Toyota is adding a five-door Liftback, to its popular, fuel-efficient Yaris subcompact model line for 2009.

The new five-door Yaris joins the three-door Liftback and four-door Sedan, making Yaris the only model line in its segment to offer a full complement of three body styles. Toyota projects 130,000 Yaris sales for calendar year 2009, with the new five-door accounting for about a third of those. Yaris five-door will begin arriving in dealerships in August.

Also new for 2009, all Yaris models feature as standard equipment an anti-lock brake system (ABS), front seat-mounted side airbags and front and rear curtain side airbags. Cruise control is now available on Liftback models, and audio systems are satellite ready/capable. Yaris delivers outstanding fuel economy and for 2008 was awarded the lowest cost of ownership in its segment according to Intellichoice®.

The Toyota Yaris’ 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine is equipped with variable valve timing with intelligence (VVT-i) and produces 106 horsepower at 6,000 RPM and 103 lb.-ft. of torque at 4,200 RPM. The optional four-speed automatic transmission features uphill/downhill shift logic to reduce gear “hunting” for smooth performance when driving in hills. A five-speed manual is the standard transmission.

The Yaris Sedan rides on a 100.4-inch wheelbase versus 96.9 inches for both Liftback models. The Yaris Sedan has an overall length of 169.3 inches compared to 150.6 inches for the Liftback models, and the Sedan is 2.5 inches lower than the Liftbacks, as well.

The Yaris is built around a highly rigid yet lightweight structure incorporating strategic use of high-tensile steel. Damping materials located throughout the body structure reduce noise, vibration and harshness (NVH). Suspension and steering are tuned to deliver a remarkably tight 32.6-ft. turning radius. Both the Yaris Liftback and Sedan ride on standard P175/65 R14 tires with steel wheels and full wheel covers (Sedan and Liftback S have standard P185/60R15) and offer available newly-styled 15-inch steel or aluminum-alloy wheels.

The instrument cluster is center-mounted and high on the dash to enhance forward visibility. Standard convenience features on Yaris Liftback and Sedan models include air conditioning; tilt steering wheel; digital clock; a map light; intermittent windshield wipers with mist control; and dual sunvisors with vanity mirrors. All models offer 60/40 split rear seating for three with headrests in each seating position.

Sporty S models have a newly designed front and rear underbody spoiler and a new interior color scheme distinguishes Yaris Sport models for 2009. The sport-themed Liftback and Sedan S models feature color-keyed front and rear under-bumper spoilers, sporty interior trim, rear deck spoiler, fog lamps, a leather-wrapped steering wheel and shift knob, AM/FM/CD player with MP3/WMA capability, satellite ready, integrated iPod audio unit, universal mini-jack port and “S” badging. Aluminum-alloy wheels are available.

Pricing for the all-new five-door model will be announced later this month.

Stewart announced that he will leave JG Racing- and Toyota- at the end of this season. “We’re disappointed,” said Les Unger, Toyota’s national motorsports manager. “He’s a top-notch driver, very, very popular and a twice-time champion. Are we disappointed? Of course we’re disappointed.

The move should not have a big impact on Toyota. Toyota intends to continue its relationship with JG Racing. “When we put the agreement together with the Gibbs organization, we were joining up with primarily the organization,” Unger said. “Over and above that, looking at their driver lineup [last September] and you see recently hired Kyle Busch and two mainstays in Tony and Denny [Hamlin], it made us feel real good.”

Busch has won 6 Cup races for Toyota and Hamlin has won one Cup race. Stewart has not yet won a race for Toyota.

The Japanese Labor Bureau has ruled that an unnamed Toyota engineer literally worked himself to death. Since 1987, the Japanese Health Ministry has recognized a growing problem of employees working themselves to death- known as karoshi.

The Toyota engineer averaged more than 80 hours of overtime monthly in the two months leading up to his death. His schedule included nights, weekends and frequent business trips. He died of ischemic heart disease in January 2006, just before he was to leave for a trip to the US for the Detroit Auto Show. He was working on the hybrid Camry at the time of his death.

The ruling allows his family to collect benefits from his work insurance. In a statement, Toyota offered its condolences and announced it would more closely monitor the health of its employees.

Kyle Busch registered his sixth victory of the season Saturday night in Daytona. Busch started ninth and led the race three times for a total of 31 laps.

In addition to tonight’s win, Busch has also crossed the finish line first at Atlanta, Talladega, Darlington, Dover and Sonoma, Calif.

Camry drivers have now recorded seven Sprint Cup Series wins this season.

Tony Stewart, who had flu-like symptoms that forced him from the race, and substitute driver J.J. Yeley finished 20th in the No. 20 Home Depot Camry. Other Toyota drivers in the field included Brian Vickers (11th), Dave Blaney (19th), David Reutimann (21st), Michael McDowell (25th), Denny Hamlin (26th), Michael Waltrip (27th) and AJ Allmendinger (42nd).

With his victory, Busch extended his lead in the unofficial NSCS championship point standings and holds a 182-point advantage over second-place Dale Earnhardt Jr. Other Camry drivers among the top-20 in the unofficial NSCS point standings include Hamlin (seventh), Stewart (12th) and Vickers (16th).

Scott Pruett and Memo Rojas increased their Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series point lead at Thursday night’s Brumos Porsche 250 by stealing a 0.081-second victory, the closest finish in Daytona Prototype history.

A late caution set up a one-lap dash to the finish under the lights on the road course at Daytona International Speedway, with Pruett in the No. 01 TELMEX/Chip Ganassi Racing Lexus Riley restarting on the tail of defending Series champion Alex Gurney in the Bob Stallings Racing Pontiac.

Pruett tailed Gurney, the son of racing legend and former Toyota sports car team owner Dan Gurney, all the way through the infield section of the 14-turn, 3.56-mile course. Once the two reached NASCAR turns three and four, Pruett’s Lexus power had enough to pull him into the draft and nip Gurney at the checkers by taking the outside line on the famed Daytona banking.

“Every restart, that’s the only move that I had,” Pruett said. “The 99 car was certainly quicker through the infield, and my rear tires after about two or three laps just wouldn’t hold on. I did what I could to carry a lot of speed through the bus stop (chicane on the back stretch) and out, which we were able to do, and knew there was a good chance we could get him before the start/finish.”

There was no doubt in Pruett’s mind that he was going to make a run at Gurney on the high side of the track.

“You’re always going to tend to protect your position down low, and he did that,” Pruett said of his final effort. “If he would have went high, there would have been a big crash because I had a lot of speed on him. Its one of those deals where you plan to go naturally where the other guy isn’t.”

Pruett first took the lead from Gurney on Lap 50, when his Lexus power set up a pass of Gurney just after the start/finish line that would foreshadow the final lap. Pruett led through Lap 57, when Gurney was able to get back by after the tires started to fade under Pruett’s No. 01.

From there, Pruett trailed Gurney until the restart on the white flag lap.

The last lap showdown was set up in a scary incident in which a GT-class car slid up the banking and into the path of the No. 3 Southard Motorsports Lexus of Bill Lester, flipping the GT car upside down. Neither driver was injured in the incident.

The Ganassi Racing win was set up with brilliant strategy after Rojas qualified fourth earlier in the day, and made the first stop among the race’s leaders just after the 30-minute mark in the race.

“My part of the race was very boring compared to the end, it really was just staying out of trouble,” Rojas said. “Very early, teams took different strategies, so we were all on different sequences, so I was basically riding by myself. We knew it was going to be decided at the end, and I just focused on setting a good pace and keeping out of trouble.”

The win was Pruett’s third in four races at Daytona, including back-to-back Rolex 24 wins, and stretched his record to 19 career Daytona Prototype wins.

“This is pretty big for us as a team, because we’ve never won this race at Daytona,” Pruett said of the July race. “We’ve been close, and we just never quite seemed close enough to get it done. Memo did a great job, the crew did a great job, Lexus gave us a great engine package, and we got the most out of it.”

The Southard Motorsports team once again ran a solid race, with Shane Lewis qualifying 12th and leading a lap early before being brought in for their first stop of the night. Lewis turned the car over to Lester, who brought the Lexus machine home in 12th.

“The highlight for me was to be able to lead a lap here,” Lewis said. “I was pretty bummed because the crew wanted me to pit. I was like, man, let me lead five or six laps out here because I can not only lead it, but lead them strong for a while. But I understood what their pit strategy was and I do what they ask me to do. The team needed to lap, I needed to lead a lap, to show that we have the capacity to run up front and we did.”

The victory stretched Pruett and Rojas’ championship point lead to 40 with six races to go in the Grand-Am season.

Toyota engines were prominent this weekend at a USAC doubleheader event at Altamont (Calif.) Motorsports Park, participating in the USAC Western Sprint Car and USAC Western Midget car events.

The sprint car portion saw three Toyota entries in the field. Former USAC champion Tony Hunt was aboard the Kaiser Racing No. 4, while Western Speed Enterprises led a two-car effort with drivers Chase Scott and Kody Swanson. Swanson, a regular on the USAC National Midget Car series, was using an off weekend to make a rare stop in the sprint cars. The sprint cars use a 355-ci Toyota V8 prepared by TRD.

In the midget car division, Nic Faas widened his series point lead aboard the Western Speed No. 40. The midget cars utilize a 166-ci in-line four-cylinder engine prepared by Ed Pink Racing Engines.

Scott posted the best finish among the sprint car contingent, coming home third in the 50-lap feature event. Scott qualified fifth and finished third in his heat race. Swanson was ninth in qualifying, second in his heat race, and 10th in his feature race.

Hunt and his Kaiser team continue to improve, as they were fastest in pre-race practice and second-quick in qualifying. Hunt was eighth in his heat race and finished 7th in the feature race.

“Not a bad outing,” said Hunt. “We were fastest in practice, but fell just a bit short (39-hundredths) in qualifying. Our problem all night was tire stagger, we flip-flopped all night trying to find the right balance. We really feel confident with where we’ve come the past two races with our entire package, and once we get the stagger issue figured out we’ll be right there.

“The car was really, really fast, and I’m pleased with that. We didn’t advance like we wanted in the main event, but we’re okay. The engine program is going very well, and when we get the setup nailed down we’ll be right where we need to be.”

The USAC Western Midget car series is enjoying a torrid point race this season, with Toyota’s Faas coming into the event holding a one-point lead at the top of the standings. Faas had a good night, qualifying fifth, running fifth in his heat race, and finishing sixth in the 20-lap feature race. His closest opponent in the point race, Scott Pierovich, did not make the event, giving Faas an opportunity to build some breathing room in the point chase.

“We were a little loose in practice, so we tightened up our car before qualifying,” said Faas. “Unfortunately we went a little too far, and we slipped a little bit. We were chasing it from that point, and our car was too tight in our heat race.

“We were going to start ninth in the main event, but we opted to put new tires on the right side, because we didn’t think it would hurt our starting position all that much. But in the feature our engine was cutting out a little bit, you could tell it was off just a little bit. We started 11th and ran sixth, so it was still a good points night.”

The Western Sprint Car series returns to Altamont Raceway Park on July 19, while the Midget Car series next sees action on July 12 at Santa Maria, California.

USAC WESTERN SPRINT CAR SERIES POINT STANDINGS
7 Chase Scott, Concord, NC Western Speed No. 60 -142
8 Tony Hunt, Lincoln, CA Kaiser No. 4 -179

USAC WESTERN MIDGET CAR SERIES POINT STANDINGS
1 Nic Faas, Huntington Beach, CA Western Speed No. 40 +41