Toyota’s Ninja Kittens

Toyota typically does not have great commercials in North America, and seem to gear them towards the typical Toyota crowd of asian accountants, j/k! A commercial we’re missing out on is the Ninja Kittens marketing the new Corolla in Australia

According to the agency, the campaign “tells the story of a kitten headed hero who battles a gang of feral baddies” in an abandoned shopping mall, then scoots away in his sporty Corolla. “The ambitious production was a combination of very well rehearsed fighting sequences, and real, cuddly kitten heads.” source

There’s an animated online comic for the campaign on their website. The cuddly kitten heads may give you nightmares though!

Introducing MINI E

As part of a pilot project, the BMW Group will be unleashing 500 electric powered Minis to the California, New York and New Jersey area. With the official specifications released yesterday, the MINI E will be powered by a 150 kW (204 hp) electric motor fed by a high-performance rechargeable lithium-ion battery.

The large battery weighing around 573 lbs is placed in the back seat, eliminating the backseat making the Mini E a two person. The little E outputs 204 horsepower with a torque of 162 lb-ft. It runs from 0-60 mph in 8.5 seconds, reaching a top speed of 95 mph. That’s pretty peppy specs for a battery powered car.

Users can recharge a battery that has been completely drained within a very short period of time using a wallbox that will ship with every MINI E. The wallbox will be installed in the customer’s garage, enable higher amperage, and thus provide for extremely short charging times. Wallboxes fully recharge batteries after a mere two-and-a-half hours. A fully charged battery will produce a range of more than 240 kilometers, or 150 miles.

For those of you interested in a test drive with the new Mini E, you can sign up here and up to 500 test drivers in the US (Southern California, New York City and New Jersey) will get the chance to take the MINI E for a spin.