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Toyota announces GT86 CS-R3 rally car

Toyota Motorsport GmbH has developed cars for all manner of racing, up to and including Formula One and Le Mans. But it got its start back in 1979 in rally competition, winning four drivers' and three manufacturers' titles in the World Rally Championship. And now it's announced a new rally car.
Based on the Toyota GT86 (better known to us as the Scion FR-S), the CS-R3 rally car isn't built to contest the top tier of the WRC, but is being developed to conform to the lower R3 class. That means a six-speed sequential gearbox, limited slip differential and upgraded engine, brakes, aero... the works. It'll retain the road-going model's rear-drive setup, joining the front-drive Yaris R1A in TMG's portfolio of customer rally cars.
Further details are set to be revealed "in the coming months", but the GT86 CS-R3 will benefit from the experience TMG accrued in developing the GT86 CS-V3 (pictured above) for the Nürburgring-based VLN endurance racing series.

Lexus eschews production in China over quality concerns

One of the more popular trends in the auto industry is setting up production operations in China. Mainstream manufacturers like Ford, General Motors and Volkswagen have done it, and even luxury marques like Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz have or will soon have manufacturing ops in the People's Republic.
One company that isn't building cars in China, though, is Lexus. The Toyota-owned luxury brand still manufactures all of its vehicles in Japan (aside from a few RXs, which are built at a Toyota factory in Canada). According to Tokuo Fukuichi, Lexus just isn't ready to build cars there yet.
"The German Three have a brand image that they have cultivated over the past century in their long history, but Lexus is not in people's minds like that yet," Fukuichi-san told Reuters UK.

Toyota releases teaser for Kaley Cuoco Super Bowl ad

Toyota has released a 35-second teaser video for its upcoming Super Bowl spot staring Kaley Cuoco, the actress best known for her role as object-of-nerd-affection Penny on The Big Bang Theory. The real star of the ad, however, is its soundtrack, the 1995 hit "I Wish" by rapper Skee-Lo that will have your mind cashing nostalgia checks the moment it hits your ears.
We still don't know much about the content, plot or story of this Super Bowl commercial, though we can say that its object of promotion is likely the new RAV4 we see Ms. Cuoco driving in this teaser. The rest of the time she's walking the street in a purple getup granting wishes like Robin Williams on a Disney sound stage. And then the Easter Bunny and a chihuahua enter the picture and we get lost. Clint Eastwood under a bridge this is not.
But hey, Super Bowl ads cost millions and millions of dollars to produce and air, so we trust that Toyota spent its money wisely and will have us ROFLing on game day. Until then, scroll down and witness for yourself the debut of Kaley Cuoco as a Toyota spokeswoman.