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What is the origin of the Toyota name?

Toyota Motor Corporation was founded by the Toyoda family. The word "Toyoda" uses ten Japanese strokes to write while "Toyota" uses only eight. Eight is considered a lucky number in Japanese culture. For these reasons "Toyota" was chosen as the company's name.

What does the Toyota logo represent?

In 1990, Toyota debuted the three overlapping Ellipses logo on American vehicles. The Toyota Ellipses symbolize the unification of the hearts of our customers and the heart of Toyota products. The background space represents Toyota's technological advancement and the boundless opportunities ahead.

What do the different Toyota model names mean?

What do the different Toyota model letter ptonyms mean?

What is Bluetooth®?

Bluetooth® is a wireless standard for connecting portable devices such as mobile telephones. The Bluetooth® specification was developed and is promoted by a group of companies including Ericsson, IBM, Intel, Microsoft, Motorola, Nokia, and Toshiba with the goal of fostering connectivity between mobile electronic devices. Bluetooth® allows customers to pair their compatible phone with the available navigation system in select Toyota models.

Where do I find my VIN?

You can find your VIN in the following places:Top of the dashboard: You can find your VIN on the metal plate located on your dashboard, near the windshield on the driver's side.

Driver's-side doorjamb: You can find your VIN on the label affixed to the doorjamb on the driver's side.

Insurance card: You can find your VIN on the insurance identification card issued by your insurance company.

Vehicle registration card: You can find your VIN on the vehicle registration card issued by your Department of Motor Vehicles.

What are the oil change intervals using synthetic oil?

• Only Toyota vehicles in which 0w-20 synthetic oil is required (except 3UR-FBE Engines*) have been approved for extended oil change intervals of 18,520-kms/12-months. (However, you should continue to check the oil level regularly and top off if needed. That will help your engine get the full benefit of synthetic oil.)
• Vehicles in which 0w-20 is an option to 5w-20 mineral oil, (or 5w-30), will continue to require 9,260-km/6-month oil change intervals, even if 0w-20 oil is used.
• In the case of vehicles with 18,520 km oil change intervals, the 9,260 km service interval has not been eliminated. The traditional 9,260 km maintenance procedures (such as tire rotation) will continue to be required, and the fluid levels (such as brake fluid) will need to be checked and adjusted at this time.
• If the vehicle operation meets the standard criteria for "Special Operating Conditions" such as: driving off-road, on dirt roads, towing a trailer, making repeated short trips under 32˚ F, or extensive idling; the engine oil must be replaced at 9,260 km intervals, regardless of what type of oil is used.

*The 3UR-FBE (Flex Fuel Tundra / Sequoia) are the exceptions to this new change interval program; these engines have not been approved for the 18,520 km interval at this time. A 9,260-km/6-month oil change interval is still required for these vehicles. Also, the Flex Fuel 3UR-FBE requires a 4,630 km interval when operated on E85.

What is the minimum octane rating fuel that I should use in my vehicle?

Our 2014 model year vehicles have the following unleaded fuel minimum octane rating recommendations:

How do I start the engine using my Toyota remote engine starter?

• Press the LOCK button on the remote.
• Press the LOCK button a second time within 1 second.
• Press the LOCK button again, this time holding it for 3 seconds. The engine will start.

My vehicle has a Toyota remote engine starter. When I remotely start the engine, and then open a door to get into the vehicle, the engine turns off. Why? To help ensure your safety, and anyone near the vehicle, the remote engine starter is designed to shut the engine off when it detects any attempt to enter or move the vehicle after a remote engine start.

After remotely starting the engine, how long will the engine run before it shuts off? Any vehicle started with the remote engine starter can idle for a total of 20 minutes. Automatic engine shutdown occurs after 10 minutes, but the vehicle may be remotely started as many times as you wish for an additional 10 minutes. After 20 minutes of total operation, however, the vehicle must be started manually to reset the remote engine starter.

How do I turn off the engine using my Toyota remote engine starter?

Press the UNLOCK button on the remote.
OR
Press and hold the LOCK button for 2 or more seconds.

How far away can I be from the vehicle and the remote engine starter still work? The remote engine starter can be effectively operated up to 80 feet in an open space. The physical makeup of the surrounding environment (hills, trees, buildings etc.) may affect the remote engine starter's maximum range.

What is a hybrid battery and how long does it last?

There are two motor engines in a hybrid vehicle: one electric engine and one conventional engine. Whilst the hybrid’s conventional engine is powered by fuel such as diesel or petrol, its electric engine is driven purely by a hybrid battery.

Our hybrid battery is not like a standard car battery, but a much more sophisticated component which has been designed and engineered by Toyota to last – and keep working – for the entire lifetime of your car. Unlike a pure electric ‘plug-in’ vehicle that needs to have its battery recharged after a long journey, a hybrid battery continually recharges itself when your car is in motion.

It does this as you drive, through the car wheels turning; and even when you use your brakes, through a process called ‘regenerative energy’. In effect, hybrid cars are like small generators, continually topping their battery power up with electricity and then using it to power the electric engine - and saving on fuel costs.

Hybrid battery lifespan
Maintenance and service costs for a hybrid vehicle are similar to conventional petrol or diesel cars and your Toyota Hybrid battery is also covered by the same 5-year or 185,200-km warranty as the rest of the car.
Having an annual ‘Hybrid Health Check’ by Toyota will extend the standard warranty for another year, or 18,520 kms, meaning your hybrid battery lifespan can be covered up to a total of 11 years, with no limit on total mileage. Remember too, that Toyota’s Hybrid Health Check is free as part of your overall servicing plan – and only costs £45 should you wish to have one done as a one-off.

Hybrid battery cost
It is possible to replace a hybrid battery beyond its warranty. Prices vary depending on model as outlined below. Please contact your local dealer for more details.

Hybrid battery recycling
Toyota vehicles are amongst the most economical and environmentally friendly available and hybrid battery recycling is important to us. Removing and disposing of a hybrid battery is done by a Toyota Authorised Repairer, and, under EU Directive 2006/66/EC, we aim to recycle over 50% of the weight a hybrid battery.

How do hybrid cars compare to petrol and diesel cars for economy and emissions?

A hybrid vehicle has the advantage of being able to switch to its electric motor to drive in heavy traffic, built-up areas or at slower speeds, thereby using no fuel at all to power its conventional engine. In fact, to demonstrate the benefits of hybrid fuel economy, Toyota dealers often invite interested customers to take a hybrid for a test drive and then see just how far they can travel using the electric mode only.

Does a hybrid save you fuel?

On average, at least 50% of the journey time for our hybrid test drives is spent purely in electric mode. This means during this time the conventional engine is not needed for power and therefore no fuel has to be used.

Hybrid vs. petrol or diesel comparison
There’s no doubt that in modern driving conditions, we all get caught up in traffic or speed restricted areas, and in these situations a hybrid offers significant savings on fuel costs. It also offers reduced CO2 emissions and results in a smooth, stress-free drive. T-Charges (Toxicity Charges) are also now in effect in London, and may be on the way for other large cities, to penalise vehicles that do not meet emissions requirements. In this case, the hybrids’ greatly reduced emissions will incur no charges like ordinary petrol or diesel cars will.
Of course, as you increase speed or change to motorway driving in your hybrid vehicle, the conventional engine will kick in to give you added power and then start to use fuel as an ordinary car. In comparing hybrid vs. petrol, a Toyota hybrid offers better fuel economy and C02 emissions. In hybrid vs. diesel, the Toyota hybrid creates lower harmful NOx and PM emissions.

Will a hybrid save me money?

New Vehicle Excise Duty (car tax) rules came into effect in April 2017 and cars are charged both according to their CO2 emissions levels and their price when new. Petrol and diesel engine cars emitting 99g/km currently have an annual tax bill of £140 to pay, whereas a comparable hybrid pays £130. There are other savings to be had too. In London, for example, some hybrid cars will be exempt from the congestion charge if they emit less than 75g/km.

Fuel savings offer the main savings in running a hybrid, especially in town, as often it drives only on its electric powered engine, using electricity it self-generates in motion. So no fuel is used. This is a massive saving over a long term as fuel in the tank can be ‘eked out’.

Hybrid servicing costs

In many ways a hybrid car is much the same as a conventional car, the main difference is that it is also able to run on electricity as well as petrol or diesel. This means it also has a sophisticated nickel storage battery and electric engine that allows it to operate purely under electric power without needing recharging.
This specialist technology has been continually refined by Toyota for reliability and performance to the extent that hybrid car maintenance, servicing costs and servicing frequency - are no more than for conventional cars. It costs about the same to service a Toyota hybrid as any comparable car and can be carried out by a Toyota Authorised Repairer. Toyota’s own Hybrid Health Check is included for free with any Hybrid Service. And even if you’re not due a service, you can still benefit from the Hybrid Health Check at a cost of just $60.

Are there additional maintenance costs in running a hybrid?

The hybrid’s sophisticated nickel battery may be an expensive item to replace, but Toyota offers a 5-year, 185,200 km warranty on its batteries – the same as for the whole car, and even this warranty can be extended up to 11 years.

Strict emission charges have come into effect in London (and may be repeated in other major cities) which will penalise high emission vehicles and charge them daily fees, adding greatly to running costs. Low emissions vehicles such as hybrids and pure electric-only vehicles will largely avoid these charges. Hybrid technology has come on in leaps and bounds and the good news is that on all levels, Toyota is leading the way.

Are hybrid cars good for the environment?

How do hybrid cars reduce air pollution? It’s a question of emissions. As a general guide, petrol engines produce the most CO2 gasses and diesel engines produce pollutants, such as NOx, whilst hybrid cars have the lowest emissions.

Hybrid cars and their effect on pollution

How much a hybrid car is better for the environment than a conventional car is often subject to the size of the vehicle and the prevailing driving conditions. In comparisons between the same size and class of vehicle, say a compact city car, and driving in built-up city traffic, hybrid cars use substantially less fuel. They also have considerably lower emissions than conventional cars when running at any speeds.

Hybrid car CO2 emissions

Toyota is passionately committed to reducing CO2 emissions in our vehicles. So much so that we have set a target to cut them from our vehicles by 90% by 2050, compared to the levels we had in 2010 with our New Vehicle Zero CO2 challenge.
Find out more about how we aim to do this via the link or see below for how hybrid cars CO2 emissions compare to diesel and petrol equivalents within the Toyota range.

Hybrid cars vs. diesel and petrol cars and their environmental impact

In a direct emissions comparison between an Auris (diesel), a Yaris (petrol) and a Yaris Hybrid; the Yaris (petrol) created the highest levels of CO2 g/km, the Auris (diesel) created less, and the Toyota Yaris Hybrid emitted the least. Purely electric cars obviously have no fuel and therefore have zero CO2 emissions, but they do need daily charging of electricity, which is costly for the owner and also for the environment as this electricity needs to be generated and supplied. A hybrid car needs no recharging.

Toyota has long associations with hybrid cars and the environment and is a recognised leader in green car technology, illustrated by the recent milestone of 10 million global hybrid sales. The company pioneered the first mass-produced hybrid car, the Prius, and continues to make significant breakthroughs in hybrid technology.

What’s more, the T-Charge, which charges cars according to their emissions in central London, could easily be followed by other major cities as health concerns grow. In this case, the low-emissions of Toyota’s hybrid cars will largely avoid these potentially prohibitive daily charges.

Do I need to plug-in my Toyota Hybrid to charge it up?

There’s often some confusion between hybrid vehicles and electric vehicles and that’s because both types of vehicle have an electric engine and a rechargeable battery ‘under the bonnet’. The big difference between them is that a hybrid vehicle has two engines: an electric engine and a conventional fuel powered engine. An electric vehicle only has an electric engine.

This means the electric vehicle has to literally plug itself into a charger to charge up its battery when its power runs out - after so many kms depending on how often it is used. The hybrid vehicle, using technology pioneered and perfected by Toyota, uses its electric motor to drive around town at low speeds and then, when more power is needed, switches to its second, conventional fuel motor, to drive at higher speeds on motorways or for overtaking.

How do I charge my hybrid?

The advantage of a hybrid vehicle is that it recharges its own battery ‘on the move’ – as it’s being driven by its conventional engine - it even recharges itself when you brake, too. So, issues such as: ‘how to charge a hybrid car’, ‘where are the hybrid charging points located’, or ‘where is my nearest hybrid charging station?’ do not apply.

Charging at home?

Because you don’t have to plug in a hybrid to recharge the battery, you aren’t restricted by range. That means no overnight charging, finding power points, waiting or wires. A Toyota hybrid vehicle is electrically self-sufficient and switches automatically between its electric and petrol powered engines as and when it needs to. Obviously, you do need to fill up your tank, as you have a conventional petrol engine – but hybrid efficiency means your fuel lasts that much longer.

Can a hybrid continue to run on electricity when it runs out of fuel?

Having the advantage of both electric and petrol power doesn’t mean that you can run your hybrid without fuel. The electric and conventional engines in a hybrid are designed to work together. So even though a hybrid can operate in an electric-only mode, it must have fuel in the tank – even if only a little. Trying to run a hybrid purely on the electric engine without having the fuel to power the conventional engine will result in damage.

The Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) – the best of all worlds?

The Toyota Prius Plug-in hybrid has all the benefits of being a hybrid, but also has a hybrid charge point so you can give the larger battery an extra charge, at home or at any of the network of PHEV charging points.Now with an increased electric range of up to 72 kms with a top speed of 153km/h in electric mode as well as taking only 2 hours* to fully charge.

How does a Hybrid compare with petrol and diesel cars on mileage?

As the hybrid car increases speed, say on a motorway, then its conventional engine kicks in and it starts to use petrol just like any conventional car. However, even when taking slow speed usage out of the equation, hybrid mpg is still very impressive. You can see how the different types of power train within the Toyota range compare below.

If all the above cars were caught in traffic, or had to slow down, or went through built up areas, the Yaris Hybrid and Prius Plug-In would rely on their electric batteries more and perform at their best. We have made no comparison on fuel with a purely electric car but a typical modern all-electric vehicle may have a range of 287 kms before needing to be recharged. The main advantage of a hybrid in this context is that it needs no recharging.

Toyota’s hybrid cars are growing enormously in popularity and are especially economical in built-up driving conditions. Even in direct comparisons on non-stop driving, hybrid fuel economy and range is every bit as impressive as any comparable conventional car.