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TOKYO (AP) _ Toyota said Friday it plans to sell 10.4 million vehicles globally in 2009, a sales target that would put the Japanese automaker ahead of a record hit by world leader General Motors 30 years ago.

Analysts say Toyota Motor Corp. is likely on track to beat General Motors Corp. as the world’s biggest automaker in global vehicle sales and production this year _ a title Detroit-based GM has held for 76 years.

Toyota gave the ambitious sales plan in a document handed out as President Katsuaki Watanabe outlined the company’s growth strategy for coming years.

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TOKYO (AP) _ Most major Japanese automakers lost a portion of domestic production last month because earthquake damage at a parts manufacturer forced temporary closures of some assembly plants, the companies said Tuesday.

Toyota Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co., Nissan Motor Co. and Mazda Motor Corp. were forced to halt production at some factories temporarily because key parts supplier, Riken Corp. in northwestern Japan, was damaged by the 6.8 magnitude earthquake that struck July 16, killing 11 people.

But most Japanese automakers also increased overseas production.

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VANCOUVER (CP) _ High-performance car lovers who worry that a future filled with Earth-friendly hybrids and fuel-cell vehicles condemns them to life driving glorified golf carts need not fret.

Al Gore III, the son of the former American vice-president who police allegedly clocked going 169 kilometres an hour on a California highway in a Toyota Prius in July, isn’t the only one pushing the performance envelope of hybrids and other alternative powertrains.

Toyota, Ford and General Motors are among carmakers that have been extending the limits of green automotive technology.

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TOKYO (AP) _ Toyota Motor Corp. and truckmaker Isuzu Motors Ltd. will co-operate in developing and producing small diesel engines for the European market, the companies said Thursday.

The agreement will allow Toyota, Japan’s top automaker, to take advantage of Isuzu’s highly reputed diesel technology. Their talks on this collaboration began last November.

Production of the 1.6-litre diesel engines for use in Toyota vehicles sold in Europe will start 2012, the companies said in a statement.

Demand for diesel vehicles is growing especially in Europe because of worries about global warming. Diesel fuel is widely known for good mileage, and recent innovations have made diesel cleaner.

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TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) _ General Motors Corp. has signed an agreement with a battery maker that could propel it ahead of Toyota Motor Corp. in the race to bring plug-in hybrid and electric cars to market, a top company official said Thursday.

A123 Systems Inc., based in Watertown, Mass., already produces thousands of nanophosphate lithium-ion batteries for use in cordless power tools, and it plans to apply the technology to automobiles.

GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz said the deal, coupled with a published report that Toyota Motor Corp. would delay launches of lithium-ion battery powered hybrids for up to two years, could give GM the lead in bringing the new clean technology to market.

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DETROIT (AP-CP) _ General Motors Corp. said Tuesday it has completed the sale of its Allison Transmission commercial and military business to The Carlyle Group and Canadian conglomerate Onex Corp. (TSX:OCX) for US$5.6 billion.

The sale, announced in June, includes seven manufacturing plants in Indianapolis and its global distribution network and sales offices. A production facility in Baltimore, which produces conventional and hybrid transmissions for pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles, will remain with GM.

Detroit-based GM said in a statement that it would use the money to strengthen its liquidity and support investments in new products and technology.

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TOKYO (AP) _ Toyota, on track to beat General Motors as the world’s biggest automaker this year, said Friday its April-June profit jumped 32.3 per cent to a record high for a quarter, lifted by strong overseas sales and a weaker yen.

Surging gas prices have proved a big plus for the Japanese automaker, as drivers flock to Toyota’s fuel-efficient models, including the Camry, the best-selling model in the United States, and the Prius gas-electric hybrid.

“The results are fantastic,” said Tsuyoshi Mochimaru, auto analyst with Lehman Brothers in Japan.

Overseas sales are going strong, and the weak yen, which raises the value of overseas earnings when converted into yen, is making rosy earnings even rosier as Toyota’s exports grow, Mochimaru said.

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DETROIT (AP) _ Hybrid vehicles are on track to achieve record U.S. sales this year despite signs consumer interest in hybrids is waning, an auto information company said Thursday.

An estimated 187,000 hybrids were sold in the first six months of 2007, accounting for 2.3 per cent of all new vehicle sales, according to J.D. Power and Associates. Although a slowdown is expected in the second half of the year, J.D. Power is forecasting total sales of 345,000 hybrids for 2007, a 35 per cent increase from 2006 when the current record of 256,000 hybrids were sold.

The Toyota Prius continues to be the best-selling hybrid model, accounting for just more than half of all hybrids sold. J.D. Power said Prius sales got a boost this year from incentives of up to US$2,000 per vehicle, which helped offset a decrease in federal tax breaks for Toyota and Lexus hybrids. Toyota Motor Corp. said Wednesday that Prius sales were up 85 per cent in the first seven months of this year compared with the same period a year ago.

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GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) _ Ever since the debut of the Toyota RAV4 in 1996, U.S. car buyers have been crossing over to crossovers.

The success of crossover vehicles, which resemble sport utility vehicles but are smaller and built on car instead of truck frames, has been one of the few bright spots in recent years for the troubled domestic automotive industry.

Analysts and auto executives say that trend likely will continue when automakers release July U.S. sales figures on Wednesday, although the general market decline is likely to continue.

The Edmunds.com automotive website forecast that automakers will sell about 1.37 million vehicles in July, a 7.9 per cent drop from a year ago.

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TOKYO (AP) _ Toyota Motor Corp. said Wednesday it has developed a plug-in hybrid vehicle for public road tests in Japan and plans the tests for the U.S. and Europe.

Other major automakers, including General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. of the U.S., are developing plug-in hybrids, a key technology that reduces the gases causing global warming.

Plug-in hybrids, including Toyota’s, generally have batteries that power an electric motor, with an internal combustion engine for use when the batteries run low. The batteries can be recharged by plugging them into a standard wall outlet.

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