It's Throwback Thursday Friends! Remember this?

Toyota Camry NASCAR Edition Tuned...

The special two-door Toyota Camry NASCAR Edition was developed by RK Collection (RKC) to assist Toyota Racing Development (TRD) in visualizing the virtues of a standard Camry and morphing them into a powerful NASCAR counterpart.

 

The project was the visionary inspiration of Rob Kauffman, founder of RKC and co-owner of the NASCAR team Michael Waltrip Racing. The project was developed with the dual purpose of building and running a high-performance street legal Toyota Camry with a NASCAR engine. In partnership with TRD, RKC brought the concept to life with illustrations and a technical specs outline, rebuilding this one-of-a-kind high performance street machine. The vehicle was designed to showcase the technical alliance between TRD and RKC and demonstrate the connection between Toyota’s production vehicles and its strong NASCAR program.

Courtesy of House of Japan

We can't express how thankful we are to all of you for your great reviews.

"Bruce provided exceptional service. He listed to us to determine our needs and came through. This is the fifth car we have purchased at this dealership and will highly recommend."- ladam10854

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Don't forget to take advantage of our service specials for this month!

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We really appreciate all of you taking the time to share you feedback with us!

"Thanks to him and Tri County Toyota, for a great experience at a dealership."- tjwgrove

Click here to read the latest reviews we've gotten.

Thank you Carole for the excellent review!

"I've always received high level customer service from Tri-County in general and Rich Osche in particular."- Carole L.

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NEW 2013 Corolla Specials!!

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Thank you Paul for the 5-Star Review!

"The dealership provided a professional friendly truck buying experience. They went out of their way to find the vehicle I wanted at the price I wanted to pay."- Paul R.

Click here to see what he had to say about his experience.

Hybrid driving : Toyota top tips for best fuel economy!

Driving a hybrid engined car offers many benefits, including quieter running and lower tail-pipe emissions.

Our hybrid driving hints and tips will help ensure you get the very best from your car’s engine, extending fuel economy and improving MPG.

Currently, the full Toyota hybrid range includes the Toyota Prius, the seven seat Prius+, the Prius Plug-in, the Yaris Hybrid and the Auris Hybrid.

Whichever Toyota hybrid you’ve set your heart on, our guide will help you maximise your car’s range.

The basics – these will help any car’s fuel efficiency, hybrids included.

1. Tidy the boot! Removing unnecessary weight from the car will boost performance immediately
2. Consult the handbook. Ensure the car’s tyres are correctly inflated
3. Plan your journey – avoid jams or getting lost
4. Close windows and sun roof at higher speeds (above 45mph)
5. Remove unused roof racks, boxes and bike racks
6. Maintain a steady speed, and do not exceed speed limits
7. Avoid sudden braking and acceleration

Hybrid driving - sorry other car drivers, these are for hybrids only!

8. Familiarise yourself with the car’s hybrid information display so you can monitor how much energy is being used
9. Be gentle with the accelerator pedal; press it lightly but consistently, to help keep the car in EV mode
10. Use ECO mode for improved efficiency – this will reduce response to aggressive use of the accelerator
11. Gentle, early braking boosts regenerative braking, resulting in EV mode being able to operate for longer periods
12. Monitor the dials and gauges to fully understand the state of the hybrid system and manage high voltage battery levels
13. When stationary, do not select ‘N’ neutral, as electricity will not be generated and the hybrid battery will discharge
14. Consider the use of Cruise Control to maintain steady speeds
15. If using Climate Control, re-circulate mode reduces energy usage
16. Maximise your use of EV mode wherever it is appropriate to do so
17. Consider the environment! Heavy use of ancillaries like air-con, lights and wipers will increase energy consumption

Drive Modes:

There are four drive modes in Toyota hybrid cars. When you first turn on your hybrid, the car will be ready to drive in a default drive mode. This will automatically choose the most efficient use of both the engine and the battery. Using the car’s different ‘on-demand’ drive modes (see image below) will help achieve better fuel consumption.

The drive modes on a Toyota Auris Hybrid are: EV Mode (encourages the car to be powered solely by the battery when city driving), ECO Mode (the car reduces A/C output and dampens harsh acceleration) and Power Mode (which uses the battery to help boost acceleration along with the use of the engine).

The shift leaver offers four positions, R (Reverse), N (neutral), B (engine braking) and D (drive). Using position B has the effect of engine braking and can be used when descending a hill, for example. We don’t recommend you leave the car in B for normal driving as this can use more fuel over time. For normal driving we recommend you move the shift lever to D.

Read the road ahead:

When driving your hybrid, the aim is to ustilise the car’s battery. A way to do this in urban driving is to accelerate to your required speed then to ease off the accelerator then gently ease on again. Given the right conditions, you’ll see the ‘EV’ light come on to note that the engine is switched off and you’re using the electric battery.

Do try to maintain a constant speed. It’s important, always, to read the road ahead. This will reduce the amount of unnecessary braking and accelerating needed and will therefore use less fuel. Slow and gentle braking will utilise the regenerative braking system on the car.

Other factors to consider:

Many things effect a hybrid’s performance. If it’s cold, your car will use more fuel to warm up. Once it’s at its optimum temperature you’ll see your MPG figures increase. For example, you’ll achieve better MPG figures in the summer than in the winter, traveling on the same route. Also, during winter months you are more likely to use the car’s accessories such as the air conditioning system, radio, lights and window wipers. These all will use electric power from the lithium-ion battery.

For further advice on hybrid driving tips we recommend visiting the Hypermiler website.

Please note, these hybrid driving tips are published as general guidance on how to get the best fuel economy from your Toyota hybrid. Toyota encourages and supports safe driving at all times – please adhere to the rules of the road.

Courtesy of House of Japan

We can't thank you guys enough for the incredible reviews. We really appreciate it!

"We had a great experience with everyone involved with the process of purchasing a "new" car. We come back to Tri-County whenever we are looking for a car."- Gsibley

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Thank you Jesse for the excellent review!

"Best car dealer out there .This is my 3rd car from them, every time I have received great service .No pressure, just helpful pleasant sales people. They have always got the deal done for me hassle free! Thanks Pete Mistichelli for making my recent deal easy and pleasant!"- Jesse Z.

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It's Wallpaper Wedneday! Decorate yours with image.

Jim we really appreciate the 5-Star review!

"Went in late morning on a Saturday. Test drove two trucks,received an appraisal on my trade in, purchased my new truck and was home by 1:00. Overall a great experience and very friendly staff."- Jim

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50 Better Ways to Toyota Spend Winter : Winners announced

Congratulations to Steve Robertson and Nick Young, joint winners of our social competition, ‘50 Better Ways to Spend Winter‘.
Both Steve and Nick were voted for by you, for describing their dream winter breaks.

In first place was Steve Robertson who wanted to take the new Toyota Verso to the Lakes: “a family holiday in a Log Cabin in the Lake District. What better way to stave off the winter chills than in front of a roaring fire surrounded by the people you love. Heavenly!”
Following close behind was Nick Young, who wanted to take the award winning GT86 for a spin: “so I can get back to nature and use my camera to take plenty of photographs.”
Nick, we look forward to seeing some stunning shots of the GT86!
All that remains for us to do is to thank our many entrants. We had some fantastic ideas from taking a special trip to watch paragliders at Mosey to staying in Bakewell and learning how to make a Bakewell tart!
Congratulations to our two winners and also a big thank you to all those who took part.

Courtesy of House of Japan

Maintenance tip Monday: Transmission fluid.

Checking the automatic transmission fluid is another vital item on the car maintenance checklist. Look for a reservoir marked ATF (automatic transmission fluid) and follow the same steps as monitoring the oil level – only this time, with the engine running. Follow manufacturer’s recommendations for change intervals, about every 30,000 miles.

Courtesy of Nationwide

A thank you goes out to Eleanor for the excellent review!

"This is the 3rd Toyota my wife and I have leased with Fred as our Salesman (5th overall at Tri-County). He is always very helpful finding the right vehicle, getting us a great deal and guiding us through the lease process."- Eleanor

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Toyota Tundra: Nothing beyond our reach.

It's Wallpaper Wednesday! We thought we would take you back a couple years with this 1974 Celica.

Toyota wins at Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership awards!

Toyota has won a major prize for its role in reducing the environmental impact of motoring, taking the title of Car and Van Manufacturer of the Year at the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership awards at a ceremony in London last night.

Graham Smith OBE, Managing Director of Toyota Motor Europe London, was also named Outstanding Individual in Promoting Low Carbon Transport. He was the founding chairman of the UK LowCVP from 2003 to 2009 and remains a member of its board of trustees.

Announcing the awards, Andy Eastlake, LowCVP’s Managing Director, said: “In a year of outstanding growth in UK car sales, Toyota, the name synonymous with hybrids, has introduced the technology across the widest range of vehicles on the market. Thirty per cent of its sales are now of vehicles which produce less than 100g/km of CO2.

“With an impressive increase in its sales and market share, together with a UK CO2 average below 120g/km, this really does show Toyota’s strong determination to reduce carbon from cars.”

Graham Smith said: “Low carbon, low emission vehicles are important not just for the environment but also for the economy, for UK manufacturing and in reducing the motoring costs of retail and fleet buyers alike. LowCVP has played a central role in delivering these benefits and Toyota has maintained its support throughout.”

Toyota is committed not only to reduce the CO2 emissions from its vehicles, but from every aspect of its business. A large scale carbon reduction programme has been implemented across the 180-strong Toyota Centre network, which achieved a 15 per cent year-on-year CO2 reduction in 2012.

In the past year Toyota has launched four new hybrids in its strategy to make the low carbon, high efficiency benefits of the technology available to as wide a range of customers as possible. As well as low CO2 performance, these vehicles produce almost no NOx (Nitrous Oxide) and PM (Particulate Matter), emissions which impact on air quality.

The newcomers include the seven-seat Prius+ – which was named Best Green MPV by What Car? in 2012 – and Yaris Hybrid. Each has the distinction of being the first full hybrid in its market segment in Europe.

The year also saw the introduction of the new, British-built Auris Hybrid hatchback, and Prius Plug-in, Toyota’s first plug-in hybrid electric vehicle. Hybrids aside Toyota has continued to reduce the emissions and improve the fuel efficiency of its petrol and diesel powertrains across its model range.

Courtesy of House of Japan

Another excellent review just in!

"This is the 2nd Toyota I bought from this dealer. I had a 3rd which is the one I traded in. I was given a great price, great service and felt like I bought the car rather than being sold the car. The service team is great also!"-JJStaub

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What you need to know about Spark Plugs.

What is this?

Spark plugs are little devices inside the cylinder that take in high voltage electricity at one end and create a spark at the other end. There, the spark ignites the gas and air mixture, and the resulting combustion is what ultimately powers the car. This service involves removing the old spark plugs and replacing them with new ones.

Should I do this service when it's recommended?

Yes.

Why do I have to do this?

At the sparking end of the spark plug is a built-in gap between two or more little pieces of metal, called electrodes. When the plug fires, one or more sparks jump that gap and a tiny bit of the metal is burned off. This happens hundreds of times every minute. Over time, the gap between the metal tips gets too big.

Also, your spark plugs can get fouled, but that would indicate that you have a problem.

What happens if I don't do this?

Your engine will start to misfire and run poorly, performance will suffer, efficiency will decrease and emissions will dramatically increase. Your car may also be difficult to start.

Is there any maintenance required between intervals?

We recommend removing the old spark plugs and reinstalling new ones at least every 30,000 miles.

Many manufacturers have long-life, 60,000- or 90,000-mile spark plugs. If you don't remove these spark plugs until they're due to be changed, you might find it extremely difficult or even impossible to remove them when the time comes. You'll also want to examine the plugs if your car is running poorly. A blackened plug, for example, can tell you that the engine is running too rich.

Courtesy of Car Talk

The 5-Star reviews keep on coming! Thanks so much. We couldn't be prouder.

"Working with Nick was a real pleasure. He answered all of my questions and taught me everything my car can do. I love this car! Thanks!"- Bigal2

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