Heart City Toyota Scion

Some automakers have what it takes to be successful- in all parts of the world. Recently, Japanese automaker Toyota announced it would build on its success and increase annual production capacity of six-speed automatic transmissions from 400-thousand to 520-thousands at its Buffalo, West Virginia plant. This investment comes with a price-tag of $45 million and will create about 80 new jobs at the manufacturing facility. The expansion will begin in November 2012 and should be complete by July 2013.

For the first time in many years, one automaker has dominated Consumer Reports' "Top Picks" list, taking half of the top ten vehicles chosen. This scene-stealing auto brand is Japanese automaker Toyota, and it's accomplished a feat not conquered since 2003 by having so many models chosen as leaders in the industry. Consumer Reports notes, "Toyota's ability to maintain its competitive lead among hybrids and SUVs is a big factor in its strong presence on this year's list."¹. The Toyota RAV4 and Toyota Highlander were big winners this year, but they were only two of the models chosen. Here's the full list of Toyota winners, chosen from a pool of 260 vehicle entries:

It certainly takes a truck tons of style, power, and comfort to win the PickupTrucks.com Midsize Shootout, which occurs annually on the website. This year, the 2012 Toyota Tacoma was selected as the winner, crushing six other beloved mid-size trucks.

Are you a gamer as well as a Toyota fan? Good news, if you play the new Gran Turismo 5 game, you'll be driving the fresh Toyota GT-86 before real-world drivers. The GT-86 was originally named FT-86 in concept form, but in production form, the lettering recently changed. Heart City Toyota, serving drivers in the South Bend, IN and Mishawaka, IN areas, can tell you that Toyota has signed a deals with Sony to allow the company to include the GT-86 in the new game, before it hits the market in the summer of 2012. Sony's free online network allows virtual drivers to add the F/GT-86 into their inventory.

Toyota has yet another new hybrid concept on the horizon- the NS4. Though the Toyota Prius family is slated to gain another hybrid member in spring with the Prius Plug-In hybrid, it seems the brand's hybrid offerings could further expand in 2012 with the NS4.

Looking for work? You might want to check out the new Toyota manufacturing plant in Blue Springs, MS. The plant began production on November 17, 2011 and plans to eventually produce 150,000 vehicles a year and employ 2,000 workers. The manufacturer currently employs 1,2000 people, and it's still hiring people for maintenance-related jobs. However, although more than 41,000 people from across the country applied for jobs at the plant, Toyota plans to take 90 percent of its workforce from MS. Workers will start at a competitive $15/hour and will benefit from health insurance, a retirement plan, and job stability in this unstable financial market.

Visitors to the 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show last month were in for quite a thrilling experience when they stopped by the 30,000-square-foot Toyota both. Visitors cruised down Camry Lane to scope out the new 2012 hybrid and gas vehicles and strolled down the Prius Highway to view the newest Prius models. These experiences were combined with interactive, high-tech experiences inside and outside of the convention center. Keith Dahl, National Manager of Engagement Marketing and Motorsports explains the move to a new kind of auto show experience, saying: "Auto shows are becoming much more experiential events for consumers and provide brands with a great opportunity to leverage social media and mobile technology to engage with visitors both on-site and beyond. Toyota's planned activations [were] designed to enhance the traditional auto show experience with exciting activities that consumers [could] both participate in and share via social platforms."¹