Word: toyotas
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...sudden shift in consumer demand has left manufacturers facing a major challenge in keeping their showrooms filled with hybrid vehicles. Sales of the Toyota Prius actually dropped in May because the company didn't have any more vehicles to sell. In an industry where a two-month supply of vehicles is considered the norm, Toyota supplies of key hybrid models are being measured in single digits, says Toyota Motor Sales vice president Bob Carter. About 20% of all Toyota Camrys sold in the U.S. are now hybrids, making them more popular than models equipped with a V6 engine. (Meanwhile, Toyota...
...another problem in keeping up with demand is an acute shortage of the nickel-metal-hydride batteries required for hybrid vehicles. GM's launch of its new hybrid-SUVs has been delayed for nearly three months by a labor dispute at a key supplier of the batteries. And Toyota's chances of getting more hybrids into showrooms is foundering on the battery shortage. "We can't produce enough batteries right now," Carter says. A new plant for the nickel-metal-hydride batteries won't come on line until 2010. GM is deep into negotiations to purchase the battery subsidiary...
Despite these strong fundamentals, Iceland has undoubtedly lost some steam - and importers feel it the worst. Úlfar Steindórsson, CEO of Toyota Iceland, says that the depreciated krona raised the price of imported cars by 25% in just a matter of weeks, bringing his booming sales to a standstill. He now predicts year-on-year revenues will end 30% lower. But Steindórsson doesn't blame the government or Iceland's banks. "The crisis didn't start in Iceland - it started in the U.S.," he says. As he sees it, the international dimension of the credit crunch...
...visible than at the traffic islands and verges close to the Nile. At dusk on Thursday evenings the grass is dotted with dozens and dozens of young couples. "This is where young men and women come to spend time together," says a taxi driver in an old, battered yellow Toyota. "If they had done this 10 years ago the police would have come with sticks...
...island nation with few natural resources, Japan can't afford to be profligate. That means it has something to teach other nations. The country is one of the most energy-efficient industrial countries in the world, and some of Japan's leading companies, such as Toyota and Sharp, are known for technologies that foster greener lifestyles. A conservation mind-set is ingrained into Japanese people from birth, and is apparent in little ways throughout society. Ten years ago, when I first visited Kyoto, I was shocked that public restrooms had no soap, no dispenser full of paper towels - sometimes...