林寶堅尼跑車空中翻身 Lamborghini Murcielago
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藍寶堅尼汽車有限公司（Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A.）是一家坐落於義大利聖亞加塔•波隆尼（Sant'Agata Bolognese）的超級跑車製造公司。1963年，經由創業者費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼（Ferruccio Lamborghini）設立公司[1]。
早期，曾因公司營運不善，數度易手經營權。但是，唯一不變的傳統是皆視「法拉利汽車」（Ferrari S.p.A.）所推出的車輛，為主要競爭對象。1998年，成為「奧迪汽車」（Audi AG）旗下公司。目前，為「大眾集團」（Volkswagen Group）間接所持有的品牌名稱之一。
目錄
[隱藏]
* 1 概述
* 2 傳言
o 2.1 創廠原因
o 2.2 徽章由來
* 3 車型列表
o 3.1 市售車輛
o 3.2 概念車型
* 4 經營者／經營公司
* 5 品牌行銷
* 6 相關條目
* 7 備註
* 8 外部連結
[編輯] 概述
* 1963年，經由創業者費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼設立公司。1963年8月，完成位於「聖亞加塔•波隆尼」（Sant'Agata Bolognese）的製造工廠。同年10月26日，義大利「都靈車展」（Turin Motor Show）裏，展出首部概念車型Lamborghini 350GT Concept。
* 1964年，推出首部市售車輛Lamborghini 350GTV。
* 1971年8月，正逢南美州地區政局變化，首度出現資金周轉不靈的情況，使得費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼出脫手上51%股份。同年，推出Lamborghini Countach（義大利文Countach代表『驚奇』），呈現鍘刀車門造型，跨越時空的設計，已成為往後車輛相仿的造型之一。
* 1974年9月，遭逢國際石油危機影響下，再度出現資金周轉不靈的情況，迫使費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼全數出脫手上49%股份給予友人。從此，費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼離開所經營的公司，自汽車業界退休。
* 1978年4月，尋求「寶馬汽車」（Bayerische Motoren Werke AG）代工生產BMW M1的合作契約，但礙於對方不信任而破局。促使其宣佈破產，由義大利政府管理。
* 1987年，「克萊斯勒」（Chrysler Corporation）以2500萬美金，買下所有權。
* 1993年11月，「MegaTech」（Megatech Control Ltd.）向「克萊斯勒」以4100萬美金，買下製造工廠與技術部門。
* 1998年6月22日，「奧迪汽車」付1億美金，買下「MegaTech」（Megatech Control Ltd.）所佔的40%股份和「Mycom」所佔的60%股份，成為35年來第7位擁有者[2]。目前，為大眾汽車集團間接所持有的品牌名稱之一。
[編輯] 傳言
Lamborghini農業車輛
Lamborghini農業車輛
1961 Ferrari 250 GT California Spyder
1961 Ferrari 250 GT California Spyder
Lamborghini商標徽章
Lamborghini商標徽章
[編輯] 創廠原因
目前，流傳有數個版本關於費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼為什麼開設汽車製造公司的原因，多數版本都指向與恩佐•法拉利（Enzo Ferrari）有關聯。
然而，上述那些的說法，並非事實。歐洲的大眾媒體也許經常做把這當成真實新聞，這誤會也經日本的汽車相關媒體順著引入日本國內，並給予都市傳說化罷了。往後，更形成狂熱愛好者和反對狂熱愛好者之間的流言斐語。
日本的雜社曾經專訪過費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼的妻子，她則當下立即反對此類說法。依據她的談話指出：『費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼以自己使用車輛的結果，找到那品質的疑問是事實。但是，之後的部分，卻有所不同』。實際上，費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼將改善車輛的部分想法，提案寫成書信寄給對方，但始終得不到回應。既然如此，不如自己來挑戰做做看汽車行業，即為事實的真相。日文基維
* 部分證實：經由東尼諾•藍寶堅尼（Tonino Lamborghini）口述[1]。駕駛Ferrari 250 GT的費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼投訴車輛離合器出現問題，誤傷觀賞賽車的民眾。然而，恩佐•法拉利非但不太理採，還告訴費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼沒能力駕駛Ferrari 250 GT，只適合駕駛農業機械車輛。後來，費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼在自己公司倉庫裏，找到一個合適的備用配件安裝，解決Ferrari 250 GT問題。
* 未經證實：傳聞1963年夏季，恩佐•法拉利乘坐費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼所購買的Ferrari 250 GT時（另有一說，是在家中談話），靜靜聆聽費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼述說Ferrari 250 GT這部車輛如何的優秀。但是，當費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼提出Ferrari 250 GT車輛裏的變速箱缺點時，恩佐•法拉利臉色一沉說：『用不著製造農業機械車輛的人，告訴我如何製造跑車』！自此，雙方不歡而散。同時，費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼決定自行涉足跑車事業。堅信就算在車輛出售之後，也應該對顧客付出真誠的關心，基於這種關心的態度而持續售後服務，才是事業所以成功的不變法則。
* 考據事實：當時，義大利政府始終拒絕頒予直昇機執照給費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼。迫於無奈的情形之下，只好捨棄直昇機公司，往汽車事業發展。
[編輯] 徽章由來
目前，較為普遍的說法是，創業者費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼出生於1916年4月28日，當天正巧屬於金牛座，故以此為徽章。近來，另有「蠻牛」（Lamborghini徽章）抗衡「躍馬」（Ferrari徽章）的傳言產生。
[編輯] 車型列表
Lamborghini Countach LP500
Lamborghini Countach LP500
Lamborghini Diablo
Lamborghini Diablo
2004 Lamborghini Gallardo
2004 Lamborghini Gallardo
2005 Lamborghini Murciélago Roadster
2005 Lamborghini Murciélago Roadster
2006 Lamborghini Murciélago
2006 Lamborghini Murciélago
[編輯] 市售車輛
依車型生產年度及順序排列。車型列表如下：
車輛型號 製造年度 引擎型式 排氣量 極速
350GTV 1963 Lamborghini V12 3464 cc 280 km/h
350GT 1964－1968 Lamborghini V12 3464 cc 240 km/h
400GT 2+2 1966－1968 Lamborghini V12 3929 cc 250 km/h
Miura 1966－1973 Lamborghini V12 3929 cc 288 km/h
Espada 1968－1978 Lamborghini V12 3929 cc 245 km/h
Islero 1968－1970 Lamborghini V12 3929 cc 248 km/h
Jarama 1970－1978 Lamborghini V12 3929 cc 240 km/h
Urraco 1970－1979 Lamborghini V8 2463/2996/1994 cc 230 km/h
Countach 1974－1989 Lamborghini V12 3929/4754/5167 cc 295 km/h
Silhouette 1976－1977 Lamborghini V8 2996 cc 260 km/h
Jalpa 1982－1989 Lamborghini V8 3485 cc 240 km/h
LM002 1986－1992 Lamborghini V12 5167 cc 210 km/h
Diablo 1990－2001 Lamborghini V12 5707/5992 cc 330 km/h
Murciélago 2001－2006 Lamborghini V12 6192 cc 330 km/h
Murciélago R-GT 2001－至今 Lamborghini V12 N/A N/A
Gallardo 2003－至今 Lamborghini V10 4961 cc 309 km/h
Gallardo Spyder 2004－至今 Lamborghini V10 4961 cc 307 km/h
Murciélago Roadster 2005－2007 Lamborghini V12 6192 cc 330 km/h
Gallardo SE 2006－至今 Lamborghini V10 4961 cc 315 km/h
Murciélago LP640 2006－至今 Lamborghini V12 6496 cc 340 km/h
Murciélago LP640 Roadster 2006－至今 Lamborghini V12 6496 cc 330 km/h
[編輯] 概念車型
車型名稱 年度 引擎型式 排氣量 極速 備註
350 GTV Concept 1963 Lamborghini V12 3464 cc 280 km/h
Flying Star II Concept 1966 Lamborghini V12 ？ cc 225 km/h
Marzal Concept 1967 Lamborghini V12 ？ cc 225 km/h
Bravo Concept 1974 Lamborghini V8 ？ cc ？ km/h
Cheetah Concept 1977 ？ ？ cc ？ km/h
Athon 1980 Lamborghini V8 ？ cc ？ km/h
LM001 1981 Lamborghini V8 ？ cc ？ km/h
Marco Polo Concept 1982 ？ ？ cc ？ km/h
LMA002 1982 Lamborghini V12 ？ cc ？ km/h
Portofino Concept 1987 Lamborghini V8 3485 cc ？ km/h
Genesis Concept 1988 Lamborghini V12 ？cc ？ km/h
P140 Concept 1988 Lamborghini V10 3961 cc 299.3 km/h
Italdesign Cala Concept 1995 Lamborghini V10 3900 cc 290 km/h
Zagato Raptor 1996 Lamborghini V12 5700 cc 330 km/h
Murcielago Barchetta Concept 2002 Aluminum Alloy 6192 cc ？ km/h
Concept S 2005 Lamborghini V10 4961 cc ？ km/h
Miura concept 2006 ？ cc ？ [3]
[編輯] 經營者／經營公司
早期，曾因公司營運不善，數度易手經營權。相關列表如下﹕
年度 經營者／經營公司 股／年 性質 備註
1963年－1972年 費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼（Ferruccio Lamborghini） 100%／1963年－1972年
49%／1972年－1974年 實際經營
協助經營
1972年－1977年 喬治•亨利•羅塞帝（Georges-Henri Rossetti）
勒內•萊莫（René Leimer） 51%／1972年－1977年
49%／1974年－1977年 實際經營
股份持有
1977年－1984年 休伯特•哈內（Hubert Hahne）
雷蒙德•諾依瑪（Raymond Noima）
佐坦•雷帝（Zoltan Reti）
喬治•米龍（Giorgio Mirone）
阿萊桑德羅•阿特斯（Alessandro Artese） ？%／1977年—1978年
？%／1977年—1978年
100%／1977年－1978年
？%／1978年－1984年
？%／1978年－1984年 實際經營
股份持有
宣告破產
債權持有
債權持有
1984年－1987年 派屈克•米勒曼（Patrick Mimram） ？%／1980年—1984年 實際經營
1987年－1994年 克萊斯勒／李•艾科卡（Lee Iacocca） 100%／1987年—1994年 實際經營
1994年－1995年 Megatech Control Ltd. 100%／1994年－1995年 實際經營
1995年－1998年 V'Power Corporation
Mycom／湯米•蘇哈托（Tommy Suharto） 40%／1995年－1998年
60%／1995年－1998年 實際經營
股份持有
1998年－至今 奧迪汽車／大眾集團 100%／1998年－至今 實際經營
[編輯] 品牌行銷
近年來，「大眾集團」積極推廣「Lamborghini®」的品牌名稱，採取「異業結盟」的合作方式，提高品牌的附加價值。
合作公司 產品 名稱 年度 型號 備註
sparco 賽車鞋 Lamborghini® Racing Shoes ？ ？
？ 賽車錶 Lamborghini® Racing Chrono ？ 350GT
諾基亞 行動電話 Lamborghini® mobile phone 2006 8800 [4]
華碩 電腦 Lamborghini® Notebook（Laptop） 2006 VX1 [5]
電腦 Lamborghini® Notebook（Laptop） 2007 VX2 [6]
LaPavoni 咖啡機 Lamborghini® POD coffee machine 2007 TORINO [7]
[編輯] 相關條目
您可以在維基共享資源查找與此分類相關的多媒體資源：
Category:藍寶堅尼
* 費魯齊歐•藍寶堅尼（Ferruccio Lamborghini）
* 恩佐•法拉利（Enzo Ferrari）
* 法拉利汽車（Ferrari S.p.A.）
* 克萊斯勒（Chrysler Corporation）
* 大眾集團（Volkswagen Group）
* 大眾汽車（Volkswagen AG）
的士佬與林寶堅尼大激鬥 (賽車)
Lamborghini Countach VS Dodge Challenger - video powered by Metacafe
計程車，中國大部份地方稱作出租車，臺灣稱作計程車，香港和澳門稱為的士，新加坡及馬來西亞一帶則稱德士，日本則稱為タクシー；是按錶收費的交通工具，收費通常較其他交通工具高。
計程車載客量不多，一般只有4至5個座位。搭乘計程車除了揚手招呼外，還可利用電話預約。
目錄
[隱藏]
* 1 名稱由來
* 2 各地計程車
o 2.1 香港
o 2.2 澳門
o 2.3 新加坡
o 2.4 台灣
+ 2.4.1 計程收費
o 2.5 北京
o 2.6 上海
o 2.7 廣州
o 2.8 南韓
[編輯] 名稱由來
計程車英文「TAXI」為「taximeter」之略稱，即為「計程錶」或「里程計」。
的士、德士和タクシー，也是來自英文「TAXI」的譯音。
[編輯] 各地計程車
[編輯] 香港
香港市區的士
香港市區計程車
香港新界的士。
香港新界計程車。
主條目：香港計程車
香港的名為「的士」（TAXI的廣東話音譯）。香港計程車分3種，分別是：市區的士(紅色車身)、新界的士(綠色車身)及大嶼山的士(藍色車身)，3種的士中只有市區的士能在全港各處行走(除大嶼山南部及愉景灣)，新界的士只能在新界部分地區內行走(此外，新界的士亦可以指定路線前往荃灣地鐵站、沙田威爾斯親王醫院、觀塘順利邨、沙田馬場、坑口地鐵站、香港國際機場、青衣地鐵站及香港迪士尼樂園度假區)，大嶼山的士則只能在大嶼山南、東湧、機場及迪士尼行走。
香港的的士以首2公里為基本車費，以市區的士為例，其起錶價為15元港幣，新界的士為12.5元，大嶼山的士則為12元。然後每200米或每分鐘等候時間，按的士種類加收1.2至1.4元港幣。
[編輯] 澳門
澳門黃的
澳門黃的
澳門的士分為黑色的，以行走裏數收費；和黃色的電召計程車，收費跟黑色計程車一樣。收費為首1500米為11元澳門幣，其後每180米1元澳門幣。前往氹仔及路環另收附加費。黑色的士分為4座位、5座位和6座位。
[編輯] 新加坡
新加坡名為「德士」，新加坡共有6家德士公司，分別是：康福Comfort 、城市City Cab、SMRT、Trans-Cab、捷達Premier Taxis、Smart Cab。其中SMRT更有提供高級德士服務，分別是賓士E-Class和倫敦德士，不過收費比起一般德士高出許多。新加坡的一般德士和香港的計程車車款相同為豐田皇冠。新加坡德士計費方式為(皆以坡幣計算)，首1公里$2.4元，之後每0.25公里(第1.01-10.0公里)/0.2公里(第10.01公里或以後)收$0.1元；每30秒等候也收$0.1元；若用電話叫車要加$3.2元(馬上到)或$5.2元(預約時間)。新加坡德士車費超過$15元可以刷卡 (但要收3%作為附加費)。新加坡德士在午夜乘車車資為錶上的金額之1.5倍，另外假日和前夕車費也加$1元；若自樟宜機場出發也要加$3到$5元不等的金額。新加坡對私家車數量管制嚴格，除了擁車條件高之外，若是在尖峰時刻進入市區(CBD)都要收費，德士也不例外。新加坡招車最好站在Taxi Stand，除非是午夜才有可能隨便招車。
* 註：$1.0坡幣=$5.0港幣
[編輯] 台灣
臺北市計程車
臺北市計程車
中華民國禁止標誌禁7：禁止空計程車進入
中華民國禁止標誌禁7：禁止空計程車進入
臺灣通常以「計程車」稱之。臺灣計程車之車身一律漆為黃色，並懸掛白底紅字車牌，車頂置「TAXI」或「出租汽車」燈箱。此外，計程車在台灣亦被民眾稱為小黃。
台灣計程車大部份採「靠行制度」，計程車司機需考到職業小型車的駕駛執照後，再考取計程車執業登記證，透過車行仲介取得車輛才可執業。在一定條件且政府有開放時，才可申請成為「個人車行」。因為採靠行制度，計程車司機常被車行剝削，導致種種不公平現象產生，甚至發生過不同車行或車隊間的計程車司機鬥毆的事件。政府在數年前，開放了成立計程車合作社，以改善靠行制度的弊端。另外在臺北都會區，也盛行電話叫車，以車隊的模式經營叫車中心，由無線電或衛星定位方式派遣計程車，既便利乘客，也讓計程車司機的收入增加。
台灣計程車在路邊相當容易攔截，由於空車率頗高，許多計程車司機會主動靠邊詢問是否要坐車。台灣的消費者有挑好車的習慣，外觀內裝乾淨整潔會相較受到消費者個青睞。
至於臺北陽明山區也有計程車司機在山下詢問正在等公車的民眾是否願意多人包一臺車，以每人固定收費方式上山。
目前大臺北地區有300輛台灣大車隊計程車正在試辦使用悠遊卡付費功能，在貼有悠遊卡標誌的計程車上，可使用悠遊卡進行交易。
[編輯] 計程收費
臺灣絕大多數計程車以里程數計費，為臺北為例，首1.5公里收新台幣70元(但臺中市、高雄市為85元)，此外，每0.3公里增收新臺幣5元；至於停車時間(時速5公里以下)每2分鐘5元。
晚上11時至翌晨6時期間採夜間加成收費，首1.25公里收70元，隨後每0.25公里收5元，停車時間則是縮短為每1分40秒收5元。春節期間約6至8天全天以夜間模式收費，並於夜間照錶再加收20元(臺北市區)。
臺灣其他各城市收價方式大致相同，亦多較臺北市低廉。但一般來說，自機場或車站出發的計程車，會增收一筆額外費用，約新臺幣10元(行李箱服務費)。另外，由於從市區前往機場的計程車，若不具排班資格，回程不得載客，以致於可能加收跳錶50%的車資。少數地區則以喊價決定價格，例如台東縣、基隆市。
[編輯] 北京
北京市稱作出租車，﹝士收費按車型計算。在北京，的士稱作「的」(讀若『滴』)，招呼的士叫做「打的」，的士司機稱為「的哥」或「的姐」，計費收據叫「的票」。有私家車也在馬路上非法攬客，稱為「黑的」。 2005年北京的士開始了新一輪的更新換代，淘汰了使用了十多年的紅色天津夏利。車價基本統一為1.6元/公里，起價3公里10元。車身統一色調，為3條2色，車身主要為金色，車頂與包圍顏色一致，一般為藍色、綠色或紫色。車頂燈箱與車門上印有公司縮寫。規模較大的出租汽車公司有：銀建、北汽、首汽等。自從韓國現代汽車在北京設廠以後，的士主要採用現代伊蘭特和索納塔汽車，另外也有捷達、富康等車型。
[編輯] 上海
跟北京一樣稱作出租車，同樣地，搭乘的士，在上海叫做「打的」。(注：「打的」這種說法來自北京，在上海話中的士被稱為"差頭")
上海的士是城市公共運輸的重要組成部分。目前全市有的士企業261家，從業人員近10萬人，出租汽車近43000輛，旅遊包車和租賃車等8000多輛。全行業日均客運量近300萬人次，約占上海客運總量的24％。
上海的的士服務由多間計程車公司營辦，一般以四家較大公司的車輛為主：大眾 強生 巴士和友誼。各公司都提供電話預定車輛上門服務，以裏數為車費計算單位。近來上海出現7座，客貨兩用等特種計程車，方便多人出行或大量購物。小型的士起租價為11元，中型的士起租價為16元。起租里程都是3公里，超起租里程單價每公里2.1元。客貨等特種計程車按照車型不等而價格不一。
[編輯] 廣州
主條目：廣州計程車
廣州市民稱作計程車、乘坐的士為「打的」、的士司機稱為「的哥」。
[編輯] 南韓
南韓的的士分為模範的士及一般的士，此外亦有大型的士。一般的士為銀色車身，收費較廉宜，首2公里起錶價為1900韓圓，此後每168米或每41秒加收100韓圓，夜間另收附加費。模範的士為黑色車身，收費較昂貴，首3公里起錶價為4500韓圓，此後每144米或每35秒加收200韓圓，夜間不收附加費。
韓國的一般的士實施共乘制度，司機會按前往目的地的路線決定是否等候另一個客人。
模範的士司機懂基本英語，不懂韓語旅客若不介意金錢可選乘模範的士。
TOYOTA SUPRA 型車
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Toyota Motor Corporation (トヨタ自動車株式会社, Toyota Jidōsha Kabushiki-gaisha?), or Toyota, is a Japanese multinational corporation that whole largely produces automobiles under number of brands in the worldwide market.
It is the world's largest automaker by revenue (USD $212.39 billion[7]), production, sales (first half 2007: 4.72 million[8]) and profit ($15.09 billion[9]) in front of General Motors. Toyota owns and operates Toyota, Lexus, Scion, has a majority shareholding in Daihatsu Motors (a minicar manufacturer), Hino Motors (a manufacturer of commercial trucks) and has minority shareholdings in Fuji Heavy Industries (a manufacturer of Subaru brand cars), Isuzu Motors (the commercial truck manufacturer) and in Yamaha Motors the engine, motor cycle and marine craft manufacturer. The company includes 522 subsidiaries.[1]
The company was founded in 1937 by Kiichiro Toyoda as a spinoff from his father's company Toyota Industries to create automobiles. It created, first as a department of Toyota Industries, its first product Type A engine in 1934 and its first passenger car (the Toyota AA) in 1936. It is headquartered in Toyota, Aichi and Bunkyo Tokyo, Japan. It also provides financial services through its division Toyota Financial Services and also creates robots besides automobiles.
Toyota together with its half owned subsidiary Daihatsu, is the world's largest seller of cars for the first half of 2007 selling 4.72 million vehicles, ending GM's 76 year reign as the world's best selling marque. [10] Toyota plans to produce 9.4 million vehicles in 2007.[11]
Contents
[hide]
* 1 Founding and earlier history
* 2 Later history and management
* 3 Toyota at present day
o 3.1 Worldwide presence
+ 3.1.1 Toyota Motor North America, Inc.
+ 3.1.2 North American employees and investments
* 4 Manufacturing facilities
o 4.1 Joint venture, licensed, and contract factories
* 5 Products and brands
o 5.1 Concept vehicles
* 6 Hybrid and plug-in hybrid technologies
* 7 Toyota in motorsport
o 7.1 Rallying
o 7.2 Champ Car
o 7.3 Le Mans
o 7.4 Indy Racing League
o 7.5 NASCAR
o 7.6 Nextel
o 7.7 Busch
o 7.8 Trucks
o 7.9 Formula One (F1)
* 8 Toyota economy
o 8.1 Toyota core segment in the market
o 8.2 TRD
o 8.3 Shareholders
o 8.4 Holdings
o 8.5 Accounting Ratios
* 9 The Toyota Production System
* 10 Toyota philosophy
* 11 Non-automotive activities
o 11.1 Philanthropy
o 11.2 Higher education
o 11.3 Robotics
o 11.4 Finance
o 11.5 Agricultural biotechnology
* 12 See also
* 13 Notes
* 14 External links
[edit] Founding and earlier history
Founder Kiichiro Toyoda
Founder Kiichiro Toyoda
The Toyota Motor Corporation was founded or established on 28 August 1937[12] when Toyoda Automatic Loom created a new division devoted to the production of automobiles under the direction of the founder's son, Kiichiro Toyoda. Soon thereafter, the division produced its first Type A Engine in 1934, which was used in the first Model A1 passenger car in May 1935 and the G1 truck in August 1935. Production of the Model AA passenger car started in 1936. Early vehicles bear a striking resemblance to the Dodge Power Wagon and Chevrolet, with some parts actually interchanging with their American originals.[13] The company was founded in 1933 by Kiichiro Toyoda as an offshoot of Toyoda Automatic Loom Company, under the encouragement of the Japanese government, which needed domestic vehicle production partly due to the worldwide money shortage and partly due to the war with China.[13]
Toyoda automatic loom (Type G)
Toyoda automatic loom (Type G)
Production line at Koromo plant
Production line at Koromo plant
Although the Toyota Group is best known today for its cars, it is still in the textile business and still makes automatic looms, which are now fully computerized, and electric sewing machines which are available worldwide.
Toyota Motor Co. was established as an independent and separate company in 1937. Although the founding family name is Toyoda (豊田), the company name was changed in order to signify the separation of the founders' work life from home life, to simplify the pronunciation, and to give the company a happy beginning. Toyota (トヨタ) is considered luckier than Toyoda (豊田) in Japan, where eight is regarded as a lucky number, and eight is the number of strokes it takes to write Toyota in katakana. In Chinese, the company and its vehicles are still referred to by the equivalent characters (Traditional Chinese: 豐田; Simplified Chinese: 丰田; Pinyin: fēng tián), with Chinese reading.
Replica of the Toyota Model AA, the first production model of Toyota in 1936
Replica of the Toyota Model AA, the first production model of Toyota in 1936
Toyopet Crown
Toyopet Crown
During the Pacific War (World War II) the company was dedicated to truck production for the Imperial Japanese Army. Because of severe shortages in Japan, military trucks were kept as simple as possible. For example, the trucks had only one headlight on the center of the hood. The war ended shortly before a scheduled Allied bombing run on the Toyota factories in Aichi.
After the war, commercial passenger car production started in 1947 with the model SA. The quality and production principles on which Toyota is based originated in an education program from the United States Army in the postwar era.[14] In 1950 a separate sales company, Toyota Motor Sales Co., was established (which lasted until July 1982). In April 1956 the Toyopet dealer chain was established. The following year, the Toyota Crown became the first Japanese car to be exported to the United States and Toyota's American and Brazilian divisions, Toyota Motor Sales Inc. and Toyota do Brazil S.A., were also established. Toyota began to expand in the 1960s with a new research and development facility, a presence in Thailand was established, the 10 millionth model was produced, a Deming Prize and partnerships with Hino Motors and Daihatsu were also established. The first Toyota built outside Japan was in April 1963, at Port Melbourne in Australia.[15] By the end of the decade, Toyota had established a worldwide presence, as the company had exported its one-millionth unit.
[edit] Later history and management
The company was awarded its first Japanese Quality Control Award at the start 1970s and began participating in a wide variety of Motorsports. Due to the 1973 oil crisis consumers in the lucrative U.S. market began turning to small cars with better fuel economy. American car manufacturers had considered small economy cars to be an "entry level" product, and their small vehicles were not made to a high level of quality in order to keep the price low. Japanese customers, however, had a long-standing tradition of demanding small fuel-efficient cars that were manufactured to a high level of quality. Because of this, companies like Toyota, Honda, and Nissan established a strong and growing presence in North America in the 1970s.
Part of Toyota executive team: Fujio Cho (center), Katsuhiro Nakagawa (left), Katsuaki Watanabe (right)
Part of Toyota executive team: Fujio Cho (center), Katsuhiro Nakagawa (left), Katsuaki Watanabe (right)
Katsuaki Watanabe is President and CEO of Toyota
Katsuaki Watanabe is President and CEO of Toyota
In 1982, the Toyota Motor Company and Toyota Motor Sales merged into one company, the Toyota Motor Corporation. Two years later, Toyota joined NUMMI, the New United Motor Manufacturing, Inc. Toyota then started to establish new brands at the end of the 1980s, with the launch of their luxury division Lexus in 1989.
In the 1990s Toyota began to branch out from producing mostly compact cars by adding many larger and more luxurious vehicles to its lineup, including a full sized pickup, the T100 (and later the Toyota Tundra), several lines of SUVs, a sport version of the Camry, known as the Camry Solara, and the Scion brand, a group of several affordable, yet sporty, automobiles targeted specifically to young adults. Toyota also began production of the world's best selling hybrid car, the Toyota Prius, in 1997.
With a major presence with Europe, due to the success of Toyota Team Europe, the corporation decided to set up TMME, Toyota Motor Europe Marketing & Engineering, to help market vehicles in the continent. Two years later, Toyota set up a base in the United Kingdom, TMUK, as the company's cars had become very popular among British drivers. Bases in Indiana, Virginia and Tianjin were also set up. In 1999, the company decided to list itself on the New York and London Stock Exchange.
With over 30 million sold, the Toyota Corolla is the best selling car in the world
With over 30 million sold, the Toyota Corolla is the best selling car in the world
In 2001, Toyota's Toyo Trust and Banking merged to form the UFJ, United Financials of Japan, which was accused of corruption by the Japan's government for making bad loans to alleged Yakuza crime syndicates with executives accused of blocking Financial Service Agency inspections.[16] The UFJ was listed among Fortune Magazine's largest money-losing corporations in the world, with Toyota's chairman serving as a director.[17] At the time, the UFJ was one of the largest shareholders of Toyota. As a result of Japan's banking crisis, the UFJ was merged again to become Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group.
In 2002, Toyota managed to enter a Formula One works team and establish joint ventures with French motoring companies Citroën and Peugeot, a year after Toyota started producing cars in France.
On December 7, 2004, a U.S. press release was issued stating that Toyota would be offering Sirius Satellite Radios. However, as late as Jan. 27, 2007, Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite radio kits were not available for Toyota factory radios.[citation needed] While the press release enumerated nine models, only limited availability existed at the dealer level in the U.S. Major Lexus dealerships have been offering satellite radio kits for Lexus vehicles since 2005, in addition to factory-equipped satellite radio models.
In 2007, Toyota released an update of its full size truck, the Toyota Tundra, produced in two American factories, one in Texas and one in Indiana, and "Motor Trend" named the 2007 Toyota Camry "Car of the Year" for 2007. It also began the construction of a new factory to build the Toyota Highlander in Blue Springs, Mississippi.
[edit] Toyota at present day
Toyota Pavilion at the Expo in Aichi
Toyota Pavilion at the Expo in Aichi
Toyota has grown to a large multinational corporation from where it started and expanded to different worldwide markets and countries by becoming the largest seller of cars in the beginning of 2007, the most profitable automaker ($11 billion in 2006) along with increasing sales in, among other countries, the United States. The world headquarters of Toyota are located in its home country in Toyota, Aichi, Japan. Its subsidiary, Toyota Financial Services sells financing and participates in other lines of business. Toyota brands include Scion and Lexus and the corporation is part of the Toyota Group. Toyota also owns majority stakes in Daihatsu and Hino, and 8.7% of Fuji Heavy Industries, which manufactures Subaru vehicles. They also acquired 5.9% of Isuzu Motors Ltd. on November 7, 2006 and will be introducing Isuzu diesel technology into their products.
Toyota has introduced new technologies including the first mass-produced hybrid gas-electric vehicle, of which it says it has sold 1 million globally (2007-06-07) [18], Advanced Parking Guidance System (automatic parking), a four-speed electronically controlled automatic with buttons for power and economy shifting, and an eight-speed automatic transmission. Toyota, and Toyota-produced Lexus and Scion automobiles, consistently rank at the top in certain quality and reliability surveys, primarily J.D. Power and Consumer Reports.[19]
In 2005, Toyota, combined with its half-owned subsidiary Daihatsu Motor Company, produced 8.54 million vehicles, about 500,000 fewer than the number produced by GM that year. Toyota has a large market share in the United States, but a small market share in Europe. Its also sells vehicles in Africa and is a market leader in Australia. Due to its Daihatsu subsidiary it has significant market shares in several fast-growing Southeast Asian countries.[20]
In the Fortune Global 500, Toyota Motor is the 8th largest company in the world. Since the recession of 2001, it has gained market share in the United States. Toyota's market share struggles in Europe where its Lexus brand has three tenths of one percent market share, compared to nearly two percent market share as the U.S. luxury segment leader.
In the first three months of 2007, Toyota together with its half-owned subsidiary Daihatsu reported number one sales of 2.348 million units. Toyota's brand sales had risen 9.2% largely on demand for Corolla and Camry sedans. The difference in performance was largely attributed to surging demand for fuel-efficient vehicles. In November 2006, Toyota Motor Manufacturing Texas added a facility in San Antonio. [21] Toyota has experienced quality problems and was reprimanded by the government in Japan for its recall practices.[22] Toyota currently maintains over 16% of the US market share. [23]
[edit] Worldwide presence
The headquarters of Toyota in Toyota City, Japan
The headquarters of Toyota in Toyota City, Japan
Toyota has factories all over the world, manufacturing or assembling vehicles for local markets, including the Corolla. Toyota has manufacturing or assembly plants in Japan, Australia, Canada, Indonesia, Poland, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States, France, Brazil, and more recently Pakistan, India, Argentina, Czech Republic, Mexico, Malaysia, Thailand, China, Vietnam, Venezuela, and the Philippines.
Toyota invests a great amount of research into cleaner-burning vehicles such as the Toyota Prius, based on technology such as the Hybrid Synergy Drive. In 2002, Toyota successfully road-tested a new version of the RAV4 which ran on a Hydrogen fuel cell. Scientific American called the company its Business Leader of the Year in 2003 for commercializing an affordable hybrid car.
[edit] Toyota Motor North America, Inc.
Main articles: Toyota Motor North America and Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America
Toyota North America is headquarted in New York City, New York and operates at a holding company level in North America. It's manufacturing headquarters is located in Erlanger, Kentucky, and is known as Toyota Motor Manufacturing North America, or TMMNA. Toyota has large presence in the United States with five major assembly plants in Huntsville, Alabama; Georgetown, Kentucky; Princeton, Indiana; San Antonio, Texas; Buffalo, West Virginia; and the new one being built in Blue Springs, Mississippi. Toyota also has a joint-venture operation with General Motors at New United Motor Manufacturing Inc. (NUMMI), in Fremont, CA, which began in 1984, and with Subaru at Subaru of Indiana Automotive, Inc. (SIA), in Lafayette, IN, which started in 2006. Production on a new manufacturing plant in Tupelo, Mississippi is schedule for completion in 2010; it will be producing the Toyota Highlander. North America is a major automobile market for Toyota. In these assembly plants, the Toyota Camry and the 2007 Toyota Tundra are manufactured, among others. It uses a number of catchphrases and/or slogans in its American TV commercials such as It's time to move forward, Smart way to keep moving forward, or Moving forward. Toyota and its Lexus brand vehicles consistently rank well in terms of performance and quality in North American automobile magazines, awards and tests. It also started producing larger trucks such as the new Toyota Tundra to go after the large truck market in the United States. It also pushed hybrid vehicles in the US such as the Toyota Prius, which is the most sold hybrid vehicle in the country.
[edit] North American employees and investments
Toyota directly employs around 38,340 people in North America. It has made around $16.8 billion in direct investments in North America. It has in total produced 14.8 million vehicles, 2.5 million vehicles sales (2005), 39.2 million total vehicles sales, and purchased $26.1 billion worth of "parts, materials and components" as of December 2005 in North America. It has 1,745 North American dealers and has given around $301 million as philanthropy to the United States between 1991 and 2005. [24]
[edit] Manufacturing facilities
Australia
* Altona, Victoria - Camry and Aurion (formerly Avalon). 109,222 vehicles and 85,769 engines in 2005.
Canada
* Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada, Cambridge, Ontario - 1.8L (1ZZ-FE) engines, Corolla, Matrix, Lexus RX and from 2008 RAV4.[25]
France
* Toyota Motor Manufacturing France, Onnaing-Valenciennes - Yaris
Indonesia
* PT Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indonesia, Cikampek, West Java - Innova, Avanza, and Fortuner
Mexico
* Toyota Motor Manufacturing de Baja California, Baja California - Tacoma
Thailand
* Toyota Gateway Plant, Chachoengsao - Toyota Soluna
Turkey
* Toyota Motor Manufacturing Turkey Inc., Sakarya - Toyota Corolla-Verso,Auris,
United Kingdom
* Toyota Manufacturing UK, Burnaston, Derbyshire and Deeside, North Wales - Auris, Avensis and Corolla
United States
* Toyota Motor Manufacturing Alabama, Huntsville, Alabama – V6 and V8 Engines.
* Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky, Georgetown, Kentucky – Camry, Avalon and Solara, as well as the AZ and GR engines.
* Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indiana, Princeton, Indiana – Tundra, Sequoia and Sienna. 364,983 vehicles produced in 2005. (127,431 Tundra, 44,852 Sequoia and 192,700 Sienna)
* Toyota Motor Manufacturing Texas, San Antonio, Texas – Tundra. Annual capacity of 200,000 pickup trucks.
* Toyota Motor Manufacturing West Virginia, Buffalo, West Virginia – ZZ, MZ, and GR engines; automatic transaxles
* Toyota Motor Manufacturing Mississippi, Tupelo, Mississippi - Toyota Highlander (est. 150,000/year) This facility is being built. The facility or company is named "Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Mississippi, Inc."[26]
[edit] Joint venture, licensed, and contract factories
Czech Republic
* Toyota Peugeot Citroën Automobile Czech (joint venture with PSA Peugeot Citroën), Kolín, Czech Republic - Aygo
Japan
* Toyota Industries, Japan (contract facility) - Vitz/Yaris and RAV4
Pakistan
* Indus Motors Company ltd. (IMC) is a joint venture between the House of Habib , Toyota Motor Corporation Japan (TMC) , and Toyota Tsusho Corporation Japan (TTC) for assembling, progressive manufacturing and marketing of Toyota vehicles in Pakistan since July 01, 1990. IMC's production facilities are located at Port Qasim Industrial Zone near Karachi in an area measuring over 105 acres.
United States
* NUMMI (joint venture with GM), Fremont, California - Corolla and Tacoma
* Subaru of Indiana Automotive, Inc. (contract facility, starting in Spring 2007), Lafayette, Indiana - Camry
India
* Toyota Kirloskar Industries, Bangalore
[edit] Products and brands
Main article: List of Toyota vehicles
(Note: Models and definitions do vary between markets. For specifics, see individual models.)
IMV Vehicle Lineup (mainly for S.E. Asia)
The first Toyota brand was the eponymous Toyota, which remains the best selling of Toyota's brands. Sales of Toyota branded vehicles have given Toyota Motor Corporation a 45% domestic market share in Japan, higher than any other manufacturer.[27] In North America, Toyota has achieved success with a full lineup of cars, trucks, SUVs, and other vehicles. In particular, the Toyota Camry has been America's best-selling car for the past five years, and is assembled in Kentucky; the Toyota Corolla has been the second best-selling car for 2006, and is assembled in Cambridge, Ontario Canada. These vehicles have helped drive sales of the Toyota brand in the United States. Total U.S. sales reached 2,220,090 units in 2006, making the brand third overall in U.S. sales for the first time in history.[28]
* 4Runner (mid-size SUV)
* Allion (lower mid-size sedan)
* Alphard (full-size MPV)
* Aurion (full-size sedan)
* Auris (compact car)
* Avalon (full-size sedan)
* Avensis (mid-size sedan and wagon)
* Aygo (city car)
* Caldina (mid-size wagon)
* Camry (upper mid-size sedan)
* Celica (Sports)
* Century (full-size upper luxury sedan)
* Coaster (mini bus)
* Corolla/Altis (compact car)
* Crown (full-size luxury sedan)
* Dyna (commercial light truck)
* Estima/Tarago/Previa (minivan)
* FJ Cruiser (compact 4x4)
* Hiace (commuter and commercial van)
* Highlander (mid-size SUV)
* Hilux/Tacoma (mid-size pickup)
* Ipsum (mid-size MPV)
* Isis (Large MPV)
* Land Cruiser (full-size 4x4)
* MR2 (Mid-engined Sports Roadster)
* Mark X (mid-size sporty sedan)
* Matrix (compact crossover wagon)
* Prius (hatchback - hybrid flagship)
* Probox (small wagon)
* Progres (mid-size luxury sedan)
* RAV4 (compact SUV)
* Sequoia (full-size SUV)
* Sienna (minivan, N. America)
* Sienta (compact MPV)
* Solara (Camry-based coupe, N. America)
* Supra (Sports)
* Soluna/Vios (subcompact car, S.E. Asia)
* Tundra (full-size pickup, N. America)
* WISH (compact MPV)
* Terien (mid-size pickup)
* Yaris (subcompact car)
* Fortuner (mid-size SUV)
* Hilux (mid-size pickup)
* Innova (minivan)
* Avanza (mini MPV)
The Lexus emblem, symbol of Toyota’s luxury division. Scion logo
Main article: Lexus
Lexus is Toyota's brand name for its luxury vehicle division. In 1989, Lexus was launched in the U.S., the culmination of a clandestine seven year initiative to build world-class luxury vehicles. Initially introduced with two vehicles, the LS flagship and the ES sedan, Lexus' full lineup now includes models ranging from the convertible SC to luxury SUVs such as the bestselling RX series. Lexus also produces hybrid vehicles featuring Lexus Hybrid Drive. Lexus is now sold in over forty countries worldwide; the division launched in Europe and Oceania in 1990, and became the first Japanese luxury marque to launch in Japan in 2005. Today, Lexus is the best-selling luxury marque in the U.S., with over 21% luxury market and 1.9% total market share. [29] [30] Lexus has 0.3% total market share in Europe, with recent high growth rates,[31] and is a sales leader in several Asian markets. Globally, Lexus is the fourth largest luxury marque by volume.[32]
Since its debut, Lexus has developed a reputation for reliability and quality customer service. Consumer ratings firm J.D. Power and Associates has named Lexus the most reliable automotive brand for twelve consecutive years.[33] Consumer Reports in 2006 also named Lexus the most reliable brand in its survey of over one million vehicles,[34] and Lexus customers frequently give their dealerships high ratings for customer service. Although Lexus' financial results are not publicly reported, analysts suggest that the Lexus Division is the most profitable business unit of the Toyota Motor Corporation.[35] In 2005, Lexus was organizationally separated from Toyota, gaining its own board of directors and dedicated design, engineering, and manufacturing centers.[36]
* IS (compact luxury sedan)
* ES (mid-size luxury sedan)
* GS (mid-size luxury sedan)
* LS (full-size luxury sedan)
* SC (personal luxury coupé convertible)
* GX (mid-size luxury SUV)
* LX (full-size luxury SUV)
* RX (mid-size luxury crossover)
Main article: Scion (car)
Scion is a United States, Guam, and Puerto Rico-only division of Toyota founded in 2003. In 2003, Toyota brought two of its popular cars from Japan (including the bB) to America, and created a new badge, called Scion, meaning a descendant or heir. The xA (known in Japan as the Toyota ist) and xB (known in Japan as the Toyota bB) are powered by a 1.5L DOHC I4 engine. A third model, the Scion tC, was introduced in 2004 and uses a 2.4 liter engine; it was designed for the North American market as a Toyota Celica replacement, using the four-cylinder engine and transmissions from the Toyota Camry, and the basic platform of the European Toyota Avensis.
* xA (compact hatchback)
* xB (subcompact hatchback)
* tC (compact coupe)
* xD (compact hatchback)
2007 Toyota Camry SE
2006 Toyota 4Runner
2007 Toyota Tundra Double Cab
2004 Toyota Land Cruiser
2006 Lexus GS 430
2007 Lexus LS
[edit] Concept vehicles
i-unit
Fine-N
Lexus LF-C concept
[edit] Hybrid and plug-in hybrid technologies
Toyota Prius, flagship of Toyota's hybrid technology
Toyota Prius, flagship of Toyota's hybrid technology
Main article: Hybrid Synergy Drive
Toyota is one of the largest companies that started pushing hybrid vehicles in the market and one of the first to mass commercially produce such vehicle, an example being the main Toyota Prius. Then it eventually started producing the main smaller cars such as Camry and then it eventually moved on to the Lexus divisions, producing some hybrid luxury vehicles. It labeled such technology and Toyota cars as "Hybrid Synergy Drive" and the Lexus versions as "Lexus Hybrid Drive."
The Prius has become the top selling hybrid car in America. Toyota now has three hybrid vehicles in its lineup (Prius, Highlander, & Camry). The popular minivan Toyota Sienna is supposed to join the hybrid lineup by 2010, and by 2030 Toyota plans to have its entire lineup of cars, trucks, and SUVs to have a Hybrid Synergy Drive option.
Lexus also has their own hybrid lineup, consisting of the GS 450h, RX 400h, and soon in 2007, the LS 600h L.
Toyota is doing plug-in hybrid road test in Japan with possible unveiling in fall 2007.According to the report, Toyota is testing a lithium-ion battery pack in the plug-in. Their strategy is to maintain Toyota's leading position in hybrid technology with the PHEV which has an even lower environmental impact than existing hybrids[37]
[edit] Toyota in motorsport
[edit] Rallying
Toyota's presence in Motorsport can be traced by to the early 1970s, when Swedish driver, Ove Andersson drove for Toyota during the RAC Rally of Great Britain. During the winter of 1972, Andersson formed Andersson Motorsport in his native country and began running a Rallying program for Toyota. The move turned out to be an impractical one and three years after establishing his team, Andersson moved its base from Sweden to Brussels in Belgium. From there the team was renamed, Toyota Team Europe.
Carlos Sainz, World Champion of 1990 and 1992, driving the Toyota Corolla WRC during the Monte Carlo Rally of 1999.
Carlos Sainz, World Champion of 1990 and 1992, driving the Toyota Corolla WRC during the Monte Carlo Rally of 1999.
Despite Toyota's exit from rallying in 1999, the company's cars, namely the Celica and Corolla (pictured), are still a popular choice among rally drivers.
Despite Toyota's exit from rallying in 1999, the company's cars, namely the Celica and Corolla (pictured), are still a popular choice among rally drivers.
Toyota's first win in motorsport came at the 1975 1000 Lakes Rally of Finland, when Hannu Mikkola and his co-driver, Atso Aho, won the event in a Toyota Corolla. Three years later, the team moved to a new base in Cologne, in western Germany. It wasn't until the 1980s when Toyota began to gain notable success, especially in the African rallies, where Bjorn Waldegaard and Juha Kankkunen were usually top of the time sheets. The team then set-up its all purpose Motorsport facility in Cologne three years later, which is still used today.
In 1990, Carlos Sainz gave Toyota its first ever Championship win in a Four-wheel drive Toyota Celica and repeated the feat 2 years later. In 1993, Toyota bought the team from Andersson and named it Toyota Motorsport GmbH, in the same year Juha Kankkunen won the WRC title and Toyota won the Contsructors' Championship, becoming the first Japanese Manufacturer to do so. This success was repeated a year earlier, but this time it was Frenchman Didier Auriol who was responsible.
1995 proved to be a difficult year for Toyota, as the team were caught using illegal turbo chargers and were given a 12-month ban by the FIA. The company returned to rallying in 1996, but its competition, notably Mitsubishi and Subaru, had a clearer advantage over their cars.
1997 would prove to be another uncompetitive year for Toyota, with the team still behind its fellow Japanese manufacturers, Subaru and Mitsubishi, and the Carlos Sainz the highest place Toyota driver in the Drivers' Championship in third place, 11 points behind champion Tommi Mäkinen. Sainz came within 1 point of the 1998 title, when his Corolla suffered an engine failure on the final stage of the final rally in Great Britain, while Toyota were within 6 points of the Contstructors' Championship, many people place the blame on Toyota's choice to run Belgian Freddy Loix as one of the team's points scoring drivers at the Rally of Spain instead of regular driver Didier Auriol, because Auriol managed to win the event ahead of second-placed Loix.
Toyota decided to quit running in the WRC at the end of the 1999 season, quoting that "all that can be achieved has been achieved". The team managed to secure the Manufacturers' title in their last season, 18 points ahead of their nearest rival Subaru, while Didier Auriol came within 10 points of the Drivers' title.
Toyota were replaced the following season by Peugeot, who went on to win the Manufacturers' title in succession from 2000-2002.
In March 2007, Toyota debuted its Super 2000 Corolla rally car, which will compete in the Australian Rally Championship.[38]
[edit] Champ Car
Toyota raced in CART from 1996 to 2002. Its early years in the series were marked by struggles. Toyota-powered cars, campaigned by the All-American Racers and PPI Motorsports teams, languished at the back of the grid, slow and unreliable. Toyota didn't even lead a lap until Alex Barron led 12 laps at the Vancouver street circuit in September 1998.
Toyota started seeing its fortunes improve in 1999 as Scott Pruett took pole position at the final race of the season at the California Speedway. The next year, Juan Pablo Montoya gave Toyota its first-ever CART win at the Milwaukee Mile, the first of 5 races won by Toyota-powered cars that year. Toyota-powered cars won six races in 2001. In 2002, Toyota's final year in the championship, it turned things around completely from its bleak debut. Toyota won the Manufacturer's championship, 10 races, and Cristiano Da Matta rode Toyota power to the driver's championship, with Bruno Junqueira, also Toyota-powered car, finished second.
[edit] Le Mans
The Toyota GT-One was raced in the 1998 and 1999 24 hours of Le Mans. Ex-Formula One drivers: Thierry Boutsen, Martin Brundle and Ukyo Katayama drove the GT-One in both events.
The Toyota GT-One was raced in the 1998 and 1999 24 hours of Le Mans. Ex-Formula One drivers: Thierry Boutsen, Martin Brundle and Ukyo Katayama drove the GT-One in both events.
Toyota started recruiting staff for their Le Mans efforts in 1997, with an aim to start a Formula One team. Toyota's efforts for a Le Mans car was the Toyota GT-One, which was driven by ex-Formula One drivers: Martin Brundle; Thierry Boutsen and Ukyo Katayama. The 3.6 litre twin-turbo GT-Ones were beaten in 1998 and 1999 but came close to victory, breaking down late in the race. The GT-One held the lap record for the Sarthe Circuit up until 2006 however.
[edit] Indy Racing League
Toyota moved to the Indy Racing League in 2003 and provided factory support to former CART teams Penske Racing and Chip Ganassi Racing as well as other teams. They were one of the top engines in their first year, winning the Indianapolis 500 with Gil de Ferran and the championship with Scott Dixon. However, 2004 and 2005 were not so kind and wins were few and far between. Following the 2005 season, the Penske and Ganassi teams announced they would switch engines to Honda, leaving Toyota with no championship contenders. As a result of this and their intent to re-allocate resources for NASCAR, Toyota announced they would leave the series during the off-season.
[edit] NASCAR
Toyota races the Toyota Tundra in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and the Toyota Camry in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series and the NASCAR Busch Series. Todd Bodine became the first driver to give Toyota their first ever NASCAR championship by winning the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Title in 2006. Toyota will support three teams in the Nextel Cup Series and Busch Series with the Camry in the 2007 season. There are 5 teams with 10 cars total in the Nextel series, 5 teams and 8 cars in the Busch Series, and 6 teams and 10 trucks in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series making a total of 16 teams and 28 cars in all:
Dale Jarrett enters pit road at Texas in the #44 UPS Toyota Camry.
Dale Jarrett enters pit road at Texas in the #44 UPS Toyota Camry.
[edit] Nextel
* Michael Waltrip Racing
o Michael Waltrip - #55 NAPA Camry
o Dale Jarrett - #44 UPS Camry
o David Reutimann - #00 Burger King/Dominos Camry
* Bill Davis Racing
o Dave Blaney - #22 Caterpillar Camry
o Jeremy Mayfield - #36 360 OTC Camry
o Mike Skinner - #23 Camry (R&D Car)
* Team Red Bull
o Brian Vickers - #83 Red Bull Camry
o A.J. Allmendinger - #84 Red Bull Camry
* Riley D'Hondt Motorsports
o Marc Goosens - #91 Unsponsored Camry
o Robert Cline - #08 Vitamin Water Camry
* Germain Racing
o Todd Bodine - #03 Unsponsored Camry
[edit] Busch
* Michael Waltrip Racing
o David Reutimann - #99 Aaron's Camry
o Josh Wise - #? Unsponsored Camry (unknown if will race)
* Bill Davis Racing
o ?Jeremy Mayfield - #?36 unsponsored Camry (unknown if will race)
o Bobby Santos II - #91 unsponsored Camry
* Riley D'Hondt Motorsports
o David Green - #91 unsponsored Camry
* Germain Racing
o Todd Bodine - #03 unsponsored Camry (unknown if will race)
* Braun Racing
o John Andretti/Dave Blaney - #10 rvs.com Camry
o Dave Blaney - #32 fan1st.com Camry
o Jason Leffler - #38 Great Clips Camry
[edit] Trucks
* Waltrip Racing
o A.J. Allmendinger - #00 Red Bull Tundra
* Germain Racing
o Justin Hobgood - #03 Toyota Dealers Tundra
o Ted Musgrave - #9 Team ASE Tundra
o Todd Bodine - #30 Lumber Liquidators Tundra
* Red Horse Racing
o Aaron Fike - #1 Red Horse Racing Tundra
* Bill Davis Racing
o Mike Skinner - #5 Toyota Tundra Tundra
o Johnny Benson - #23 Toyota Dealers Tundra
o Tyler Walker (suspended) - #36 360 OTC Tundra
* HT Motorsports
o Terry Cook - #59 Melling Tools Tundra
* Wyler Racing
o Jack Sprague - #60 Con-Way Transportation Tundra
[edit] Formula One (F1)
Toyota F1 racing logo.
Toyota F1 racing logo.
Main article: Toyota F1
The Toyota TF107, Toyota F1's car for the 2007 Formula One season.
The Toyota TF107, Toyota F1's car for the 2007 Formula One season.
In 2002 Toyota started racing in Formula One with Toyota Team Europe, based in Cologne, Germany. Despite a huge investment, the team's performances have been considered less than average by fans and pundits alike.
In 2004, designer Mike Gascoyne was hired to help turn things around (as he had done previously at Jordan Grand Prix and Renault F1). However, due to a lack of results and a difference in opinion with the management about how the team should progress he was released from his contract early midway through the 2006 season; by 2005 the team had advanced from the midfield to infrequently challenging for the top positions. Jarno Trulli achieved two second places and one third place in the first five races of the season, helping the team to retain second position in the Constructors Championship for several races before finishing 4th in the constructors championship. Jarno Trulli and Ralf Schumacher are the team's current drivers.
For 2007, Toyota will also be supplying engines to the Williams team.
[edit] Toyota economy
[edit] Toyota core segment in the market
Hybrids are viewed by some automakers as a core segment of the future vehicle market.[39]
[edit] TRD
Main article: Toyota Racing Development
Toyota Racing Development was brought about to help develop true high performance racing parts for many Toyota vehicles. TRD has often had much success with their aftermarket tuning parts, as well as designing technology for vehicles used in all forms of racing.
[edit] Shareholders
Toyota is publicly traded on the Tokyo Stock Exchange under number 7203 (first section). Also on NYSE under NYSE: TM.
[edit] Holdings
Toyota reports on its consolidated financial statements 540 consolidated subsidiaries and 226 affiliates.
* Toyota Motor North America (100% - 2004)
* Toyota Tsusho - Trading company for the Toyota Group
* Toyota Canada Inc. owned via Toyota Motor North America
* Daihatsu Motor Company (51.2% - March 31, 2006)
* Hino Motors (50.1% - March 31, 2006)
* DENSO (24.74% - September 30, 2006)
* Toyota Industries (23.51% - March 31, 2006)
* Aisin Seiki Co. (23.0% - September 30, 2006)
* Fuji Heavy Industries (8.69% - September 30, 2006)
* Isuzu Motors (5.9% - November 10, 2006)
[edit] Accounting Ratios
+ Toyota Motor Corporation Accounting Ratios
Fiscal Year[40] 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002
Fiscal Year End Date 3/31/06 3/31/05 3/31/04 3/31/03 3/31/02
Receivables Turnover 3.6 3.7 3.8 2.5 2.5
Receivables - Number of Days 93.8 93.3 114.2 139.0 129.6
Inventory Turnover 10.7 11.6 11.8 10.9 11.1
Inventory - Number of Days 33.5 31.2 30.5 33.1 32.3
Gross Property, Plant & Equipment Turnover 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.2 1.1
Net Property, Plant & Equipment Turnover 3.0 3.2 3.2 2.9 2.8
Depreciation, Depletion & Amortization -
% of Gross Property, Plant & Equipment 7.6% 7.1% 7.3% 6.3% 6.1%
Depreciation, Depletion & Amortization -
Year to Year Change (Japanese Yen) 21,346.5 2,780.9 11,827.0 4,802.7 5,385.5
Depreciation, Depletion & Amortization -
Year to Year % Change 21.4% 2.9% 13.9% 6.0% 7.2%
[edit] The Toyota Production System
Main article: Toyota Production System
Toyota has long been recognized as an industry leader in manufacturing and production. Three stories of its origin have been found, one that they studied Piggly-Wiggly's just-in-time distribution system, one that they followed the writings of W. Edwards Deming, and one that they were given the principles from an Army training program (see above reference). Regardless of the origin, the principles, described in Jeffrey Liker’s The Toyota Way, are as follows:
1. Base your management decisions on a long-term philosophy, even at the expense of short-term goals
2. Create continuous process flow to bring problems to surface
3. Use “pull” systems to avoid overproduction
4. Level out the workload
5. Build a culture of stopping to fix problems, to get quality right the first time
6. Standardized tasks are the foundation for continuous improvement and employee empowerment
7. Use visual control so no problems are hidden
8. Use only reliable, thoroughly tested technology that serves your people and processes
9. Grow leaders who thoroughly understand the work, live the philosophy, and teach it to others
10. Develop exceptional people and teams who follow your company’s philosophy
11. Respect your extended network of partners and suppliers by challenging them and helping them improve
12. Go and see for yourself to thoroughly understand the situation (genchi genbutsu)
13. Make decisions slowly by consensus, thoroughly considering all options; implement decisions rapidly
14. Become a learning organization through relentless reflection and continuous improvement
[edit] Toyota philosophy
In Toyota philosophy, zeronise consists in reducing pollution, traffic deaths and road congestion.[39]
[edit] Non-automotive activities
[edit] Philanthropy
Toyota is supporter of Toyota Family Literacy Program along with National Center for Family Literacy, helping low-income community members for education, United Negro College Fund (40 annual scholarships), National Underground Railroad Freedom Center ($1 million) among others[41]. Toyota created Toyota USA Foundation.
[edit] Higher education
Toyota established the Toyota Technological Institute in 1981, as Sakichi Toyoda had planned to establish a university as soon as he and Toyota became successful. Toyota Technological Institute founded the Toyota Technological Institute at Chicago in 2003. Toyota is supporter of "Toyota Driving Expectations Program," "Toyota Youth for Understanding Summer Exchange Scholarship Program," "Toyota International Teacher Program," "Toyota TAPESTRY," "Toyota Community Scholars" (scholarship for high school students), "United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Internship Program," and "Toyota Funded Scholarship."[42] It has contributed to number of local education and scholarship programs such as to University of Kentucky, Indiana, etc.[42]
[edit] Robotics
Toyota has been developing multitask robots destined for elderly care, manufacturing, and entertainment.
[edit] Finance
Toyota Financial Services Corporation provides financing to Toyota customers.
[edit] Agricultural biotechnology
Toyota invests in several small start-up businesses and partnerships in biotechnology, including:
* P.T. Toyota Bio Indonesia in Lampung, Indonesia
* Australian Afforestation Pty. Ltd. in Western Australia and Southern Australia
* Toyota Floritech Co., Ltd. in Rokkasho-Mura, Kamikita District, Aomori Prefecture
* Sichuan Toyota Nitan Development Co., Ltd. in Sichuan, China
* Toyota Roof Garden Corporation in Miyoshi-Cho, Aichi Prefecture
[edit] See also
Japanese Car Portal
Cars Portal
* The Toyota Group
* List of Toyota vehicles
* List of Toyota engines
* List of Toyota transmissions
* EPA 2004 fuel economy report (Toyota)
* Toyota automobile collectibles
* Toyota Production System
* Toyota Center, a sports arena in Houston, Texas where the company owns naming rights
* Australian Motor Industries
[edit] Notes
1. ^ a b c
2. ^ http://www.toyota.co.jp/en/about_toyota/executives/index.html
3. ^ http://biz.yahoo.com/ic/41/41889.html
4. ^ http://biz.yahoo.com/ic/41/41889.html
5. ^ http://finance.yahoo.com/q/ks?s=TM
6. ^
7. ^ http://finance.yahoo.com/q/ks?s=TM
8. ^ http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2007-07-19-toyota-sales-target_N.htm
9. ^ http://biz.yahoo.com/ic/41/41889.html
10. ^ http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/25/automobiles/25auto.html?ref=business
11. ^ Toyota set to overtake GM in 2007 @ CNN
12. ^ http://www.toyota.co.jp/en/about_toyota/overview/
13. ^ a b Toyota corporate history/Toyoland
14. ^ December 8, 1945: Toyota Resumes Production
15. ^ Historic Toyota Port Melbourne Plant Ends Operations (AU)
16. ^ Ex-UFJ Execs.Japan Times Weekly: April 30, 2005.
17. ^ UFJ Holdings Inc., company profile Yahoo Finance. Retrieved on May 8, 2007.
18. ^ "Toyota tops 1 million in hybrid sales"
19. ^ Consumer reports lists Toyota as having the most reliable cars
20. ^ Toyota's plan for Lexus is a reminder of its real goal (August 1, 2005). Financial Times, p. 16.
21. ^ "Toyota Surpasses GM in Global Sales in First Quarter (Update3)", Bloomberg.com, 24 April 2007
22. ^ Vella, Matt (July 17, 2006).The Most recalled Cars Business Week Online at Yahoo News.
23. ^ [1]
24. ^ About Toyota: Operations -- Toyota by the Numbers
25. ^ Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada
26. ^ "Toyota Breaks Ground In Mississippi - Majority of construction workers to be hired locally"
27. ^ Lexus To The Rescue
28. ^ 2006 Sales: Toyota’s Number Three
29. ^ Shin, Annys (2006-11-05). U.S. luxury market 1.5 million in 2006 (Lexus 322,434). The Washington Post. Retrieved on 2007-05-09.
30. ^ Tierney, Christine (2007-01-04). U.S. auto market share, total sales 16,556,433. Detroit News. Retrieved on 2007-05-08.
31. ^ Edmundson, Gale (2006-02-19). Europe's Car Market: The '06 Report Card. BusinessWeek. Retrieved on 2007-05-06.
32. ^ van Loon, Jeremy (2007-05-04). Lexus is the biggest-selling luxury car brand in the U.S.; worldwide data. Bloomberg. Retrieved on 2007-05-06.
33. ^ Lexus and Toyota Models Rank Highest
34. ^ Lexus Ranked First in Predicted Reliability for 2006 Models
35. ^ Lexus' Big Test
36. ^ Automotive Design & Production - Lexus Comes Into Its Own
37. ^ http://www.calcars.org/calcars-news/798.html
38. ^ Toyota Super 2000 Corolla debut
39. ^ a b http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070416/REG/70416014/-1
40. ^ CorporateInformation Snapshot of Toyota Motor Corporation
41. ^ http://www.toyota.com/about/diversity/2001/philanthropy.html
42. ^ a b http://www.toyota.com/about/community/education/index.html
* 2005 Toyota Highlander Hybrid. Retrieved January 11, 2004 from CanadianDriver Communications, Inc. (2004)
* Toyota up close Sales figures of Toyota.
* Toyota becomes 3rd ranked US automaker behind GM and Ford Bloomberg Report
Porsche Cayenne Turbo 跑車
Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, often shortened to Porsche AG, or just Porsche, is a German sports car manufacturer, founded in 1931 by then Austrian Ferdinand Porsche, the engineer who also created the first Volkswagen. The company is located in Zuffenhausen, a city district of Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg.
Contents
[hide]
* 1 Reputation
o 1.1 Competitors
* 2 History
o 2.1 Relationship with Volkswagen
o 2.2 Corporate Restructure
* 3 Auto racing
* 4 Pronunciation of "Porsche"
* 5 Models
o 5.1 Tractors
o 5.2 Consumer models
+ 5.2.1 North American Sales Charts
# 5.2.1.1 Monthly (August 2007)
# 5.2.1.2 Annual (2006)
o 5.3 Racing models
o 5.4 Prototypes and concept cars
* 6 References
* 7 See also
* 8 External links
o 8.1 Official
o 8.2 Associates
o 8.3 Clubs
[edit] Reputation
2005 Porsche 911 (997) Carrera S
2005 Porsche 911 (997) Carrera S
In a May 2006 survey, Porsche was awarded first place as the most prestigious automobile brand by Luxury Institute, New York; it questioned more than 500 households with a gross annual income of at least US $200,000 and a net worth of at least US $720,000. [1] The current Porsche lineup includes sports cars from the Boxster roadster to their most famous product, the 911. The Cayman is a hard top car similar to the Boxster in a slightly higher price range. The Cayenne is Porsche's mid-size luxury SUV. The Carrera GT supercar was phased out in May 2006. Future plans include a high performance luxury saloon/sedan, the Panamera.
Porsche was awarded the 2006 J.D. Power and Associates award for highest Nameplate Initial Quality Study (IQS) of automobile brands. [2]
As a company, Porsche is known for weathering changing market conditions with great financial stability, while retaining most production in Germany during an age when most other German car manufacturers have moved at least partly to Eastern Europe or overseas. [citation needed] The headquarters and main factory are still at Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen, but the Cayenne (and formerly the Carrera GT) is produced in Bratislava, Slovakia, and Leipzig, in former East Germany. Most Boxster and Cayman production is outsourced to Valmet Automotive in Finland. The company has been highly successful in recent times, and indeed claims to have the highest profit per unit sold of any car company in the world, although its total profits are significantly lower than Toyota's.[3]
Porsche has for many years offered consultancy services to various other car manufacturers. Studebaker, SEAT, Daewoo, Subaru and Yugo have consulted Porsche on engineering for their cars or engines. Porsche also helped Harley-Davidson design their new engine in their newer V-Rod motorcycle.
[edit] Competitors
See also Auto racing, further down in this article.
In racing, Porsche's main rival has traditionally been Ferrari, though their production vehicles appeal to quite different personalities, if similar demographics. The rivalry is therefore primarily because of both companies' storied racing heritage and the fact that some of their vehicles are of comparable performance. Porsche has a reputation for offering equal or higher performing cars than the more expensive Ferrari models, while overall Ferrari sells far fewer cars at much higher prices (for example, there are no Ferraris under US $100,000, while several Porsches are priced below that figure).
In the daily-driver marketplace, Porsche's traditional rivals are its fellow German automakers Mercedes-Benz, Audi, and BMW (the Boxster competes directly with the BMW Z4 and the Mercedes-Benz SLK, for instance), as well as Lotus, Jaguar, and Maserati. Ferrari, on the other hand, competes more directly with firms such as Lamborghini, Bugatti and Aston Martin.
[edit] History
Professor Ferdinand Porsche initially started the company called "Dr. ing. h. c. F. Porsche GmbH" in 1931, with main offices in Königstrasse in the middle of Stuttgart. The company primarily were offering development work or consulting for motor vehicles, so no cars were initially built that had the Porsche name. One of the first assignments the new company got was from the german government to design a car for the people, a "Volkswagen" in german.
The first Porsche, the Porsche 64 of 1938, used many components from the Volkswagen Beetle.
Ferdinand Porsche's son, Ferry Porsche, decided to build his own car because he could not find an existing car that he would buy. The first models of what was to become the 356 were built in a small workshop in Gmünd, Austria and had aluminum bodywork. The prototype car was shown to German auto dealers, and when pre-orders reached an set threshold, production was begun. Many regard the 356 as the first Porsche simply because it was the first model sold by the fledgling company. Porsche commissioned Zuffenhausen-based company Reutter Carosseri, which had previously collaborated with Porsche on Volkswagen Beetle prototypes, to produce the 356's steel body. Porsche constructed an assembly plant across the street from Reutter Carosseri; that assembly plant is now known as Porschestrasse.
Not long afterwards, on January 30, 1951, Ferdinand Porsche died from complications following a stroke.
In post-war Germany parts was generally in short supply, so the 356 automobile used components from the Beetle including its engine, gearbox, and suspension. The 356, however, had several evolutionary stages, A, B, and C, while in production and many VW parts were replaced by Porsche-made parts. The last 356s were powered by entirely Porsche-designed engines. The sleek bodywork was designed by Erwin Komenda who also had designed the body of the Beetle. Porsche's signature designs have, from the beginning, featured air-cooled rear-engine configurations (like the Beetle), rare for other car manufacturers, but producing automobiles that are very well balanced.
Zuffenhausen Headquarters - left: Porsche Center; rear left: body shell assembly; right: vehicle assembly
Zuffenhausen Headquarters - left: Porsche Center; rear left: body shell assembly; right: vehicle assembly
In 1963, after some success in motor-racing, namely with the Porsche 550 Spyder, the company launched the Porsche 911 another air-cooled, rear-engined sports car, this time with a 6-cylinder "boxer" engine. The team to lay out the body shell design was led by Ferry Porsche's eldest son, Ferdinand Alexander Porsche (F. A.). The design phase for the 911 caused internal problems with Erwin Komenda who led the body design department until then. F. A. Porsche complained Komenda made changes to the design not being approved by him. Company leader Ferry Porsche took his son's drawings to neighbouring body shell manufacturer Reuter bringing the design to the 1963 state. Reuter's workshop was later acquired by Porsche (so-called Werk II). Afterward Reuter became a seat manufacturer, today known as Keiper-Recaro.
The design group gave sequential numbers to every project (356, 550, etc) but the designated 901 nomenclature contravened Peugeot's commercial rights on all 'x0x' names, so it was adjusted to 911. Racing models adhered to the "correct" numbering sequence: 904 906, 908. The 911 has become Porsche's most well-known model, successful on the race-track, in rallies, and in terms of sales. Far more than any other model, the Porsche brand is defined by the 911. It remains in production; however, after several generations of revision, current-model 911s share only the basic mechanical concept of a rear-engined, six-cylinder coupe, and basic styling cues with the original car. A cost-reduced model with the same body, but 356-derived running gear (including its four-cylinder engine), was sold as the 912.
The Porsche 912, a Porsche of the 1960s
The Porsche 912, a Porsche of the 1960s
In 1972 the company's legal form was changed from limited partnership to public limited company (German AG), because Ferry Porsche and his sister, Louise Piëch, felt their generation members did not team up well. This led to the foundation of an executive board whose members came from outside the Porsche family, and a supervisory board consisting mostly of family members. With this change, no family members were in operational charge of the company. F. A. Porsche founded his own design company, Porsche Design, which is renowned for exclusive sunglasses, watches, furniture, and many other luxury articles. Ferdinand Piëch, who was responsible for mechanical development of Porsche's serial and racing cars, formed his own engineering bureau and developed a 5-cylinder-inline diesel engine for Mercedes-Benz. A short time later he moved to Audi and pursued his career through the entire company, up to and including, the Volkswagen Group boards.
The first CEO of Porsche AG was Dr. Ernst Fuhrmann who had been working in Porsche's engine development. Fuhrmann was responsible for the so-called Fuhrmann-engine used in the 356 Carrera models, as well as the 550 Spyder, having four over-head camshafts instead of a central camshaft as in the Volkswagen-derived serial engines. He planned to cease the 911 during the 70s and replace it with the V8-front engined grand sportswagon 928. As we know today the 911 outlived the 928 by far. Fuhrmann was replaced in the early 80s by Peter W. Schutz, an American manager and self-proclaimed 911 aficionado. He was replaced in 1988 by the former manager of German computer company Nixdorf Computer AG, Arno Bohn, who made some costly miscalculations that led to his dismissal soon after, along with that of the development director, Dr. Ulrich Bez, who was formerly responsible for BMW's Z1 model and today is CEO of Aston Martin.
In 1990, Porsche drew up a memorandum of understanding with Toyota to learn and benefit from Japanese production methods. Currently Toyota is assisting Porsche with hybrid technology, rumored to be making its way into a Hybrid Cayenne SUV, as well as the upcoming four-door coupe, the Panamera.
Following the dismissal of Bohn, an interim CEO was appointed, longtime Porsche employee, Heinz Branitzki, who served in that position until Dr. Wendelin Wiedeking became CEO in 1993. Wiedeking took over the chairmanship of the board at a time when Porsche appeared vulnerable to a takeover by a larger company. During his long tenure, Wiedeking has transformed Porsche into a very efficient and profitable company.
Ferdinand Porsche's grandson, Ferdinand Piëch, was chairman and CEO of the Volkswagen Group from 1993 to 2002. Today he is chairman of the supervisory board. With 12.8 per cent of the Porsche voting shares, he also remains the second largest individual shareholder of Porsche AG after his cousin, F. A. Porsche, (13.6 per cent).
Porsche's 2002 introduction of the Cayenne also marked the unveiling of a new production facility in Leipzig, Saxony, which once accounted for nearly half of Porsche's annual output. The Cayenne Turbo S has the second most powerful production engine in Porsche's history, with the most powerful belonging to the Carrera GT.
In 2004, production of the 605 horsepower Carrera GT commenced in Leipzig, and at EUR 450,000 ($440,000 in the United States) it was the most expensive production model Porsche ever built.
As of 2005, the extended Porsche and Piech families controlled all of Porsche AG's voting shares. In early October 2005 the company announced acquisition of an 18.53% stake in Volkswagen AG and disclosed intentions to acquire additional VW shares in the future. As of June 2006, the Porsche AG stake in Volkswagen had risen to 25.1%, giving Porsche a blocking minority, whereby Porsche can veto large corporate decisions undertaken by VW.
In mid-2006, after years of the Boxster (and later the Cayenne) as the dominant Porsche in North America, the 911 regained its position as Porsche's backbone in the region. The Cayenne and 911 have cycled as the top-selling model since. In Germany the 911 clearly outsells the Boxster/Cayman and Cayenne. [4]
[edit] Relationship with Volkswagen
Schematic of Porsche's extended financial relationships.
Schematic of Porsche's extended financial relationships.
The company has always had a close relationship with Volkswagen, and as noted above, the first Porsche cars used many Volkswagen components. The two companies collaborated in 1969 to make the VW-Porsche 914 and 914-6 whereby the 914-6 had a Porsche engine and the 914 had a Volkswagen engine, in 1976 with the Porsche 912E (USA only) and the Porsche 924, which used many Audi components and was built at an Audi Neckarsulm factory. Most 944s also were built there although they used far fewer VW components. The Porsche Cayenne, introduced in 2002, shares its entire chassis with VW Touareg, which is built at the factory in Bratislava. Both Audi and Škoda are wholly owned subsidiaries of Volkswagen. In late 2005, Porsche took an 18.65% stake in VW, further cementing their relationship and preventing a takeover of Volkswagen, which was rumored at the time. Speculated suitors included DaimlerChrysler, BMW, and Renault.
On 26 March 2007 Porsche took its holding of Volkswagen shares to 30.9%, triggering a takeover bid under German law. Porsche formally announced in a press statement that it did not intend to take over Volkswagen (it would set its offer price at the lowest possible legal value), but intended the move to avoid a competitor taking a large stake or to stop hedge funds dismantling VW, which is Porsche's most important partner[5]. Porsche's move comes after the European Union moved against a German law that protected VW from takeovers. Under the so-called "Volkswagen Law", any shareholder in VW cannot exercise more than 20% of the firm's voting rights, regardless of their level of stock holding. The European Court of Justice has already indicated that the law probably breaks EU rules, and a full judgment to that effect is expected later in 2007[6].
[edit] Corporate Restructure
With the VW stake acquisition, Porsche intends on reforming the company's format, with Dr Ing. h. c. F.Porsche AG becoming a subsidiary of a newly formed holding company called Porsche Automobil Holding SE, so as to separate the operating activities from holding activities of the company. There will be an Extraordinary General Meeting for Porsche AG shareholders which is due to take place on June 26, 2007 at the Porsche Arena in Stuttgart, Germany to discuss better the change to the company structure. [1]
[edit] Auto racing
Main article: Porsche in motorsport
Porsche has been successful in many branches of auto racing, scoring a total of more than 28,000 victories. Porsche is currently the world's largest race car manufacturer. In 2006, Porsche built 195 race cars for various international motor sports events. In 2007, Porsche is expected to construct no less than 275 dedicated race cars (7 RS Spyder LMP2 prototypes, 37 GT2 spec 911 GT3-RSRs, and 231 911 GT3 Cup vehicles).[7]
[edit] Pronunciation of "Porsche"
"Porsche", a proper name, is originally pronounced as PORSH-uh (IPA /ˈpɔɹʃə/) (correct pronunciation (help·info)), which is how members of the Porsche family pronounce their name.
Some tend to vocalize the e, which results in Por-SCHA (/pɔɹˈʃʌ/). Others, particularly in Canada and the United States, mistakenly treat the e as silent, a pronunciation rule that applies in English and French but not in German, producing the monosyllabic, porsh (/pɔɹʃ/).
* The correct pronunciation of "Porsche"
[edit] Models
See: Category:Porsche vehicles
[edit] Tractors
Porsche Diesel Super
Porsche Diesel Super
* Porsche Type 110
* Porsche AP Series
* Porsche Junior (14 hp)
* Porsche Standard (25 hp)
* Porsche Super (38 hp)
* Porsche Master (50 hp)
* Porsche 312
* Porsche 108F
* Porsche R22
* Porsche AP16
[edit] Consumer models
The 911; the top selling model as of June, 2006
The 911; the top selling model as of June, 2006
The 987, the 2006 Boxster model
The 987, the 2006 Boxster model
* 356 (1948–1965)
* 550 Spyder (1953–1957)
* 911 (1964–Present)
o 911 (1964–1989)
+ 930 (1975–1989)
o 964 (1989–1993)
o 993 (1993–1998)
o 996 (1998–2004)
o 997 (2004–Present)
* 912 (1965–1969)
* 914 (1969–1975)
* 924 (1976–1988)
* 928 (1978–1995)
* 944 (1982–1991)
* 959 (1986–1988)
* 968 (1992–1995)
* Boxster (1996–Present)
o 986 (1996–2005)
o 987 (2005–Present)
* Cayenne (2002–Present)
* Carrera GT (2004–2006)
* Cayman (2006–Present)
* Panamera (2008–Unknown)
* Roxster (Unknown)
NOTE: models in bold are current models
[edit] North American Sales Charts
[edit] Monthly (August 2007)
Model Sales Percent of Total Sales
911 (997) 1,083 32%
Boxster (987) 425 12%
Cayman 661 19%
Cayenne 1,245 37%
Total 3,414 -
Note: this information is from an official Porsche document and is a record of Porsches sold in the United States and Canada during August 2007.
[edit] Annual (2006)
Model Sales Percent of Total Sales
911 (997) 12,702 35%
Boxster (987) 4,850 13%
Cayman 7,313 20%
Cayenne 11,141 31%
Total 36,095 -
Note: this information is from an official Porsche document and is a record of Porsches sold in the United States and Canada during 2006.
[edit] Racing models
* 64
* 360 Cisitalia
* 550 Spyder
* 718
* 787
* 804
* 904
* 906
* 907
* 908
* 909 Bergspyder
* 910
* 911
* 914
* 917
* 934
* 935
* 936
* 924
* 944
* 956
* 959
* 961
* 962
* Porsche-March 89P
* WSC-95/LMP1-98
* LMP2000 (never raced)
* RS Spyder (9R6)
Note: models in bold are current models
[edit] Prototypes and concept cars
* Porsche 114
* Porsche 356/1
* Porsche 695 (911 prototype)
* Porsche 901 (911 prototype)
* Porsche 916 (flat-6 914)
* Porsche 959 Prototype
* Porsche 942
* Porsche 969
* Porsche Panamericana
* Porsche 989
* Porsche Varrera
* Porsche Boxster Concept
* Porsche Carrera GT Concept
* Porsche E2
[edit] References
1. ^ Porsche press release 5 May 2005
2. ^ J.D. Power News Release
3. ^ Forbes Autos review of Cayman S
4. ^ Porsche USA press release 11 September 2006
5. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6494593.stm
6. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6356787.stm
7. ^ AutoWeek Porsche Story, Warehouse Shopping, March 7, 2007
[edit] See also
* Ferdinand Porsche (founder)
* Ferry Porsche (Ferdinand Anton Ernst Porsche, 2nd generation, creator of the 356)
* F.A. Porsche (Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, 3rd generation, designer of the 911)
* Porsche Design Group
* List of Porsche engines
* CTS Car Top Systems
* Need for Speed: Porsche Unleashed
水陸兩用車 Wonderful motor
An automobile or motor car (usually shortened to just car) is a wheeled passenger vehicle that carries its own motor. Most definitions of the term specify that automobiles are designed to run primarily on roads, to have seating for one to eight people, to typically have four wheels, and to be constructed principally for the transport of people rather than goods.[1] However, the term is far from precise.
As of 2002, there were 590 million passenger cars worldwide (roughly one car for every eleven people).[2]
Contents
[hide]
* 1 History
* 2 Design
* 3 Fuel and propulsion technologies
o 3.1 Diesel
o 3.2 Gasoline
o 3.3 Electric
o 3.4 Steam
o 3.5 Gas turbine
o 3.6 Rotary (Wankel) engines
o 3.7 Future developments
* 4 Safety
* 5 Economics and Impacts
o 5.1 Cost and benefits of ownership
o 5.2 Cost and benefits to society
o 5.3 Impacts on society
o 5.4 Improving the positive and reducing the negative impacts
* 6 Future car technologies
* 7 Alternatives to the automobile
* 8 Further reading
o 8.1 Other automotive topics
* 9 References
* 10 External links
[edit] History
Karl Benz
Karl Benz
Replica of the Benz Patent Motorwagen built in 1885
Replica of the Benz Patent Motorwagen built in 1885
Main article: History of the automobile
Although Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot is often credited with the first self-propelled mechanical vehicle or automobile, this claim is disputed by some, who doubt Cugnot's three-wheeler ever ran, while others claim Ferdinand Verbiest, a member of a Jesuit mission in China, built the first steam powered car around 1672.[3][4] In either case François Isaac de Rivaz, a Swiss inventor, designed the first internal combustion engine which was fuelled by a mixture of hydrogen and oxygen and used it to develop the world's first vehicle to run on such an engine. The design was not very successful, as was the case with Samuel Brown, Samuel Morey, and Etienne Lenoir who each produced vehicles powered by clumsy internal combustion engines.[5]
In November 1881 French inventor Gustave Trouvé demonstrated a working three-wheeled automobile. This was at the International Exhibition of Electricity in Paris.[6]
An automobile powered by an Otto gasoline engine was built in Mannheim, Germany by Karl Benz in 1885 and granted a patent in January of the following year under the auspices of his major company, Benz & Cie. which was founded in 1883.
Although several other German engineers (including Gottlieb Daimler, Wilhelm Maybach, and Siegfried Marcus) were working on the problem at about the same time, Karl Benz is generally acknowledged as the inventor of the modern automobile.[5] In 1879 Benz was granted a patent for his first engine, designed in 1878. Many of his other inventions made the use of the internal combustion engine feasible for powering a vehicle and in 1896, Benz designed and patented the first internal combustion flat engine.
Approximately 25 Benz vehicles were built and sold before 1893, when his first four-wheeler was introduced. They were powered with four-stroke engines of his own design. Emile Roger of France, already producing Benz engines under license, now added the Benz automobile to his line of products. Because France was more open to the early automobiles, more were built and sold in France through Roger than Benz sold in Germany.
Daimler and Maybach founded Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft (Daimler Motor Company, DMG) in Cannstatt in 1890 and under the brand name, Daimler, sold their first automobile in 1892. By 1895 about 30 vehicles had been built by Daimler and Maybach, either at the Daimler works or in the Hotel Hermann, where they set up shop after falling out with their backers. Benz and Daimler seem to have been unaware of each other's early work and worked independently.
Daimler died in 1900 and later that year, Maybach designed a model named Daimler-Mercedes, special-ordered by Emil Jellinek. Two years later, a new model DMG automobile was produced and named Mercedes after the engine. Maybach quit DMG shortly thereafter and opened a business of his own. Rights to the Daimler brand name were sold to other manufacturers.
Karl Benz proposed co-operation between DMG and Benz & Cie. when economic conditions began to deteriorate in Germany following the First World War, but the directors of DMG refused to consider it initially. Negotiations between the two companies resumed several years later and in 1924 they signed an Agreement of Mutual Interest valid until the year 2000. Both enterprises standardized design, production, purchasing, sales, and advertising—marketing their automobile models jointly—although keeping their respective brands. On June 28, 1926, Benz & Cie. and DMG finally merged as the Daimler-Benz company, baptizing all of its automobiles Mercedes Benz honoring the most important model of the DMG automobiles, the Maybach design later referred to as the 1902 Mercedes-35hp, along with the Benz name. Karl Benz remained a member of the board of directors of Daimler-Benz until his death in 1929.
In 1890, Emile Levassor and Armand Peugeot of France began producing vehicles with Daimler engines, and so laid the foundation of the motor industry in France. The first American car with a gasoline internal combustion engine supposedly was designed in 1877 by George Selden of Rochester, New York, who applied for a patent on an automobile in 1879. In Britain there had been several attempts to build steam cars with varying degrees of success with Thomas Rickett even attempting a production run in 1860.[7] Santler from Malvern is recognized by the Veteran Car Club of Great Britain as having made the first petrol-powered car in the country in 1894[8] followed by Frederick William Lanchester in 1895 but these were both one-offs.[8] The first production vehicles came from the Daimler Motor Company, founded by Harry J. Lawson in 1896, and making their first cars in 1897.[8]
In 1892, German engineer Rudolf Diesel got a patent for a "New Rational Combustion Engine". In 1897 he built the first Diesel Engine.[5] In 1895, Selden was granted a United States patent(U.S. Patent 549,160 ) for a two-stroke automobile engine, which hindered more than encouraged development of autos in the United States. Steam, electric, and gasoline powered autos competed for decades, with gasoline internal combustion engines achieving dominance in the 1910s.
Ransom E. Olds.
Ransom E. Olds.
The large-scale, production-line manufacturing of affordable automobiles was debuted by Ransom Olds at his Oldsmobile factory in 1902. This assembly line concept was then greatly expanded by Henry Ford in the 1910s. Development of automotive technology was rapid, due in part to the hundreds of small manufacturers competing to gain the world's attention. Key developments included electric ignition and the electric self-starter (both by Charles Kettering, for the Cadillac Motor Company in 1910-1911), independent suspension, and four-wheel brakes.
Although various pistonless rotary engine designs have attempted to compete with the conventional piston and crankshaft design, only Mazda's version of the Wankel engine has had more than very limited success.
Ford Model T, 1927, regarded as the first affordable automobile
Ford Model T, 1927, regarded as the first affordable automobile
Since the 1920s, nearly all cars have been mass-produced to meet market needs, so marketing plans have often heavily influenced automobile design. It was Alfred P. Sloan who established the idea of different makes of cars produced by one company, so buyers could "move up" as their fortunes improved. The makes shared parts with one another so larger production volume resulted in lower costs for each price range. For example, in the 1950s, Chevrolet shared hood, doors, roof, and windows with Pontiac; the LaSalle of the 1930s, sold by Cadillac, used cheaper mechanical parts made by the Oldsmobile division.
[edit] Design
Main article: Automotive design
The 1955 Citroën DS; revolutionary visual design and technological innovation.
The 1955 Citroën DS; revolutionary visual design and technological innovation.
The design of modern cars is typically handled by a large team of designers and engineers from many different disciplines. As part of the product development effort the team of designers will work closely with teams of design engineers responsible for all aspects of the vehicle. These engineering teams include: chassis, body and trim, powertrain, electrical and production. The design team under the leadership of the design director will typically comprise of an exterior designer, an interior designer (usually referred to as stylists), and a color and materials designer. A few other designers will be involved in detail design of both exterior and interior. For example, a designer might be tasked with designing the rear light clusters or the steering wheel. The color and materials designer will work closely with the exterior and interior designers in developing exterior color paints, interior colors, fabrics, leathers, carpet, wood trim, and so on.
In 1924 the American national automobile market began reaching saturation. To maintain unit sales, General Motors instituted annual model-year design changes (also credited to Alfred Sloan) in order to convince car owners they needed a replacement each year. Since 1935 automotive form has been driven more by consumer expectations than engineering improvement.
There have been many efforts to innovate automobile design funded by the NHTSA, including the work of the NavLab group at Carnegie Mellon University.[9] Recent efforts include the highly publicized DARPA Grand Challenge race.[10]
Acceleration, braking, and measures of turning or agility vary widely between different makes and models of automobile. The automotive publication industry has developed around these performance measures as a way to quantify and qualify the characteristics of a particular vehicle. See quarter mile and 0 to 60 mph.
[edit] Fuel and propulsion technologies
The Henney Kilowatt, the first modern (transistor-controlled) electric car.
The Henney Kilowatt, the first modern (transistor-controlled) electric car.
2007 Tesla Roadster
2007 Tesla Roadster
See also: Alternative fuel vehicle
Most automobiles in use today are propelled by gasoline (also known as petrol) or diesel internal combustion engines, which are known to cause air pollution and are also blamed for contributing to climate change and global warming.[11] Increasing costs of oil-based fuels and tightening environmental law and restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions are propelling work on alternative power systems for automobiles. Efforts to improve or replace these technologies include hybrid vehicles, electric vehicles and hydrogen vehicles.
[edit] Diesel
Diesel engined cars have long been popular in Europe with the first models being introduced in the 1930s by Mercedes Benz and Citroen. The main benefit of Diesels are a 50% fuel burn efficiency compared with 27%[12] in the best gasoline engines. A down side of the diesel is the presence in the exhaust gases of fine soot particulates and manufacturers are now starting to fit filters to remove these. Many diesel powered cars can also run with little or no modifications on 100% biodiesel.
[edit] Gasoline
Gasoline engines have the advantage over diesel in being lighter and able to work at higher rotational speeds and they are the usual choice for fitting in high performance sports cars. Continuous development of gasoline engines for over a hundred years has produced improvements in efficiency and reduced pollution. The carburetor was used on nearly all road car engines until the 1980s but it was long realised better control of the fuel/air mixture could be achieved with fuel injection. Indirect fuel injection was first used in aircraft engines from 1909, in racing car engines from the 1930s, and road cars from the late 1950s.[12] Gasoline Direct Injection (GDI) is now starting to appear in production vehicles such as the 2007 BMW MINI. Exhaust gases are also cleaned up by fitting a catalytic converter into the exhaust system. Clean air legislation in many of the car industries most important markets has made both catalysts and fuel injection virtually universal fittings. Most modern gasoline engines are also capable of running with up to 15% ethanol mixed into the gasoline - older vehicles may have seals and hoses that can be harmed by ethanol. With a small amount of redesign, gasoline-powered vehicles can run on ethanol concentrations as high as 85%. 100% ethanol is used in some parts of the world (such as Brazil), but vehicles must be started on pure gasoline and switched over to ethanol once the engine is running. Most gasoline engined cars can also run on LPG with the addition of an LPG tank for fuel storage and carburetion modifications to add an LPG mixer. LPG produces fewer toxic emissions and is a popular fuel for fork lift trucks that have to operate inside buildings.
[edit] Electric
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(tagged since August 2007)
The first electric cars were built in the early 1880s shortly before internal combustion powered cars appeared. For a period of time electrics were considered superior due to the silent nature of electric motors compared to the very loud noise of the gasoline engine. This supreme advantage was removed with Hiram Percy Maxim's invention of the muffler in 1897. Thereafter internal combustion powered cars had two critical advantages: 1) long range and 2) high specific energy (far lower weight of petrol fuel versus weight of batteries). The building of battery electric vehicles that could rival internal combustion models had to wait for the introduction of modern semiconductor controls and improved batteries. Because they can deliver a high torque at low revolutions electric cars do not require such a complex drive train and transmission as internal combustion powered cars. Some post-2000 electric car designs are able to accelerate from 0-60 mph (96 km/hour) in 4.0 seconds with a top speed around 130 mph (210 km/h). Others have a range of 250 miles (400 km) on the EPA highway cycle requiring 3-1/2 hours to completely charge. Equivalent fuel efficiency to internal combustion is not well defined but some press reports give it at around 135 mpg(1.74 l/100 km). Also, in 1996, there were a series of cars called EV1 manufatcured by General Motors, but ended in 1999.
[edit] Steam
Steam power, usually using an oil or gas heated boiler, was also in use until the 1930s but had the major disadvantage of being unable to power the car until boiler pressure was available. It has the advantage of being able to produce very low emissions as the combustion process can be carefully controlled. Its disadvantages include poor heat efficiency and extensive requirements for electric auxiliaries.[13]
[edit] Gas turbine
In the 1950s there was a brief interest in using gas turbine (jet) engines and several makers including Rover produced prototypes. In spite of the power units being very compact, high fuel consumption, severe delay in throttle response, and lack of engine braking meant no cars reached production.
[edit] Rotary (Wankel) engines
Rotary Wankel engines were introduced into road cars by NSU with the Ro 80 and later were seen in several Mazda models. In spite of their impressive smoothness, poor reliability and fuel economy led to them largely disappearing. Mazda, however, has continued research on these engines and overcame most of the earlier problems.
[edit] Future developments
Much current research and development is centered on hybrid vehicles that use both electric power and internal combustion. Research into alternative forms of power also focus on developing fuel cells, Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI), stirling engines[14], and even using the stored energy of compressed air or liquid nitrogen.
[edit] Safety
Main articles: Car safety and Automobile accident
Result of a serious automobile accident.
Result of a serious automobile accident.
Road traffic injuries represent about 25% of worldwide injury-related deaths (the leading cause) with an estimated 1.2 million deaths (2004) each year.[15]
Automobile accidents are almost as old as automobiles themselves. Early examples include Mary Ward, who became one of the first documented automobile fatalities in 1869 in Parsonstown, Ireland,[16] and Henry Bliss, one of the United State's first pedestrian automobile casualties in 1899 in New York.[17]
Cars have many basic safety problems - for example, they have human drivers who make mistakes, wheels that lose traction when the braking, turning or acceleration forces are too high. Some vehicles have a high center of gravity and therefore an increased tendency to roll over. When driven at high speeds, collisions can have very serious or fatal consequences.
Early safety research focused on increasing the reliability of brakes and reducing the flammability of fuel systems. For example, modern engine compartments are open at the bottom so that fuel vapors, which are heavier than air, vent to the open air. Brakes are hydraulic and dual circuit so that failures are slow leaks, rather than abrupt cable breaks. Systematic research on crash safety started[citation needed] in 1958 at Ford Motor Company. Since then, most research has focused on absorbing external crash energy with crushable panels and reducing the motion of human bodies in the passenger compartment. This is reflected in most cars produced today.
Airbags, a modern component of automobile safety
Airbags, a modern component of automobile safety
Significant reductions in death and injury have come from the addition of Safety belts and laws in many countries to require vehicle occupants to wear them. Airbags and specialised child restraint systems have improved on that. Structural changes such as side-impact protection bars in the doors and side panels of the car mitigate the effect of impacts to the side of the vehicle. Many cars now include radar or sonar detectors mounted to the rear of the car to warn the driver if he or she is about to reverse into an obstacle or a pedestrian. Some vehicle manufacturers are producing cars with devices that also measure the proximity to obstacles and other vehicles in front of the car and are using these to apply the brakes when a collision is inevitable. There have also been limited efforts to use heads up displays and thermal imaging technologies similar to those used in military aircraft to provide the driver with a better view of the road at night.
There are standard tests for safety in new automobiles, like the EuroNCAP and the US NCAP tests.[18] There are also tests run by organizations such as IIHS and backed by the insurance industry.[19]
Despite technological advances, there is still significant loss of life from car accidents: About 40,000 people die every year in the United States, with similar figures in European nations. This figure increases annually in step with rising population and increasing travel if no measures are taken, but the rate per capita and per mile traveled decreases steadily. The death toll is expected to nearly double worldwide by 2020. A much higher number of accidents result in injury or permanent disability. The highest accident figures are reported in China and India. The European Union has a rigid program to cut the death toll in half by 2010, and member states have started implementing measures.
Automated control has been seriously proposed and successfully prototyped. Shoulder-belted passengers could tolerate a 32 g emergency stop (reducing the safe inter-vehicle gap 64-fold) if high-speed roads incorporated a steel rail for emergency braking. Both safety modifications of the roadway are thought to be too expensive by most funding authorities, although these modifications could dramatically increase the number of vehicles able to safely use a high-speed highway. This makes clear the often-ignored fact road design and traffic control also play a part in car wrecks; unclear traffic signs, inadequate signal light placing, and poor planning (curved bridge approaches which become icy in winter, for example), also contribute.
[edit] Economics and Impacts
The neutrality of this section is disputed.
Please see the discussion on the talk page.
The hydrogen powered FCHV (Fuel Cell Hybrid Vehicle) was developed by Toyota in 2005
The hydrogen powered FCHV (Fuel Cell Hybrid Vehicle) was developed by Toyota in 2005
[edit] Cost and benefits of ownership
Main article: Economics of automobile ownership
The costs of automobile ownership, which may include the cost of: acquiring the vehicle, repairs, maintenance, fuel, depreciation, parking fees, tire replacement, taxes and insurance,[20] are weighed against the cost of the alternatives, and the value of the benefits - perceived and real - of vehicle ownership. The benefits may include personal freedom, mobility, independence and convenience.[21]
[edit] Cost and benefits to society
Main article: Effects of the automobile on societies
Similarly the costs to society of encompassing automobile use, which may include those of: maintaining roads, pollution, public health, health care, and of disposing of the vehicle at the end of its life, can be balanced against the value of the benefits to society that automobile use generates. The societal benefits may include: economy benefits, such as job and wealth creation, of automobile production and maintenance, transportation provision, society wellbeing derived from leisure and travel opportunities, and revenue generation from the tax opportunities. The ability for humans to move rapidly from place to place has far reaching implications for the nature of our society. People can now live far from their workplaces, the design of cities can be determined as much by the need to get vehicles into and out of the city as the nature of the buildings and public spaces within the city.[22]
[edit] Impacts on society
Globe icon The examples and perspective in this section may not represent a worldwide view of the subject.
Please improve this article or discuss the issue on the talk page.
Transportation is a major contributor to air pollution in most industrialised nations. According to the American Surface Transportation Policy Project nearly half of all Americans are breathing unhealthy air. Their study showed air quality in dozens of metropolitan areas has got worse over the last decade.[23] In the United States the average passenger car emits 11,450 lbs (5 tonnes) of carbon dioxide, along with smaller amounts of carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, and nitrogen.[24] Residents of low-density, residential-only sprawling communities are also more likely to die in car collisions, which kill 1.2 million people worldwide each year, and injure about forty times this number.[25] Sprawl is more broadly a factor in inactivity and obesity, which in turn can lead to increased risk of a variety of diseases.[26]
[edit] Improving the positive and reducing the negative impacts
Fuel taxes may act as an incentive for the production of more efficient, hence less polluting, car designs (e.g. hybrid vehicles) and the development of alternative fuels. High fuel taxes may provide a strong incentive for consumers to purchase lighter, smaller, more fuel-efficient cars, or to not drive. On average, today's automobiles are about 75 percent recyclable, and using recycled steel helps reduce energy use and pollution.[27] In the United States Congress, federally mandated fuel efficiency standards have been debated regularly, passenger car standards have not risen above the 27.5 miles per gallon standard set in 1985. Light truck standards have changed more frequently, and were set at 22.2 miles per gallon in 2007.[28] Alternative fuel vehicles are another option that is less polluting than conventional petroleum powered vehicles.
[edit] Future car technologies
Main article: Future car technologies
Automobile propulsion technologies under development include hybrid cars, battery electric vehicles, hydrogen cars, and various alternative fuels. New materials which may replace steel car bodies include duraluminum, fiberglass, carbon fiber, and carbon nanotubes.
[edit] Alternatives to the automobile
Main article: Alternatives to the automobile
Established alternatives for some aspects of automobile use include public transit (buses, trolleybuses, trains, subways, monorails, tramways), cycling, walking, rollerblading and skateboarding. Car-share arrangements are also increasingly popular – the U.S. market leader has experienced double-digit growth in revenue and membership growth between 2006 and 2007, offering a service that enables urban residents to "share" a vehicle rather than own a car in already congested neighborhoods.[29] Bike-share systems have been tried in some European cities, including Copenhagen and Amsterdam. Similar programs have been experimented with in a number of U.S. Cities.[30] Additional individual modes of transport, such as personal rapid transit could serve as an alternative to automobiles if they prove to be socially accepted.[31]
[edit] Further reading
Articles relating to automobile configurations Car body style and classification 2 plus 2, Antique car, Cabrio coach, Cabriolet, City car, Classic car, Compact car, Compact executive car, Compact MPV, Compact SUV, Convertible, Coupé, Coupé convertible, Coupe utility, Crossover SUV, Custom car, Drophead coupe, Executive car, Fastback, Full-size car, Grand tourer, Hardtop, Hatchback, Hot hatch, Hot rod, Large family car, Leisure activity vehicle, Liftback, Limousine, Luxury car, Microcar, Mid-size car, Mini MPV, Mini SUV, Minivan, Multi-purpose vehicle, Muscle car, Notchback, Panel van, Personal luxury car, Pickup truck, Retractable hardtop, Roadster, Sedan, Saloon, Small family car, Sport compact, Sports car, Sport utility vehicle, Spyder, Station wagon, Estate car, Supermini, Targa top, Taxicab, Touring car, Town car, T-top, Tow truck, Ute, Van, Voiturette
Specialised vehicles Amphibious vehicle, Driverless car, Gyrocar, Flying car
Propulsion technologies Internal combustion engine, Electric vehicle, Neighborhood electric vehicle, Hybrid vehicle, Battery electric vehicle, Hydrogen vehicle, Fuel cell, Plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, Steam car, Alternative fuel cars, Biodiesel, Gasohol, Ethanol, LPG (Propane), Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition, Liquid Nitrogen, Gasoline Direct Injection
Driven wheels Two-wheel drive, Four-wheel drive, Front-wheel drive, Rear-wheel drive, All-wheel drive
Engine positioning Front engine, Rear engine, Mid engine
Layout FF layout, FR layout, MR layout, MF layout, RR layout
Engine configuration (internal combustion types only) Flat engine, Flathead engine, Four-stroke cycle, H engine, Inline engine, Pushrod engine, Reciprocating engine, Single cylinder engine, Straight engine, Straight-6, Two-stroke cycle, V engine, W engine, Wankel engine
Engine fuel type Diesel engine, Electric car, Gasoline engine, Hybrid vehicle, Hydrogen vehicle, Steam car
Articles relating to parts of automobiles and other topics Body Framework Body-on-frame, Bumper, Cabrio coach, Chassis, Continental tire, Crumple zone, Dagmar bumpers, Decklid, Fender, Fender skirts, Grille, Hood, Hood scoop, Monocoque construction, pillar, Pontoon fenders, Quarter panel, Shaker scoop, Spoiler, Subframe, Tonneau
Compartments Trunk, Hood
Doors Butterfly doors, Gull-wing door, Scissor doors, Suicide door
Glass Sunroof, Greenhouse, sun visor, Windshield, Windscreen wiper, Windshield washer fluid
Car mirror Power mirrors
Other dashboard, Curb feeler, Bumper sticker, Hood ornament, Japan Black paint, Monsoonshield, Nerf bar, Tow hitch, Truck accessory
Exterior Equipment Lighting Daytime running lamp, Foglamp, Headlamp, Headlight styling, Hidden headlamps, High intensity discharge, Retroreflector, Sealed beam, Trafficators
Legal and other Vehicle registration plate, Vanity plate, distance sensor, park sensor
Car engine Air/Fuel Air filter, Air fuel ratio meter, Automatic Performance Control, Blowoff valve, Boost, Boost controller, Butterfly valve, Carburetor, Charge cooler, Centrifugal type supercharger, Cold air intake, Engine management system, Engine Control Unit, Forced induction, Front mounted intercooler, Fuel filter, Fuel injection, Fuel pump, Fuel tank, Gasoline direct injection, Indirect injection, Intake, Intercooler, Manifold, Manifold vacuum, Mass flow sensor, Naturally-aspirated engine, Piston, Ram-air intake, Scroll-type supercharger, Short ram air intake, Supercharger, Throttle body, Top mounted intercooler, Turbocharger, Turbocharged Direct Injection, Twin-turbo, Variable Length Intake Manifold, Variable geometry turbocharger. Warm air intake
Exhaust Catalytic converter, Emissions control devices, Exhaust pipe, Exhaust system, Glasspack, Muffler, Oxygen sensor
Cooling Aircooling, Antifreeze, Ethylene glycol, Radiator, Thermostat
Ignition system Starter, Car battery, Contact breaker, Distributor, Electrical ballast, Ignition coil, Lead-acid battery, Magneto, Spark-ignition, Spark plug
Other Balance shaft, Block heater, Crank. Cam, Camshaft, Connecting rod, Combustion chamber, Crank pin, Crankshaft, Crossflow cylinder head, Crossplane, Desmodromic valve, Engine knocking, Compression ratio, Crank sensor, Cylinder, Cylinder bank, Cylinder block, Cylinder head, Cylinder head porting, Dump valve,Engine balance, Oil filter, Firing order, Freeze plug, Gasket, Head gasket, Hypereutectic piston, Hydrolock, Lean burn, Main bearing, Motor oil, Multi-valve, Oil sludge, Overhead camshaft, Overhead valve, PCV valve, Piston, Piston ring, Pneumatic valve gear, Poppet valve, Power band, Redline, Reverse-flow cylinder head, Rocker arm, Seal, Sleeve valve, Starter ring gear, Synthetic oil, Tappet, Timing belt, Timing mark, Top dead centre, Underdrive pulleys, Valve float, Variable valve timing
Interior equipment Instruments Backup camera, Boost gauge, Buzzer, Car computer, Carputer, Fuel gauge, Global Positioning System and Navigation system,Head-Up Display, Idiot light, Malfunction Indicator Lamp, Night vision, Odometer, Radar detector, Speedometer, Tachometer, Trip computer
Controls Bowden cable, Cruise control (speed control), Electronic throttle control, Gear stick, Hand brake, Manettino dial, Steering wheel, Throttle,
Motor vehicle theft deterrence Key, car alarm, ESITrack, Immobiliser, Klaxon, Vehicle tracking system, VIN etching
Passenger safety & seating Airbag, Armrest, Automatic seatbelt, Bench seat, Bucket seat, Child safety lock, Dicky seat, Passive safety, Rumble seat, Seat belt
Other Air conditioning, Ancillary power, Car audio, Car phone, Center console, Dashboard, Glove compartment, Motorola connector, Power window, Rear-view mirror
Powertrain Wheels and Tires All-terrain tire, Bias-ply tire, Contact patch, Custom wheel, Drive wheel, Hubcap, Magnesium alloy wheel, Mud-terrain tyre, Paddle tires, Radial tire, Rostyle wheel, Run flat tire, Schrader valve, Slick tire, Spinner, Tire code, Tire Pressure Monitoring System, Tread, Treadwear rating, Whitewall tire, Wire wheels
Transmission Automatic transmission, Clutch, Continuously variable transmission, Differential, Driveshaft, Electrorheological clutch, Epicyclic gearing, Fluid coupling, Fully-automatic transmission, Gear stick, Gearbox, Hydramatic, Limited slip differential, Locking differential, Manual transmission, Roto Hydramatic, Saxomat, Semi-automatic transmission, Semi-automatic transmission, Super Turbine 300, Tiptronic Torque converter, Transmission (mechanics), Transmission Control Unit, Turbo-Hydramatic, Universal joint
Steering Ackermann steering geometry, Anti-lock braking system, Camber angle, Car handling, Caster angle, Oversteer, Power steering, Rack and pinion, Toe angle, Torque steering, Understeer
Suspension Axle, Beam axle, Coil spring, De Dion tube, Double wishbone, Electronic Stability Control, Hydragas, Hydrolastic, Hydropneumatic suspension, Independent suspension, Kingpin, Leaf spring, Live axle, MacPherson strut, Multi-link suspension, Panhard rod, Semi-trailing arm suspension, Shock absorber, Sway bar, Swing axle, Torsion beam suspension, Transaxle, Trailing arm, Unsprung weight, Watt's linkage, Wishbone suspension
Brakes Anti-lock braking system, Disc brake, Drum brake, Hand brake, Hydraulic brake, Inboard brake, Brake lining, Brake fade, Brake fluid, Hydraulic fluid, Brake bleeding, Engine braking, Electronic brakeforce distribution, Regenerative brake
[edit] Other automotive topics
* Car donation
* Driving
* U.S. Automobile Production Figures - production figures for each make from 1899 to present
* V2V
[edit] References
1. ^ (1976) Pocket Oxford Dictionary. London: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-861113-7.
2. ^ WorldMapper - passenger cars.
3. ^ SA MOTORING HISTORY - TIME LINE. Government of South Australia.
4. ^ Setright, L. J. K. (2004). Drive On!: A Social History of the Motor Car. Granta Books. ISBN 1-86207-698-7.
5. ^ a b c Ralph Stein (1967). The Automobile Book. Paul Hamlyn Ltd.
6. ^ Wakefield, Ernest H. (1994). History of the Electric Automobile. Society of Automotive Engineers, Inc.. ISBN 1-56091-299-5.
7. ^ Burgess Wise, D. (1970). Veteran and Vintage Cars. London: Hamlyn. ISBN 0-600-00283-7.
8. ^ a b c Georgano, N. (2000). Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile. London: HMSO. ISBN 1-57958-293-1.
9. ^ Past projects, NavLab.
10. ^ DARPA Urban Challenge.
11. ^ Global Climate Change. U.S. Department of Energy. Retrieved on 2007-03-03.
12. ^ a b Norbye, Jan (1988). Automotive fuel injection Systems. Haynes Publishing. ISBN 0-85429-755-3.
13. ^ Setright, L.J.K. "Steam: The Romantic Illusion", in Ward, Ian, ed., World of Automobiles (London: Orbis Publishing, 1974), pp.2168-2173.)
14. ^ Paul Werbos. www.werbos.com/E/WhoKilledElecPJW.htm. Retrieved on 2007-04-10.
15. ^ World report on road traffic injury prevention.
16. ^ www.universityscience.ie/pages/scientists/sci_mary_ward.php. Retrieved on 2007-04-10.
17. ^ CityStreets - Bliss plaque.
18. ^ SaferCar.gov - NHTSA.
19. ^ Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
20. ^ car operating costs. my car. RACV.
21. ^ Setright, L. J. K. (2004). Drive On!: A Social History of the Motor Car. Granta Books. ISBN 1-86207-698-7.
22. ^ John A. Jakle, Keith A. Sculle. (2004). Lots of Parking: Land Use in a Car Culture. ISBN 0813922666.
23. ^ Clearing the Air. The Surface Transportation Policy Project (2003-08-19). Retrieved on [[2007-04-26]].
24. ^ Emission Facts. United States Environmental Protection Agency.
25. ^ World report on road traffic injury prevention. World Health Organization.
26. ^ Our Ailing Communities. Metropolis Magazine.
27. ^ Automobiles and the Environment. Greenercars.com.
28. ^ CAFE Overview - Frequently Asked Questions. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
29. ^ Flexcar Expands to Philadelphia. Green Car Congress (2007-04-02).
30. ^ About Bike Share Programs. Tech Bikes MIT.
31. ^ Jane Holtz Kay (1998). Asphalt Nation: how the automobile took over America, and how we can take it back. ISBN 0520216202
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