Toyota President Lists his Favorite Cars Made by Domestic Rivals

Toyota President Akio Toyoda is not one your typical automotive CEOs, as believe it or not, the 56-year old grandson of the Japanese company's founder actually likes cars [...]. He is a full-time car guy and a weekend racer who has even competed in the Nürburgring 24 hour endurance race.

And like any other car buff, Toyoda's list of favorite cars is not restricted to one brand. However, unlike other automotive executives, Toyoda has no problem revealing which cars he likes from Toyota's domestic competitors in public.

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Toyota President Lists his Favorite Cars Made by Domestic Rivals

Toyota President Akio Toyoda is not one your typical automotive CEOs, as believe it or not, the 56-year old grandson of the Japanese company's founder actually likes cars [...]. He is a full-time car guy and a weekend racer who has even competed in the Nürburgring 24 hour endurance race.

And like any other car buff, Toyoda's list of favorite cars is not restricted to one brand. However, unlike other automotive executives, Toyoda has no problem revealing which cars he likes from Toyota's domestic competitors in public.

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General Motors in Talks with Isuzu on Acquiring a 10% Stake

It has been three years since General Motors sold back its stake in Japanese car and truck manufacturer Isuzu after the Detroit company went into bankruptcy in 2009, though the two automakers never terminated their collaboration as evidenced by the new Chevrolet Colorado and the latest Isuzu D-Max pickup trucks.

Now we learn from Reuters that GM is interested in entering a new capital tie-up with Isuzu, reportedly to launch joint projects for commercial vehicles in Asia as well as Central and South America.

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General Motors in Talks with Isuzu on Acquiring a 10% Stake

It has been three years since General Motors sold back its stake in Japanese car and truck manufacturer Isuzu after the Detroit company went into bankruptcy in 2009, though the two automakers never terminated their collaboration as evidenced by the new Chevrolet Colorado and the latest Isuzu D-Max pickup trucks.

Now we learn from Reuters that GM is interested in entering a new capital tie-up with Isuzu, reportedly to launch joint projects for commercial vehicles in Asia as well as Central and South America.

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Brand New Isuzu D-MAX Pickup Truck Priced from £14,499 in the UK

The new generation of the Isuzu D-MAX pickup truck will cost from £14,499 to £21,499 when it goes on sale in the UK this June, following its local premiere at the 2012 Commercial Vehicle Show in Birmingham on April 24.

The 2012 D-MAX, which is closely related to the also new Chevrolet Colorado, will be available with four specification levels and, for the first time in the UK, with an extended cab body configuration that will join the single and double cab variants.

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U Film: New Ford Ranger Spotted in Malaysia Pulling Four Trucks from the Competition

In what looks like some sort of a publicity stunt from Ford Malaysia, Carscoop reader Hafiz Zainal filmed the brand new Ford Ranger tugging four rivaling pickup trucks including (from back to front) the previous generation of the Ranger, the Mitsubishi Triton (called L200 in Europe), the Toyota HiLux and an Isuzu D-Max.

Both Rangers had an "On Tow" sign at the front and at the back and seemed to be just riding around - obviously to pique the interest of local buyers.

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Tokyo Motor Show: New Isuzu D-MAX Pickup Truck

These have been challenging times for Isuzu but the Japanese company is still holding on with its light commercial and truck offerings.

At this week's Tokyo Motor Show, Isuzu presented the Japanese premiere of its new 2012 Isuzu D-MAX mid-size pickup truck that was developed in collaboration with General Motors.

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New 2012 Isuzu D-MAX Pickup Truck is the Chevy Colorado's Asian Twin

Isuzu has long abandoned the U.S. passenger and truck market but it continues to have strong ties with General Motors, which was once its primary stockholder.

This week, the Japanese automaker revealed its all-new D-MAX pickup truck, which was designed in cooperation with GM and is a sister model to the 2012 Chevrolet Colorado that made its debut on Wednesday. Albeit on separate occasions, both pickup truck models were presented in Thailand.

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It Came From eBay Hell: The Geo Storm Pickup You Never Knew You Wanted

Few names in automotive history make the average car enthusiast’s skin crawl like, “Geo”. Geo was General Motors response to the growing number of Japanese and South Korean imports that had invaded the U.S. market. Essentially taking the most boring and insipid models from Suzuki, Toyota and Isuzu and building them stateside, Geo embodied the whole, “Who Gives A...” attitude that has made GM so reviled by some.

The Geo Storm was essentially an Isuzu Impulse stripped off all the things that would have made the latter an appealing proposition to the enthusiast: Lotus tuned suspension, turbocharger and AWD. What was left was essentially a four-cylinder sedan with two less doors and a vaguely sporty body. Still, it was a big seller for Geo and GM, no doubt leaving the corpse of Colin Chapman rolling in his grave.

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