Bob Carter

Toyota says the iconic gas-electric hybrid is still important because it provides a preview of how the Mirai fuel cell vehicle will land, in a culture that may not yet be ready for it.

Toyota Senior VP Bob Carter responds to recent comments by Tesla CEO Elon Musk that hydrogen fuel cells are "an extremely silly way to store energy" and that FCEV shortcomings will become plainly evident in the next few years.

Last week, Toyota let it be known that a number of its more-popular vehicles were subject to a "stop-sale" order due to faulty seat heaters on these vehicles. No injuries were reported, but the problem affected a lot of models, including the 2013 and 2014 Camry, Camry Hybrid, Sebastian Blanco

Toyota's Bob Carter has been talking about green cars Sebastian Blanco

Many gearheads will remember that the 1970s-era Dodge Dart's claim to fame was that its motor was so durable (though not necessarily powerful) that one could shoot bullets into the engine block. Decades later, Toyota has taken a page out of that testing process.

Last week, Toyota unveiled the all-new RAV4 EV and announced two important numbers: a $49,800 MSRP and a sales target of just 2,600 over the next three years. There's more to the story, though, as told to us by Bob Carter, group vice president and general manager of Toyota Division at Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. The short version

Toyota saw another unfortunate month of sales in September. The automaker saw its sales figures fall by 18 percent compared to the same time last year, thanks largely to lower-than-average dealer inventory brought on by this year's earthquake and tsunami disasters. Toyota sold 121,451 vehicles in the U.S. last month across its three brands. The company moved 147,162 vehicles during the month of September last year.

What price a reputation? That's what Toyota will be learning in the months and years ahead as it struggles to recover from the safety scandal that has enveloped the company since it announced the first recall for unintended acceleration in October 2009.

2012 Toyota Prius V – Click above for the high-res image gallery

The first decade of the Toyota Prius – Click above for high-res image gallery

Toyota conspiracy theorists have it wrong

Bob Carter, group vice president and general manager of the Toyota brand, came to Detroit on Monday to have lunch with some local media. Among the topics of discussion at the gathering were Toyota's plans for zero emissions vehicles.

The California Clean Tech Open is a competition that encourages the development of environmentally friendly technologies. The competition has five categories: Energy Efficiency, Renewable Energy, Smart Power, Transportation, and Water Management. The Open announced today that Lexus will sponsor the $50,000 prize for the Transportation category which includes technologies designed for greater fuel efficiency, nano-materials, and reduced use of gasoline. Says Bob Carter, Lexus vice president and g