New Toyota car suspected of causing deadly ship blaze

[FarCenter]

The Yomiuri Shimbun http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/business/20091220TDY02302.htm

A mysterious fire that erupted on a ship carrying Toyota Motor Corp. cars off Miyagi Prefecture in October last year highly likely started in a new car loaded on the ship, sources said.

The Japan Transport Safety Board and car experts are still investigating the cause of the fire, the sources added.

The ship was carrying 3,900 new luxury Lexus cars and other Toyota vehicles to Portland, Ore.

According to the board, the Pyxis departed from Mikawa Port in Aichi Prefecture. A fire alarm went off at about 9:50 a.m. on Oct. 14, 2008, when the ship was off Kinkasan, an island east of Ishinomaki.

The fire was put out by the vessel's extinguishing system, but about 2,800 cars were destroyed or damaged by soot and could not be put on the market.

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[HopeHoops]

1. They'll just sell them in Texas.

They can slap a Toyota symbol on in place of the Lexus one and nobody will notice.