According to the ninth annual Avoider study published yesterday by J.D. Power and Associates, many car-buyers avoid green cars because they’re too small, look strange, or cost too much. 

As we’ve previously found from other recent surveys, gas mileage proved to be the number one influencer of car choice in the study, replacing reliability, purchase deals and exterior styling from previous years. 

Toyota has the small-car market pretty well covered. In addition to the 2012 Toyota Yaris, there are the Scion xB and iQ models, which share in many places the same showroom and the same sales lot. And that’s before even considering the only somewhat larger Matrix (and Corolla), as well as the nearly like-sized 2013 Toyota Prius C that’s on the way this year.

Against those Scion models, the all-new Toyota Yaris—especially in the SE trim that we drove—seems like the obvious pick.

But that’s not to say we’re in love with the new Yaris—or that we think it’s the strongest pick in this value-minded class. While it drives light-and-nimble, gets impressive mileage without hybrid hardware, and has a well-packaged interior that doesn’t feel cheapskate-grade, it will still ignite old memories of why some shoppers didn’t like so-called economy cars of the not-so-distant past.

After a surprisingly perfunctory Detroit Auto Show launch of the 2012 Toyota Prius C small hybrid hatchback, Toyota unveiled an all-new plug-in hybrid concept car, known as the NS4.

The company challenged multiple engineering teams to design an all-new mid-size sedan model for the global market in 2015, focusing on connectivity and the car’s interaction with its passengers.

The winner was the Toyota NS4 Concept, a dedicated plug-in hybrid vehicle separate from the Prius hybrid family of vehicles.

If you’re planning to buy a new Toyota or Lexus in the near future, pay attention. The automaker just announced pricing on a range of vehicles, and several popular models — including the 2012 Toyota Corolla, Highlander, and Tundra — are due for a price increase. Others, like the 2012 Matrix, will drop. And the 2012 Venza is a little bit of both. Here’s a breakdown:

GOING UP

Toyota is doubling down on its best-known model for gas mileage, the Prius hybrid.

It’s already added two models to sit beside the 2012 Prius five-door hatchback, and now, the last new addition to the Prius lineup has been revealed.

The 2013 Toyota Prius C, the first compact Prius since the original 2000-2003 model, was unveiled today at the Tokyo Motor Show. It will make its formal U.S. debut at the 2012 Detroit Auto Show in January.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has released new data on U.S. car theft, and the statistics aren’t especially surprising. According to the report, more Toyota Camrys were stolen than any other vehicle in America, but performance models like the Audi S8 actually had the highest rate of theft.

The data comes from 2009 (the NHTSA is still crunching numbers from 2010), and if you’re the sort of person who enjoys poring over spreadsheets, this is a fascinating way to spend your Friday afternoon. The NHTSA ranked vehicles according to their rates of theft, and at the very top of the list, we find the 2009 Audi S8.

November 30 is the day the covers finally come off the long-awaited production versions of the respective Toyota FT-86 and Subaru BRZ concept cars, but in the lead up to the unveilings more and more details about the cars continue to emerge.

While both will share most of their body panels, a common rear-wheel drive platform, and a 2.0-liter horizontally opposed ‘boxer’ engine, it appears there will still be some major differences between two to help differentiate them in the market place.

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For a few years now, hybrid sales have been stalled at 2 to 3 percent of the U.S. market. But for the first seven months of this year, the total is at the low end of the scale: Hybrids represented 2.06 percent of sales from January through August, and just 1.98 percent of sales in August alone. The top three best-selling hybrids since January are:

• Toyota Prius: The quintessential hybrid, the mid-size five-door hatchback Prius has been the best-selling hybrid in the States for many years.
  2011 EPA ratings: 51 mpg city, 48 mpg highway, 50 mpg combined

The Toyota Prius is not only the quintessential hybrid-electric vehicle, but the automaker’s third best-selling car line in the United States.

Last year, the redesigned 2010 Prius launched with the ad tagline, “Harmony between man, nature, and machine.”

The reviews of the 2012 Toyota Camry mid-size sedan are in now, and the consensus is that it’s a competitively priced mild refresh with unadventurous styling. Which may be exactly what Camry buyers are looking for.

But on one metric–gas mileage–the 2012 Camry line shines.

The 2012 Toyota Camry Hybrid model has been completely re-engineered, and the result is gas mileage that’s not only projected to be 24 percent better than the 2011 model it replaces, but gets the car past the magic 40-mpg mark.