, notes a report to be published on Tuesday by U.S. Pirg, a nonprofit advocacy organization.

People tend to drive less during recessions, since fewer people are working (and commuting), and most are looking for ways to save money. But Phineas Baxandall, an author of the report and senior analyst for U.S. Pirg, said the changes preceded the recent recession and appeared to be part of a structural shift that is largely rooted in changing demographics, especially the rise of so-called millennials — today’s teenagers and twentysomethings. “Millennials aren’t driving cars,” he said.

In fact, younger people are less likely to drive — or even to have driver’s licenses — than past generations for whom driving was a birthright and the open road a symbol of freedom. Research by Michael Sivak of the Transportation Research Institute at the University of Michigan found that young people are getting driver’s licenses in smaller numbers than previous generations.

Online life might have something to do with the change, he suggested. “A higher proportion of Internet users was associated with a lower licensure rate,” he wrote in arecent study. “This finding is consistent with the hypothesis that access to virtual contact reduces the need for actual contact among young people.”

Baby boomers, too, are aging out of the daily work force and need to commute less. If the decline continues, the U.S. Pirg report states, driving could remain below its 2007 peak through 2040, even though the population is expected to grow by 21 percent.

If Jacob Curtis is any indication, the change in driving habits should be with us for some time to come. Mr. Curtis, 29, moved to Charlotte in recent months to take a job as a cameraman at a local television station, and was pleased to find a home close to rail and bus lines, and that he could ride his bike to the office along a no-traffic greenway. He can shower when he gets to work, and drives to assignments in one of the station’s vans.

During his off hours, he finds Charlotte easy to navigate thanks to his smartphone, which helps him plot routes that blend biking and mass transit options. “You don’t have a lot to figure out,” he said. “We all have navigators in our pockets.”

Ted Boyd, whose job involves helping develop the city’s South End into a Brooklynesque neighborhood — Mr. Mauney is opening two stores there, one to sell women’s shoes and another men’s underwear — often rides the bus to work. He decided to drive less after a trip to New York, with its extensive options for mass transit, but admits “it’s a little trickier in Charlotte.” Office wear still stands out on the city buses, and “you get some interesting looks sometimes,” he said, that seem to assume an unpleasant reason for why he isn’t behind the wheel: “Is this a D.U.I.?”

Charlotte, whose success as a financial center has helped its population grow toward 800,000, takes transit seriously, said David Howard, a member of the City Council and chairman of its transportation and planning committee. The city tries to channel growth into manageable areas, he said, by filling in the urban core with new development and encouraging new construction along major transportation corridors, including an expanding rail line. “It didn’t happen by mistake,” he said.

The rail line was projected to reach a ridership of 12,000 people within 7 to 10 years; it hit that level in the first month and a half, he said. President Obama has nominated the city’s mayor, Anthony R. Foxx, to be the next transportation secretary.

The drop-off in driving is already having wide-reaching effects across the country. It means that gasoline taxes, which help finance transportation investment, are bringing in less revenue. The U.S. Pirg report suggests that the nation’s shift in driving trends calls for a change in the things the nation spends that money on. “When dollars are so scarce, we need to be sure we’re not building highways that aren’t really needed — especially if doing so means neglecting repairs of existing highways, and neglecting to build transit projects when transit ridership is soaring,” Mr. Baxandall said

Kenneth Orski, a transportation consultant, offered a skeptical view of the permanence of the driving trend. “When twentysomethings get older and start having kids, they move to the more affordable suburbs in search of more space and better schools — and start driving,” he said.

Robert W. Poole Jr., director of transportation policy for the Reason Foundation, a libertarian research organization, also viewed the new report with a measure of incredulity, calling its conclusions “exaggerated.”

Young people have been slow to buy cars, he said, in part because of “the very large degree of youth unemployment and underemployment,” a situation that might change with an improving economy. He added that the emergence of self-driving vehicles “may re-empower elderly people to continue using cars far into their last years,” offsetting any potential decline from younger adults.

Arguments about the future of transportation will continue as the demographics and economics play out. But at the moment, Mr. Curtis had a more pressing problem. He was showing off his bright red Diamondback bicycle to a visitor and suddenly said, “Whoa — a flat!” A construction nail had pierced the tire, a common problem in the booming city. In an earlier time, it would have meant an irksome trip home. But not in Charlotte.

“Guess I’ll take the bus,” he said.

He walked the bike to the city’s transit center, and chained it onto one of the racks that can be found on every bus in Charlotte and many other cities. The digital route readout repeated the same message over and over: “Route 9-S Central Avenue to Sav-A-Lot.”

Young Americans Lead Trend to Less Driving

AUTOMOBILE Magazine Names Scion FR-S an All-Star

AUTOMOBILE Magazine Names Scion FR-S an All-Star Continue reading ... http://p.ost.im/p/dbErcS

AUTOMOBILE Magazine Names Scion FR-S an All-Star

The Scion FR-S was named a 2013 AUTOMOBILE Magazine All-star today as part of the publication’s prestigious list of 10 winners.  Vehicles are evaluated against all current models on sale in the United States.

 

Each year, AUTOMOBILE editors test, evaluate and debate the performance, significance and enthusiast appeal of vehicles that make the biggest impact.  In naming the FR-S, AUTOMOBILE Magazine highlighted the rear-wheel sports car’s engaging driving experience and accessibility.

 

“The affordable and fun-to-drive FR-S is not only a welcome addition to the automotive landscape for American enthusiasts, it’s also exactly the sort of vehicle we’ve been hoping to see from Scion,” said Jean Jennings, president and editor-in-chief atAUTOMOBILE Magazine.

AUTOMOBILE Magazine Names Scion FR-S an All-Star

Fatal Distractions

Don’t blame the phone or fast food, it seems we’re our own worst en ... http://p.ost.im/p/dqnVaE

Fatal Distractions

By Jim Gorzelany CTW Features

One in 10 of the more than 65,000 car crash-related fatalities that occurred during 2010 and 2011 were caused by distracted driving, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in Washington D.C. But while talking on the phone or text messaging is most often portrayed as being Public Enemy Number One in this regard, it’s not even close to being the top reason motorists lose focus behind the wheel.

That would be becoming “lost in thought,” with 62 percent of all distracted driving-related traffic fatalities caused by simple daydreaming.

Meanwhile, cell phone talking and texting came in second in the study, responsible for a still-significant 12 percent of all fatalities caused by inattentive motorists, with both statistics based on an analysis of NHTSA crash reports recently conducted by Erie Insurance in Erie, Penn. (see the full top-10 list in the accompanying box).

“Distracted driving is any activity that takes your eyes off the road, your hands off the wheel, or your mind off your primary task of driving safely,” says Doug Smith, Erie’s senior vice president of personal lines at Erie Insurance. “We looked at what law enforcement officers across the country reported when they filled out reports on fatal crashes and the results were disturbing.”

The results are especially disconcerting in that, unlike operating a cell phone while driving, most of the disruptions reported as being the underlying causes of fatal car wrecks would seem to be beyond regulation. It’s not likely that even a dystopian dictatorship would attempt to ban talking to other occupants or listening to music while driving.

Still, 10 states and the District of Columbia currently prohibit all motorists from using handheld cell phones while operating a motor vehicle, and 39 states forbid text messaging, according to the Governors Highway Safety Association in Washington, D.C., with additional states prohibiting both behaviors by novice drivers.

Despite such bans and widespread media campaigns to curb the rise of distracted driving, more than two-thirds (69 percent) of all licensed motorists recently surveyed by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety in Washington, D.C. admitted to using a cell phone during the previous month while more than a third (35 percent) said they read a text or email while driving.

And as if using a cell phone or texting while driving wasn’t hazardous enough, the AAA’s research indicates that motorists who talk or text behind the wheel are more likely to engage in other types of hazardous driving behavior. Sixty-five percent of licensed drivers in the survey who said they often or regularly use their cell phones while driving also admitted to speeding during the previous month, 44 percent also reported driving while drowsy and 29 percent also said they’ve driven without fastening their seatbelt.

“What concerns AAA is this pattern of risky behavior that even goes beyond cell phone use,” says Kathleen Bower, AAA’s vice president of public affairs. “These same cell phone-using drivers clearly understand the risk of distraction, yet are still likely to engage in a wide range of dangerous driving activities.”

Of course, as in any such analysis the numbers can be skewed because of the reluctance of some people to report distracted-driving episodes. Still, it’s a stern reminder for all of us to realize the seriousness of the consequences of what might happen whenever any of us takes to the road.

© CTW Features

✅ Stevens Creek Toyota and Stevens Creek Scion ask you to drive safe.

Fatal Distractions

Coupe Du Jours

The nimble new Scion FR-S sports coupe combines style and grace in a bu ... http://p.ost.im/p/dquR7E

Toyota Elevates Expectations with the Surprising 2014 Corolla

TORRANCE, Calif. (June 6, 2013) – Building on 47 years of success and close to 40 million sales in the world, the 11^th generation Corolla is a dramatically styled, sleeker, more dynamic Corolla that will change consumer perceptions of this iconic compact.

The new Corolla’s exterior design builds on the “Iconic Dynamism” theme seen on the athletic Corolla Furia Concept at the 2013 North American International Auto Show in January.  The new Corolla builds on the styling momentum seen in Toyota vehicles launched in the past year, which has produced more expressive vehicle designs.  With the new Corolla’s stronger exterior styling, it is clear that Toyota’s brand and product direction will emphasize more compelling styling executions that will appeal to current Toyota customers while also attracting more youthful buyers.

The Corolla’s design theme dictates a more advanced, modern-looking vehicle with a longer wheelbase and shorter overhangs, resulting in an athletic stance with greater presence.  More pronounced flared wheel arches, and the impactful simplicity of cleanly sculpted surfaces, help lend the Corolla an exterior elegance.  When viewing the profile, there is a sweeping character crease in the body’s sheet metal that spans the length of the sedan and accentuates the integrated door handle design. The 2014 Corolla’s exterior form tapers towards the front and rear of the vehicle to emphasize the wheel arches, with a longer, faster sloping roofline that blends into a shorter rear deck to lend the sedan a sportier image.

The new Corolla’s athletic character is complemented by a broad range of styled alloy wheel and wheel cover options ranging from covered 15-inch steel wheels to 17-inch alloy wheels.  The new Corolla will also offer three new exterior colors.

The 2014 Corolla’s interior matches the visual impact of the exterior and adds a new level of refinement.  The passenger cabin features a clean, horizontally oriented dash panel design that adds to the interior’s sense of spaciousness.  The instrument panel and surrounding areas are finished in premium materials with piano black surfaces, metallic accents and decorative pin-striping to help elevate the compact car experience.  Exquisite texture graining and soft touch material covers the top of the dash panel and key touch points in the cabin.  Adding to the cabin’s elevated tone, Corolla offers a choice of seat-covering materials in premium fabric or available SofTex™ material.   Attention to detail is demonstrated in the ornamental stitching spanning the length of the dash panel and the shift boot that adorns the center console’s shifter lever.   Sound insulation has been strategically placed along the fenders, cowl, and behind the dash panel to reduce noise entering the cabin helping occupants enjoy Corolla’s available audio systems and connectivity features.

The premium interior extends to the rear seat as well.  The new Corolla’s longer 106.3-inch wheelbase creates a more spacious interior, with a rear seat area that is 2.95-inches longer than the previous model, to offer outstanding rear leg room.

The 2014 Corolla will also offer a new LE Eco grade that is differentiated by a more efficient 140-horsepower, 1.8-liter engine with Valvematic technology; improved aerodynamics; and low rolling resistance tires.  The Corolla Eco-badged models will achieve an estimated highway fuel economy rating of over 40 mpg thanks to the new Valvematic engine combined with a newly developed Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT).  The Corolla L, LE, and S grade models are all powered by a 1.8-liter, four-cylinder engine with intelligent Variable Valve Timing (VVT-i) that produces 132 horsepower.

While the new Corolla has taken the exterior and interior to new levels, the model remains committed to delivering world-class fuel economy in the compact segment.  The Corolla LE and S offer a newly developed continuously variable transmission (CVT).  This new advanced transmission, named CVTi-S (“i” for intelligent, “S” for shift), helps increase the Corolla’s fuel economy and provide its smooth and efficient power transfer.  It has also been engineered to offer improved drivability and mitigate the “rubber band” feeling associated with traditional CVT’s under acceleration.   The new CVTi-S has been engineered to strike a balance between addressing fuel economy targets and higher level of drivability to meet consumer tastes.

Within this compact transmission, the size disparity between the CVTi-S’ small and large internal pulleys has been maximized to provide the widest possible range of gear ratios to improve acceleration and fuel economy.  The new CVTi-S fluid-pump design helps reduce parasitic loss at high speeds, and the transmission’s software creates discrete sequential shift points to help CVTi-S operate with character similar to a traditional automatic transmission during acceleration. The Corolla S offers a manual-mode shift gate in the console shifter, or steering wheel paddle shifters, allow drivers to affect fast, sequential “shifts” through 7-speeds with the CVTi-S with “gear” change shown in the instrument panel’s TFT display.

A six-speed manual transmission is available on the Corolla L and S grades.  Drive modes that offer recalibrated throttle, transmission and steering responses are available on the Corolla LE Eco and Corolla S.  For ECO drive mode on the LE Eco, the initial throttle inputs are less sensitive to help encourage more fuel-efficient driving and eliminate sudden starts. On the S grade, the SPORT mode software helps make the accelerator pedal feel more responsive to input along with CVTi-S shifting logic that enhances acceleration feel. In SPORT mode, Corolla’s electronic power steering is programmed to offer a more positive steering feel.

The 2014 Corolla unibody makes extensive use of lightweight, high-strength steel to help keep vehicle weight below 2,900 pounds in the interest of fuel economy.  In addition to improved collision performance, such construction also gives the Corolla’s structure increased rigidity to optimize chassis and suspension performance, giving the new car a more responsive and engaging driving experience.

The 2014 Corolla is the first compact car equipped with standard LED lowbeam headlamps, and all models are standard equipped with eight airbags, and Bluetooth^® hand-free phone and audio-streaming connectivity.  The Corolla will be available in four trim levels (L, LE, LE Eco, and S) that offer a wide range of popular features to help distinguish each trim level.

Some of the available equipment includes the following:

• Touchscreen audio


• Apps accessible through the audio head unit


• Smart Key/ Push-button start


• Power moonroof


• Back-up monitor


• SofTex™ Seats


• Available Paddle shifters


• Rear deck lid spoiler

The 2014 Corolla will elevate the consumer’s experience for the world’s most popular sedan with modern, expressive styling, a more premium interior experience, improved fuel economy and performance, and a strong menu of available features. Vehicle pricing, final grade content, and option packages will be made available closer to launch timing.

2014 Corolla 

Basic Exterior Dimensions Compared to Current model (change in parenthesis)
Overall length	182.6 in. (+3.90 in.) 183.1 in. for S-grade	4639 mm (+99), 4650mm for S-grade
Overall width	69.9 in. (+0.63 in.)	1776 mm (+16)
Overall height	57.3 in. (-0.39 in.)	1455 mm (-10)
Wheelbase	106.3 in. (+ 3.93 in.)	2700 mm (+100)
Front Overhang	37.7 in. (+0.90 in.)	958 mm (+23)
Rear Overhang	38.6 in. (-0.94 in.)	981 mm (-24)

We at Stevens Creek Toyota, are so excited to see the new 2014 Corolla.

Toyota Elevates Expectations with the Surprising 2014 Corolla

Coupe Du Jours

By Jim Gorzelany CTW Features

Back in the 1960’s and 1970’s, motorists looking for something “different” were often drawn to a fleet of small and nimble imported sports cars. Models like the Fiat 124, Triumph Spitfire, Opel GT and Datsun 240Z weren’t particularly fast, but they were seductively stylish and playfully nimble at a time when most cars were big, boxy and clumsy through the curves.

Though most sports cars have since grown considerably in size and cost, a pair of comely new budget-minded performance cars debuted for 2013 that embody the spirit of those classic coupes, the mechanically equivalent Scion FR-S and Subaru BRZ (both were developed jointly by Toyota and Subaru). We recently got a chance to test-drive the Scion version in and around Chicago for a week and found it to be a truly entertaining ride.

The FR-S name stands for “Front engine, Rear drive, Sport,” and it’s Scion’s first-ever rear-drive car, which is a configuration that tends to favor quick handling. Its curvaceously cast exterior features a long hood and short rear deck, with a wide and low air dam up front with cat’s eye-shaped headlamps reaching up and into a pair of muscular front fenders. As with most low-slung cars, climbing into and out of the FR-S can be a chore for older and/or less flexible drivers, but for those who can appreciate enthusiastic driving it would be well worth the effort.

It’s efficiently cast inside, with combination analog/digital gauges and high quality materials throughout. The heavily bolstered sport seats can be stiff and unforgiving to more generously built drivers, however, and as with most compact coupes rear seat room is negligible.

The FR-S comes adequately powered by a Subaru-derived 200-hp 2.0-liter four-cylinder “boxer” engine that configures the cylinder banks in horizontal opposition, as opposed to conventional inline or V-shaped arrangements. Subaru uses this design in all its models, and Porsche is the only other mainstream automaker to feature it, mainly because it helps a car maintain a lower center of gravity that, in turn, contributes to superior cornering characteristics. A six-speed manual transmission is standard with a six-speed automatic optional. Ours was fitted with the automatic, which worked well in most respects and came with a manual-shift mode via steering wheel-mounted paddles, but we still longed for the stick shift here. Fuel economy is EPA-estimated at a decently frugal 25/34-mpg city/highway.

Unfortunately, with “just” 200 horses under the hood, neither car can be considered particularly fast – at least not at a time when 500- and 600-horsepower engines rule the road. Still, weighing in at around a svelte 2,700 pounds the FR-S we tested got up to highway speeds nicely with plenty of passing power at hand, though the four-cylinder engine does begin to fade right about the point when larger powerplants are beginning to roar. The automatic transmission comes with a “Sport” mode that holds shifts longer and quickens the throttle response to help enliven the acceleration, but it does seem to make the car feel as if it’s working a bit too strenuously in the process.

On the other hand, the FR-S is about more than just going fast in a straight line. The car’s quick and nimble handling can be truly turntable-like when pushed hard through the curves, with just enough rear-end drift to make things interesting before the car’s stability control kicks in to straighten things out. On the down side, the FR-S rides fairly rough as a trade-off for its adept cornering abilities, and the cabin can get fairly loud at times, especially at higher speeds where tire noise is pronounced.

Still these are minor gripes, especially when one considers the Scion FR-S’ relatively affordable $24,500 sticker price.

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