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Toyota Australia has started exporting its new locally built 4-cylinder engines to Thailand and Malaysia for the first time. Now, the new Toyota’s Altona engine plant in Victoria has begun full production of the new 4 cylinder AR series engine.

Approximately 18,000 engines are estimated to be exported in 2013, while more than 90,000 engines will be fitted to Toyota Australia’s locally built Camry and Camry Hybrid sedans for domestic and export markets. Approximately 108,000 engines will be produced this year, of which 85 per cent will be petrol engines and 15 per cent hybrid.

The first shipment of both petrol and hybrid engines are expected to arrive in February 2013 to Thailand and Malaysia.

Today, Toyota Australia has officially opened its new engine plant, making it the first Australian car manufacturer to produce both petrol and hybrid engines.

The engine plant is located in Altona, west of Melbourne, the plant will produce approximately 108,000 four cylinder 2.5 litre engines per year for its locally built Camry and Camry Hybrid sedans. The engines produced in Altona plant will also be exported to Thailand and Malaysia.

The event was attended by the Australian Prime Minister, the Hon. Julia Gillard; Victorian Premier, the Hon. Ted Baillieu; Federal Minister for Industry and Innovation, the Hon. Greg Combet AM; Victorian Minister for Manufacturing, Exports and Trade, the Hon. Richard Dalla-Riva; Mr Seiichi Sudo, Senior Managing Officer, Toyota Motor Corporation; and His Excellency, Mr Yoshitaka Akimoto, Ambassador of Japan.

Toyota Australia President and CEO, Mr Max Yasuda said the official opening was a proud day for the Australian car industry and testament to the company’s team members who helped secure the new engine plant investment.

“This is a great day for Toyota Australia. The official opening of the new engine plant is part of our overall mission to transform our operations and build a more sustainable business,” Mr Yasuda said.

“We are now one of only four countries in the world to produce the AR four cylinder engine and are the first Australian car manufacturer to produce petrol-electric hybrid engines.”

Mr Yasuda said the unveiling demonstrated the efforts Toyota was taking to transform its operations to ensure local car manufacturing can maintain its presence in a highly competitive marketplace.

“I am a true believer in local car making. We are working to create a new, stronger business that gives us a competitive advantage that is sustainable and profitable for the future. Building a new engine plant in Australia is at the heart of our manufacturing strategy.

“The new engine plant is a significant milestone for Toyota Australia. It enables us to maintain our workforce and further develop our technologies, skills and products so we can continue building engines and cars in Australia for many years to come.”

Mr Yasuda praised the strong desire of both the Federal and State Governments to see more advanced car making technologies introduced to Australia. Along with support from the Victorian Government, the Federal Government contributed $63 million to the commissioning of the new engine plant from its Green Car Innovation Fund.

“An ongoing partnership between local car makers, the government and suppliers is fundamental for ensuring Australian industry can compete,” Mr Yasuda said.

The new 2.5 litre engine boasts significant improvements in fuel efficiency and greater power than the previous 2.4 litre engine. In the current generation Camry this has contributed to an 11 per cent reduction in fuel consumption and a 13 per cent reduction for the Camry Hybrid.

The engine plant has been in development since October 2011. It replaces the original engine plant built in 1978, which was Toyota’s first engine manufacturing plant built outside Japan. The plant will go into full production from 14 January 2013 and produce approximately 450 engines per day.

Toyota Australia has been building cars in Australia for almost 50 years. In August 2012 it achieved one million exports sales, making it the first Australian manufacturer to do so. Later this month Toyota will also build its three millionth locally built vehicle.

The All new Toyota Camry has official launched in Malaysia last Friday (1st of June).  To start off, 3 variants will be available for customers to purchase. The all new 2.5V engine Camry and the 2.0G model and 2.0E model.

The model year 2012 Toyota Camry – code name (XV50), are set to capture their market of spacious, comfort and with a slight touch of luxury. All the Toyota Camry variants now comes with HID Projector headlights with auto leveling function.

This Toyota Camry 2012 2.5V has fitted in with standard aerokit with day light running LED integrated. UMW Toyota’s move is smart to keep up the market trend.  The Camry with the aerokit does stand out more when compare to the one without Camry. The aerokits are optional so customer that wish to go for the either the 2.5V , 2.0G or 2.0E variant that would love to have this additional aerokit, they can do so as an optional accessory from UMW Toyota. 

Overall, the Toyota Camry looks more squarish resembling to it’s more Luxury branded cousin, the Lexus LS range. The tail lights are also fitted with a combination of LED lights for better glow thus better visibility and styling. The all round aerokit it’s more to a personally preference, some customers might find it bulky.

The dashboard looks more refine as compare to the previous generation of Toyota Camry. The 6.1 inch DVD-audio-navigation screen, in car entertainment system are available as an optional purchase. The 2.5V Camry will have additional switches as it will have the integrate Bluetooth Hands free connectivity for mobile phone and cruise control that is available in 2.0G as well.

Inside, the 2.5V and 2.0G Camry will be fitted with leather seats, where as the Toyota Camry 2.0E will be fitted with fabric seats. The seats on the 2.5V and 2.0G are electronic adjustable where as the 2.0E variant will remain as manual adjustable.

The engine of the 2.5V is powered by a 2.5L DUAL VVTI engine. This engine pushes 181PS with 231Nm torque. Mated with a 6 speed automatic gearbox. The 2.5V Camry would be a good tourer car.  However disappointingly the 2.0E and 2.0G are still using the same engine & gearbox with the past 2 generation of Camry but it is said that both engine for the 2.0L and the gearbox has been enhanced.

The manual rear window sun shades and keyless enty with push-start button are only available in the Toyota Camry 2.5V variant.

Colours that are available for the new Camry are, White Pearl CS, Attitude Black, Silver Metallic & Medium Silver Metallic. Price ranging from RM 149,900.00  for 2.0E , RM 157,900.00 for 2.0G and for the top of the range 2.5V will be RM 180,900.00. I would personally go for the 2.5V Camry variant if i have the bucks simply because it feels more like a completely new Camry, with a new engine and gearbox & the features that is only available on the 2.5V variant.

Photo Gallery: 2012 Toyota Camry 2.5V and 2.0G

Many of us probably already knew that UMW Toyota Motor has announced the order taking of the all new Toyota Camry which started on 2nd April 2012. The all-new Toyota Camry car will be launching in Malaysia together with the well-liked new Toyota 86 rear-wheel drive coupe in next month.

Check out the new YouTube video of the all-new Toyota Camry for Malaysian market.

Below is the summary of the estimated On-The Road price (OTR) and colours that are available for the all new Toyota Camry variants.

The first generation Toyota Aurion was introduced in Australia’s large car market since its introduction in 2006. The Camry-based Aurion is also sold in the majority of Middle East, China, Taiwan and parts of Southeast Asia as the Toyota Camry with revised front and rear-end treatment, along with changes to the interior. For now, the second generation Toyota Aurion launched in Australia.

Probably you are aware that UMW Toyota Motor will be launching the new generation Toyota Camry in coming June 2012 and open for pre-booking in Malaysia. Well, the new Camry in Malaysia will look similar as the new Aurion but with a smaller capacity engine, less fancy and locally assembled in Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia.

Back to this topic, Toyota Aurion is the third of Toyota’s Australia manufactured vehicle portfolio at Altona manufacturing plant in Victoria, Australia. The second generation Toyota Aurion has five model grades – AT-X, Prodigy, Presara, Sportivo SX6 and Sportivo ZR6.

All model come with all-alloy 3.5-litre quad cam dual-VVT-i engine delivers 200kW of power @ 6200rpm and 336Nm of torque @ 4700rpm. It is mated to an electronically-controlled 6-speed sequential-shift transmission, with paddle shift on Sportivo models. Officially, the new Aurion has combined-cycle fuel economy of 9.3 litres/100km and CO2 emissions of 215g/km.

All models are well specified, with 7 SRS airbags, seatbelt warnings on all five seats, vehicle stability control (VSC), traction control (TRC), dual-zone automatic climate-controlled air conditioning, reversing camera, five alloy wheels (include the spare tyre), 60/40 split-fold seats for the first time, multi-information display, Eco indicator, display audio with USB input and iPod connectivity, acoustic windscreen, dual exhaust, chrome rear garnish and rocker moulding, Optitron instruments and integrated side indicators in the exterior mirrors. Moreover, Toyota Aurion has all-new steering, with new steering hardware and electric power-assisted steering (EPS) for the first time.

The entry-level model also has a power-operated driver’s seat with lumbar support. Aurion AT-X can be optioned at additional cost with a leather-accented interior or 17-inch alloy wheels (from 16-inch).

The Prodigy model adds the interior features of premium four-spoke steering wheel, leather-accented interior with premium door trim, electro-chromatic interior mirror, electric rear sunshade, driver’s seat memory including exterior mirror settings, power-operated front passenger’s seat and smart entry/smart start.  Outside, it has 17-inch alloys, rain-sensing wipers, exterior mirror dipping in reverse, front fog lamps, chrome door handles, front and rear clearance sonar, and metallic/mica paints standard. A moonroof is available as optional.

The new flagship Presara model adds JBL premium audio with seven-inch screen display, digital radio, satellite navigation with live traffic updates and back-guide monitor. The new Presara also has HID headlamps with the Toyota adaptive front-lighting system (AFS), automatic high beam, blind spot monitor (BSM), moonroof and additional woodgrain-look inserts in the instrument panel, door trims and gear shifter area.

The Sport-grade models build from the features of the Aurion AT-X. The new Sportivo SX6 has the additional exterior features over the AT-X of sports suspension, 17-inch sport alloy wheels, front and rear spoilers, sports diffuser, front fog lamps and metallic/mica paint. Inside, Sportivo SX6 has the added features over the AT-X of quick response paddle shift, sports pedals, premium three-spoke steering wheel, sports front seats, power front passenger’s seat, sports Optitron combination meter and smart entry/smart start.

The top-grade Sportivo ZR6 model adds automatic high beam, rain-sensing windscreen wipers, HID headlamps with AFS, BSM, front and rear clearance sonar, and exterior mirrors dipping in reverse. It also adds sports leather-accented interior with premium door trims, driver’s seat memory including exterior mirror settings, JBL premium audio with seven-inch display, digital radio, satellite navigation with live traffic updates, electro-chromatic interior mirror and back-guide monitor. A moonroof is available as optional on both Sportivo models.

All-new 2012 Toyota Aurion pricing in Australia

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