Toyota has been tying the image of plants to their Prius for a long time—there were the solar powered flowers they set up in U.S. cities to promote it, the billboards they created for the car out of plants, and the greenery-heavy print and TV ads (like the one pictured above). But now the company has taken their love of plants a step further and tapped real flowers to help reduce the C02 emissions of their Prius manufacturing plant in Toyota City, Japan (yes, that’s the real name).

The C02 combating flowers have been genetically engineered from the cherry sage and gardenia plants to improve the environmental impact of the Prius plant in two ways: First, by absorbing nitrogen oxides from the air and second, by creating water vapor, which—in theory—should cool the area around the factory. Unfortunately, few details are available on exactly how much positive effect these flowers can be expected to have and it’s not clear whether the genetic modification was a necessary step, as both the plants that have been modified had those properties to begin with (and probably could have been planted together). Click here to read more

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For their third generation Prius, Toyota has been pushing a message of “harmony between man, nature and machine” and their latest marketing tool fits the bill. Toyota has been installing giant solar flower stations in various U.S. locations (taking turns for each area), and not only are the flowers eye catching and sources of solar power, they provide passersby with a spot to stop and charge their electronics or to take advantage of free WiFi. Each huge “flower” towers at 18 feet and features several solar panels attached to the back of its panels. Below the monster daisies, up to ten people can sit on the included benches for a little R & R (resting and recharging) or log into their favorite sites. Click here to read more

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Okay, so it’s not really going into competition with the Tata Nano (more likely it’ll be a competitor for mainstream petite vehicles like the Smart Fortwo) because it’s aimed at a different audience with different demands—heated door mirrors on the iQ3 versus no passenger door mirror whatsoever on the Nano—and a vastly different car budget, but the Toyota iQ3 that is now for sale in the U.K. could one day be headed across the pond as a premium small car for U.S. buyers and it’s already garnered plenty of excitement.

The Toyota Stop and Start system in the iQ3 offers increased fuel efficiency and lowered carbon emissions, which could help put the cute (or should we say QT?) car in competition with hybrid auto choices, but the hefty price tag it’s being sold at in the U.K. (about $19,000 USD) would likely be problematic if it were to come to America and be pitted against the Smart Fortwo, which starts at $11,990—even with the iQ3’s extra seats (one regular, one jumpseat). Click here to read more

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