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Wednesday, March 15, 2017

Toyota Research Institute Introduces Next-Gen Research Vehicle



Usually Keyes Toyota is excited to report on new Toyota vehicles we'll be able to offer soon to our customers in Glendale and Los Angeles. The Advanced Active Safety Research Vehicle (AASRV) will never see the inside of a showroom, but we're no less excited for that. This obscure car is the only one of its kind, and in its second generation it could be the most important vehicle on the road right now.

The AASRV came out right before the 2013 Consumer Electronics Show. It was a bit odd-looking, thanks to its arrays of HD cameras, LIDAR, GPS, and proprietary technology. It signaled to the world exactly how serious the Toyota Motor Corporation was about self-driving cars.

The years since have seen the R&D carried on with that unique car filter down to everyday cars like the Toyota RAV4 and Toyota Camry in the form of innovative active safety features. Those safety features haven't just earned multiple Top Safety Pick Plus ratings from the IIHS. They've kept drivers safer.

The next-generation AASRV is the first "product" from the Toyota Research Institute, a billion-dollar initiative launched last year to research and develop new car technology. Like its predecessor, it's built on a Lexus LS 600 borrowed from the company's luxury car division. It uses many of the same kinds of technology. The difference is that this time, everything is modular (so components can be changed as new ones are developed), smaller, and more advanced.

The new AASRV will be used for two categories of research, named Guardian and Chauffer. Guardian is a set of semi-autonomous driver assist features that will be the next evolution of current active safety features. Chauffer is the next big step toward fully-autonomous cars.


A fully self-driving car is some way off still. The technology developed by TRI in the AASRV is closer to Glendale and Los Angeles than you might think. It's right here at Keyes Toyota. To find out more, visit us today at 5855 Van Nuys Blvd in Van Nuys, CA.

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