PSA: Toyota Prius has been Japan's top-selling car for 18 straight months
 

<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/carbuying/" rel="tag">Car Buying</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/hybrids/" rel="tag">Hybrid</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/japan/" rel="tag">Japan</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/hatchbacks/" rel="tag">Hatchback</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/toyota/" rel="tag">Toyota</a></p><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/gallery/2010-toyota-prius-3/"><img vspace="4" hspace="0" border="1" alt="" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2010/03/232010toyotaprius.jpg" /></a>
<div style="text-align: center;"><em><strong><sma ll>2010 Toyota Prius - Click above for high-res image gallery</small></strong></em></div>
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The <a href="http://autoblog.com/model/prius">Toyota Prius</a> has been the top-selling vehicle in its home market of Japan since its redesign in 2009 for the 2010 model year, due partly to a series of incentives created by the Japanese government to promote fuel efficient vehicles - more specifically, hybrids. Those incentives ended in September, leading many to wonder if <a href="http://autoblog.com/make/toyota">Toyota's</a> hybrid hatchback could maintain its stranglehold atop the sales board.<br />
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Apparently, the answer is yes. According to data provided by the Japan Automobile Dealers Association and the Japan Mini Vehicles Association, Toyota managed to sell 21,400 Prius hybrids in November, more than enough to earn the fuel-sipper the top sales spot over the second-place <a href="http://autoblog.com/model/fit">Honda Fit</a> (16,677 units).<br />
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It seems that the end of hybrid vehicle subsidies did take something of a toll on Prius sales, however. Though still on top, sales of Toyota's hybrid hatchback were down by just over 20 percent when compared to the same period one year ago, when the Japanese government's incentives were in full effect. Still, Toyota's green jellybean has enjoyed 18 months at the top and still has quite a few carlengths on the Fit, and that's nothing to be sneezed at.<br />
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<div class="postgallery"><p><s trong>Gallery: <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/2010-toyota-prius-3">2010 Toyota Prius</a></strong></p><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/2010-toyota-prius-3/"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2009/01/01_2010_toyota_prius_thum bnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/2010-toyota-prius-3/"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2009/01/02_2010_toyota_prius_thum bnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/2010-toyota-prius-3/"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2009/01/03_2010_toyota_prius_thum bnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/2010-toyota-prius-3/"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2009/01/04_2010_toyota_prius_thum bnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/photos/2010-toyota-prius-3/"><img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2009/01/05_2010_toyota_prius_thum bnail.jpg" alt="" title="" /></a></div><br />
[Source: <a href="http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/business/news/20101206p2g00m0bu064000c. html">The Mainichi Daily News</a>]<p style="padding:5px;backgr ound:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/07/toyota-prius-has-been-japans-top-selling-car-for-18-straight-mo/">PSA: Toyota Prius has been Japan's top-selling car for 18 straight months</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.autoblog.com">Autoblo g</a> on Tue, 07 Dec 2010 17:31:00 EST. Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/07/toyota-prius-has-been-japans-top-selling-car-for-18-straight-mo/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/forward/19748544/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/07/toyota-prius-has-been-japans-top-selling-car-for-18-straight-mo/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>

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Video: Translogic in Japan, Part 2
 

<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/motorsports/" rel="tag">Motorsports</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/japan/" rel="tag">Japan</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/videos/" rel="tag">Videos</a></p><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/08/video-translogic-in-japan-part-2/#continued"><img vspace="4" hspace="0" border="1" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2010/12/trans-drift-630op.jpg" alt="" /></a>
<div style="text-align: center;"><strong><em><sma ll>Click above to view the video <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/08/video-translogic-in-japan-part-2/#continued">after the jump</a></small></em></strong></div>
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The last time we <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/01/video-translogic-goes-to-japan-checks-out-its-modding-culture/">checked in with the Translogic crew</a>, they took an in-depth look at Japan's modding culture, with an emphasis on the odd, exotic and ill-advised. This week, Bradley gets schooled in the art of drifting with professional sideways slider Shino Murai. It's a good novice primer on the sport in Japan and some of the in-car advice is both helpful and hilarious. Who knew the handbrake is like a woman? <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/08/video-translogic-in-japan-part-2/#continued">Hit the jump</a> to find out what Murai means...<br />
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[Source: <a href="http://translogic.aolautos.com"> Translogic</a>]<p><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/08/video-translogic-in-japan-part-2/" rel="bookmark">Continue reading <em>Video: Translogic in Japan, Part 2</em></a></p><p style="padding:5px;backgr ound:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/08/video-translogic-in-japan-part-2/">Video: Translogic in Japan, Part 2</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.autoblog.com">Autoblo g</a> on Wed, 08 Dec 2010 19:56:00 EST. Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/08/video-translogic-in-japan-part-2/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/forward/19752736/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/08/video-translogic-in-japan-part-2/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>

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Subaru teases JDM-only Impreza WRX STI tS with carbon fiber roof
 

<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/sedans/" rel="tag">Sedan</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/sports/" rel="tag">Performance</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/etc/" rel="tag">Etc.</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/japan/" rel="tag">Japan</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/subaru/" rel="tag">Subaru</a></p><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/07/subaru-teases-jdm-only-impreza-wrx-sti-ts-with-carbon-fiber-roof/"><img hspace="0" height="313" border="0" width="630" vspace="4" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2010/12/subaru-impreza-wrx-sti-ts-teaser.jpg" alt="Subaru Impreza WRX STI tS" /></a><br />
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Our Japanese may be a bit rusty, but our eyes work just fine. So it was hard to miss this teaser image for an upcoming version of the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/model/wrx+sti">Subaru Impreza WRX STI</a> tS sporting a carbon fiber roof. When we click to the English-language portion of the site the image and information disappears, so we don't know what else to make of this STI tS and its lighter chapeau.<br />
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For the non-Subaru aficionados reading along, tS stands for "Tuned by STI" and we last saw the crew at Subaru Tecnica International apply wrenches to the Legacy. The resulting <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/06/12/subaru-releases-sti-tuned-legacy-b4-2-5gt-ts-in-japan/">Legacy B4 2.5GT tS had us drooling</a> and we expect the WRX STI tS to have a similar affect on our salivary glands.<br />
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[Source: <a href="http://www.subaru-sti.co.jp/index.html#/menu" target="_blank">Subaru</a>]<p style="padding:5px;backgr ound:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/09/subaru-teases-jdm-only-impreza-wrx-sti-ts-with-carbon-fiber-roof/">Subaru teases JDM-only Impreza WRX STI tS with carbon fiber roof</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.autoblog.com">Autoblo g</a> on Thu, 09 Dec 2010 16:01:00 EST. Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href=http://www.subaru-sti.co.jp/index.html#/menu>Read</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/09/subaru-teases-jdm-only-impreza-wrx-sti-ts-with-carbon-fiber-roof/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/forward/19752830/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/09/subaru-teases-jdm-only-impreza-wrx-sti-ts-with-carbon-fiber-roof/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>

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Video: Translogic visits Japan's Dream Factory Blow
 

<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/aftermarket/" rel="tag">Aftermarket</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/etc/" rel="tag">Etc.</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/japan/" rel="tag">Japan</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/videos/" rel="tag">Videos</a></p><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/14/video-translogic-visits-japans-dream-factory-blow/#continued"><img hspace="0" border="1" vspace="4" alt="Translogic at Dream Factory Blow" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2010/12/translogic-630.jpg" /></a>
<div style="text-align: center;"><em><strong><sma ll>Translogic at Dream Factory Blow - Click above to watch video <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/14/video-translogic-visits-japans-dream-factory-blow/#continued">after the jump</a></small></strong></em></div>
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The Translogic crew is still bumming around Japan. For the show's third episode in the island nation, host Bradley Hasemeyer heads to Sagamihara to tour Dream Factory Blow.<br />
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No, it's not a cocaine supercenter. The customs shop specializes in laying unique fiber-reinforced polymer bodywork over the sheet metal of the lowly <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/kei-****>kei-car</a> - the 660cc-engined machines that make up the lowest rung of the automotive food chain. Dream Factory Blow specializes in tweaking the aesthetics of the pint-sized cars to create miniature interpretations of classic American iron like a 1972 <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/make/chevrolet">Chevrolet</a> C10 pickup truck or a 1985 Chevrolet van. <br />
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But Dream Factory Blow isn't just bolting on body panels. For that sweet little Chevy pickup, the fabricators started with a <a href="http://autoblog.com/make/suzuki">Suzuki</a> Lapin, hacked off half of the rear body work and crafted an entire pickup bed. It's too awesome for words. Of course, dismantling a substantial portion of a vehicle's body structure does have an impact on frame stiffness, and to that end, Dream Factory Blow has to have its vehicles tested by the Japanese government for safety. Hit the jump to check out the video <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/14/video-translogic-visits-japans-dream-factory-blow/#continued">after the jump</a>.<br />
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[Source: <a href="http://translogic.aolautos.com/2010/12/13/translogic-9-1-japan-part-3-dream-factory-blow/">Translogic</a>]<p><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/14/video-translogic-visits-japans-dream-factory-blow/" rel="bookmark">Continue reading <em>Video: Translogic visits Japan's Dream Factory Blow</em></a></p><p style="padding:5px;backgr ound:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/14/video-translogic-visits-japans-dream-factory-blow/">Video: Translogic visits Japan's Dream Factory Blow</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.autoblog.com">Autoblo g</a> on Tue, 14 Dec 2010 19:57:00 EST. Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/14/video-translogic-visits-japans-dream-factory-blow/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/forward/19759850/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/14/video-translogic-visits-japans-dream-factory-blow/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>

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لكزس تراقب تعبيرات السائقين
 

- نيسان وميتسوبيشي تتبادلان السيارات
 

المصدر: ContactCars

Report: Future Mitsubishi models may each get their own EV variant
 

<p>Filed under: <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/hybrids/" rel="tag">Hybrid</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/japan/" rel="tag">Japan</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/mitsubishi/" rel="tag">Mitsubishi</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/rumormill/" rel="tag">Rumormill</a>, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/electric/" rel="tag">Electric</a></p><a href="http://wot.motortrend.com/6711331/green/mitsubishi-may-engineer-all-future-models-for-ev-spin-offs/index.html?utm_source=Twi tter&utm_medium=Microblog &utm_campaign=Twitter%2BT raffic"><img hspace="0" vspace="4" border="1" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2010/12/lancer-evolution-630.jpg" alt="2008 Lancer Evolution" /></a><br />
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Word on the web is that <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/make/mitsubishi">Mitsubishi</a> is bracing for the electrification of the automobile in a big way. According to <em>Motor Trend</em>, the Japanese automaker is in the midst of developing all of its future products so that they easily support an EV drivetrain or an internal combustion get up. That line of thinking seems to mesh well with the rumors of the upcoming hybrid crossover from Mitsubishi. The lumbering beast will supposedly take plenty of cues from the <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/px-miev">PX-MiEV</a> that showed up at the 2009 <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/tokyo-motor-show/">Tokyo Auto Show</a>, with a 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine working in conjunction with a pair of electric motors. <br />
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Additionally, <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/category/tokyo-motor-show/"><em>Motor Trend</em></a> seems to think that the current <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/tag/montero">Montero</a> is a likely platform to adopt a battery pack. The SUV may have died off from the American market, but it's still alive and kicking in Asia and Europe, and a little help from an electric motor would go a long way toward inching the vehicle's fuel economy down to more manageable levels. <br />
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And what of our beloved <a href="http://www.autoblog.com/model/lancer evolution">Lancer Evolution</a>? From the sounds of things, even it might show up with electron-power in the near future, with the gasoline engine kicking at the rear tires and the front axles spun by a motor or two.<br />
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[Source: <a href="http://wot.motortrend.com/6711331/green/mitsubishi-may-engineer-all-future-models-for-ev-spin-offs/index.html?utm_source=Twi tter&utm_medium=Microblog &utm_campaign=Twitter%2BT raffic">Motor Trend</a>]<p style="padding:5px;backgr ound:#ddd;border:1px solid #ccc;clear:both;"><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/21/report-future-mitsubishi-models-may-each-get-their-own-ev-varia/">Report: Future Mitsubishi models may each get their own EV variant</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://www.autoblog.com">Autoblo g</a> on Tue, 21 Dec 2010 14:29:00 EST. Please see our <a href="http://www.weblogsinc.com/feed-terms/">terms for use of feeds</a>.</p><h6 style="clear: both; padding: 8px 0 0 0; height: 2px; font-size: 1px; border: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"></h6><a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/21/report-future-mitsubishi-models-may-each-get-their-own-ev-varia/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent link to this entry">Permalink</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/forward/19770688/" title="Send this entry to a friend via email">Email this</a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href="http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/21/report-future-mitsubishi-models-may-each-get-their-own-ev-varia/#comments" title="View reader comments on this entry">Comments</a>

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