http://money.cnn.com/2005/05/16/Autos/prius_computer/index.htm?cnn=yes
Picture it, pull into your dealer to get patch 1.2 installed.
Picture it, pull into your dealer to get patch 1.2 installed.
I can get the page to pull up.PT said:http://money.cnn.com/2005/05/16/Autos/prius_computer/index.htm?cnn=yes
Picture it, pull into your dealer to get patch 1.2 installed.
NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - A software problem is causing some Toyota Prius gas-electric hybrid cars to stall or shut down while driving at highway speeds, according to a published report.
The Wall Street Journal reports that the problem involves Priuses from the 2004 model year and some early 2005 models.
The newspaper reports the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has logged 13 reports of the engine shutdowns, while Edmunds.com, a popular vehicle-information and shopping site, has had 13 individuals post complaints in a Prius forum. Some of the cars that shut down had to be towed to the shop before they could be restarted.
The newspaper quotes an official from Toyota as saying the stalling problem is due to a software glitch in its sophisticated computer system.
The car has both a gasoline engine and an electric motor, which is set to provide it with power during certain driving conditions, particularly in city driving. The gasoline engine is supposed to be shut down or run at a very low level when the car is driving slowly or idling but provide most of the car's power when it is cruising at highway speeds.
The report said no injuries or fatalities have been linked to the problem, but it did not say whether there had been accidents due to the problem.
A NHTSA spokesman said the agency is monitoring the complaints, but no formal investigation has been initiated.
Toyota spokesman Sam Butto told the newspaper the auto manufacturer identified a "programming error" in the computer systems of 23,900 Prius cars last year and sent owners a service notice advising them to bring the cars into dealers for an hour-long software upgrade.
He couldn't say how many Prius owners got the upgrade and whether the latest problems involve buyers who never got the upgrade or if an altogether different glitch is shutting the car down.
Professur said:Hybrid owners were asked today by the transport ministry to stay off the highways.
Toyota Will Build Hybrid Camry in Kentucky By BRUCE SCHREINER, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 15 minutes ago
GEORGETOWN, Ky. - Toyota Motor Corp. on Tuesday announced plans to begin producing a gasoline-electric hybrid version of its popular Camry model in late 2006 at its largest North American plant.
The Japanese automaker said it will have capacity to build about 48,000 of the environmentally friendly vehicles each year. It represents Toyota's first hybrid auto production in North America.
"Once the decision was reached to make a hybrid version of our best-selling vehicle — the Camry — the Georgetown plant was the natural choice," said Gary Convis, president of the plant.
Toyota said it plans a $10 million investment in the Georgetown plant, but said it expects capacity and employment to stay the same. The plant 12 miles north of Lexington employs about 7,000 workers and can build up to 500,000 vehicles per year.
Hybrid production will take place on the plant's existing lines, the automaker said. No new construction is planned. The $10 million will go mainly for equipment modifications and employee training.
Toyota said specific details about the Camry hybrid will be released later.
California and Canada also made a push to land Toyota's first North American hybrid production.
Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher, who is on a trade mission to Japan, participated in Toyota's announcement by satellite.He said Kentucky will now be making the most technologically advanced automobile in America.
"Kentucky is first in thoroughbreds and will now be first in hybrids," Fletcher said.
Toyota opened the Georgetown plant in 1987 and it sparked a boom in automotive suppliers in the state. Toyota President Fujio Cho ran the Georgetown plant for its first seven years.
The 7.5 million square foot plant produces the Camry, Avalon and Solara models. Toyota's North American headquarters is in Erlanger, which is in the northern Kentucky suburbs of Cincinnati.
Hybrid cars get better mileage than regular gasoline powered cars because the hybrid switches back and forth between an electric motor and a gasoline engine.
Kentucky lawmakers passed tax legislation earlier this year allowing a manufacturer of hybrid vehicles to recover training and some equipment costs.
Lisa Garrett, 34, of Georgetown, has been a Toyota employee for 16 years. She expects to be painting bumpers on the new hybrid Camrys. She said the announcement was a vote of confidence in plant workers and would help guarantee job security.
"It shows us the faith the Japanese in our workers in Kentucky. We've proved we can produce a quality vehicle," she said.
Besides the planned hybrid Camry, Toyota also produces the hybrid Prius and Lexus RX400h luxury hybrid sport-utility. Next month the Toyota Highlander hybrid midsize SUV goes on sale in the United States.
Toyota, however, said Tuesday it is investigating complaints from hybrid Prius owners about the cars stalling in the United States.
Jim Press, a Toyota Motor Sales executive who joined the news conference from Washington, D.C., said the company was checking into reports of about 13 vehicles with stalling problems.
"We don't have any concrete information," Press said.
The hybrid Prius has been a hugely popular model, with some people buying used cars and paying above the advertised prices for new ones. Automotive experts have said it is the first economy car with a higher resale value.
Luis G said:I always have reluctance about toyotas, I see them as built with poor quality.
Yet another reason to stay away from those.
K62 said:Toyota, built with poor quality? Compared to what?!?
Luis G said:Interiors, the way doors are assembled, it looks bad quality. The materials used doesn't feel like quality ones. If they can not even built decent interiors I wonder how they build the engine.
Hondas are built much better, the seats and just the way the car feels screams they have far better quality than Toyota.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7887155/Toyota recalls more than 750,000 SUVs, trucks
Problems with front suspensions may hinder steering
Is it leaking out or is it just disappearing? Does it have the 3.8 V6? If so, is it on the original head gasket? If you've gotten more than 80,000 miles out of a head gasket on a Ford 3.8 V6 then consider yourself exceptionally lucky.tommyj27 said:my 15 y/o sable started leaking a half pint of oil / mile last weekend, i wonder if that can be blamed on a software glitch?
PT said:http://money.cnn.com/2005/05/16/Autos/prius_computer/index.htm?cnn=yes
Picture it, pull into your dealer to get patch 1.2 installed.
Turn the ignition, grasp the antenna and honk the horn.Luis G said:Imagine driving through the highway and having your car telling you to pull over to download the latest patch and upgrade the firewall.
leaking out of some seal above the filter, all over the cat. we hauled it over to the shop and got it up on a lift, about a minute later the consensus was that it wasn't worth fixing anymore. went car shopping and ended up with an 01 galant. i've got pics here. the great thing is, i paid $225 for the sable 3 years ago, and the dealer gave me $200 for it on trade-in. that's some pretty good depreciation.Inkara1 said:Is it leaking out or is it just disappearing? Does it have the 3.8 V6? If so, is it on the original head gasket? If you've gotten more than 80,000 miles out of a head gasket on a Ford 3.8 V6 then consider yourself exceptionally lucky.