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Toyota Alphard

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The Atkinson-cycle engine is a type of internal combustion engine invented by James Atkinson in 1882. The Atkinson cycle is designed to provide efficiency at the expense of power density .

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115-473: The Toyota Alphard ( Japanese : トヨタ・アルファード , Hepburn : Toyota Arufādo ) is a minivan produced by the Japanese automaker Toyota since 2002. It is available as a seven or eight-seater with petrol and hybrid engine options. Hybrid variants have been available since 2003, which incorporates Toyota's Hybrid Synergy Drive technology. It is Toyota's flagship minivan. The Alphard is primarily made for

230-518: A rotary engine . In this configuration, an increase in both power and efficiency can be achieved when compared to the Otto cycle. This type of engine retains the one power phase per revolution, together with the different compression and expansion volumes of the original Atkinson cycle. Exhaust gases are expelled from the engine by compressed-air scavenging. This modification of the Atkinson cycle allows

345-513: A 2.5-litre 2AR-FXE petrol-hybrid engine. The 3.5-litre 2GR-FE V6 along with the 6-speed automatic was carried over from the previous generation. A new top-of-the-line Executive Lounge grade was added for both the Alphard and Vellfire. Toyota stated the vehicle was developed under the "luxury saloon with a large space" theme, to emphasize their focus on improving its ride comfort levels and styling. The length has grown by 60 mm (2.4 in),

460-637: A benefit from the in-group to the out-group) means "[I/we] explained [it] to [him/her/them]". Such beneficiary auxiliary verbs thus serve a function comparable to that of pronouns and prepositions in Indo-European languages to indicate the actor and the recipient of an action. Japanese "pronouns" also function differently from most modern Indo-European pronouns (and more like nouns) in that they can take modifiers as any other noun may. For instance, one does not say in English: The amazed he ran down

575-407: A conventional, Otto cycle engine. Atkinson produced three different designs that had a short compression stroke and a longer expansion stroke. The first Atkinson-cycle engine, the differential engine , used opposed pistons. The second and best-known design was the cycle engine , which used an over-center arm to create four piston strokes in one crankshaft revolution. The reciprocating engine had

690-414: A distinct language of its own that has absorbed various aspects from neighboring languages. Japanese has five vowels, and vowel length is phonemic, with each having both a short and a long version. Elongated vowels are usually denoted with a line over the vowel (a macron ) in rōmaji , a repeated vowel character in hiragana , or a chōonpu succeeding the vowel in katakana . /u/ ( listen )

805-419: A glide /j/ and either the first part of a geminate consonant ( っ / ッ , represented as Q) or a moraic nasal in the coda ( ん / ン , represented as N). The nasal is sensitive to its phonetic environment and assimilates to the following phoneme, with pronunciations including [ɴ, m, n, ɲ, ŋ, ɰ̃] . Onset-glide clusters only occur at the start of syllables but clusters across syllables are allowed as long as

920-653: A hybrid version of both the Alphard and Vellfire. The hybrid version was reintroduced in November 2011 and whilst the model variants remained similar, all specs were available in all three drivetrains, 2.4/3.5/2.4 Hybrid. The Hybrid was the later generation of THS2 with Eco Mode and EV mode. The petrol variants also received Eco mode buttons on the dash, helping to smooth out acceleration and to improve efficiency. Styling differences introduced across all models and interior trim colours and materials improved. Nanoe air purifiers were available in almost all variants. JNCAP has rated

1035-484: A listener depending on the listener's relative social position and the degree of familiarity between the speaker and the listener. When used in different social relationships, the same word may have positive (intimate or respectful) or negative (distant or disrespectful) connotations. Japanese often use titles of the person referred to where pronouns would be used in English. For example, when speaking to one's teacher, it

1150-752: A new suspension setup. The LM is available in two seating configurations: a 7-seater configuration that is based on the Alphard Executive Lounge variant, and a 4-seater configuration named the "Emperor Suite", based on the Alphard Royal Lounge variant. The fourth-generation Alphard and the third-generation Vellfire were released on 21 June 2023. It is based on the TNGA-K platform along with the more luxurious Lexus LM . The exterior dimensions are kept within 5 m (16 ft) in length and 1.85 m (6.1 ft) in width, to ensure

1265-578: A quiet and rigid body. The floor of the new platform has been thoroughly flattened, and as a result, the second row seats is able to slide forward and backwards up to 1,160 mm (45.7 in). The third-generation Alphard is available in Japan and selected Asian markets including Brunei, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines and Hong Kong, being the first markets outside Japan to receive this all-new model. The third-generation Alphard

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1380-426: A radar-guided Adaptive Cruise Control , Lane Departure Warning with Lane Keep Assist and Pre-collision Warning with Semi-Autonomous Emergency Braking, which only helps apply a moderate amount of brake pressure, and does not completely stop the vehicle. Toyota released the third-generation Alphard on 26 January 2015 with a completely redesigned exterior and 2 new engines, including a 2.5-litre 2AR-FE petrol engine and

1495-408: A sentence need not be stated and pronouns may be omitted if they can be inferred from context. In the example above, hana ga nagai would mean "[their] noses are long", while nagai by itself would mean "[they] are long." A single verb can be a complete sentence: Yatta! ( やった! ) "[I / we / they / etc] did [it]!". In addition, since adjectives can form the predicate in a Japanese sentence (below),

1610-428: A single adjective can be a complete sentence: Urayamashii! ( 羨ましい! ) "[I'm] jealous [about it]!". While the language has some words that are typically translated as pronouns, these are not used as frequently as pronouns in some Indo-European languages, and function differently. In some cases, Japanese relies on special verb forms and auxiliary verbs to indicate the direction of benefit of an action: "down" to indicate

1725-537: A smaller vehicle, to attract younger customers in the 30–40 years old range. By adopting a front-wheel drive layout, Toyota eliminated the need for a space-consuming drive shaft, which was a drawback in its predecessor, the Granvia / Grand HiAce . Although Toyota initially considered offering a diesel engine option, concerns regarding emissions and fuel efficiency regulations led to its exclusion. During its introduction, then Toyota president Fujio Cho acknowledged that

1840-443: A standard two-stroke except that the exhaust port is located at about the middle of the stroke. During the expansion/power stroke, a cam-operated valve (which remains closed until the piston nears the end of the stroke) prevents pressure from escaping as the piston moves past the exhaust port. The exhaust valve is opened near the bottom of the stroke; it remains open as the piston heads back toward compression, letting fresh air charge

1955-462: A stylized 'V', in an effort to further distinguish it from its twin. The Alphard was launched by Toyota on 22 May 2002. Developed under the lead of chief engineer Hideyuki Iwata, the first-generation model is based on the second-generation Previa/Estima , which in turn shares many components with the Camry . The first-generation Alphard was designed with curvaceous styling that created the illusion of

2070-645: A twin model called the Vellfire , was introduced as the successor of Alphard V. According to Toyota's press release, the Alphard is described as having an "elegant and sophisticated" design while the Vellfire emphasizes on "strength and strong individuality". Developed under the guidance of chief engineer Yuzo Nakagoshi, the second generation Alphard adapted many similar design cues from the first generation, featuring similarly-designed headlights and taillights. Both models are sold via separate distribution channels, with

2185-624: Is compressed rather than protruded , or simply unrounded. Some Japanese consonants have several allophones , which may give the impression of a larger inventory of sounds. However, some of these allophones have since become phonemic. For example, in the Japanese language up to and including the first half of the 20th century, the phonemic sequence /ti/ was palatalized and realized phonetically as [tɕi] , approximately chi ( listen ) ; however, now [ti] and [tɕi] are distinct, as evidenced by words like tī [tiː] "Western-style tea" and chii [tɕii] "social status". The "r" of

2300-421: Is topic–comment . Sentence-final particles are used to add emotional or emphatic impact, or form questions. Nouns have no grammatical number or gender , and there are no articles . Verbs are conjugated , primarily for tense and voice , but not person . Japanese adjectives are also conjugated. Japanese has a complex system of honorifics , with verb forms and vocabulary to indicate the relative status of

2415-448: Is also seen in o-medetō "congratulations", from medetaku ). Late Middle Japanese has the first loanwords from European languages – now-common words borrowed into Japanese in this period include pan ("bread") and tabako ("tobacco", now "cigarette"), both from Portuguese . Modern Japanese is considered to begin with the Edo period (which spanned from 1603 to 1867). Since Old Japanese,

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2530-527: Is also used in a limited fashion (such as for imported acronyms) in Japanese writing. The numeral system uses mostly Arabic numerals , but also traditional Chinese numerals . Proto-Japonic , the common ancestor of the Japanese and Ryukyuan languages , is thought to have been brought to Japan by settlers coming from the Korean peninsula sometime in the early- to mid-4th century BC (the Yayoi period ), replacing

2645-440: Is appropriate to use sensei ( 先生 , "teacher"), but inappropriate to use anata . This is because anata is used to refer to people of equal or lower status, and one's teacher has higher status. Japanese nouns have no grammatical number, gender or article aspect. The noun hon ( 本 ) may refer to a single book or several books; hito ( 人 ) can mean "person" or "people", and ki ( 木 ) can be "tree" or "trees". Where number

2760-701: Is associated with comedy (see Kansai dialect ). Dialects of Tōhoku and North Kantō are associated with typical farmers. The Ryūkyūan languages, spoken in Okinawa and the Amami Islands (administratively part of Kagoshima ), are distinct enough to be considered a separate branch of the Japonic family; not only is each language unintelligible to Japanese speakers, but most are unintelligible to those who speak other Ryūkyūan languages. However, in contrast to linguists, many ordinary Japanese people tend to consider

2875-466: Is better documentation of Late Middle Japanese phonology than for previous forms (for instance, the Arte da Lingoa de Iapam ). Among other sound changes, the sequence /au/ merges to /ɔː/ , in contrast with /oː/ ; /p/ is reintroduced from Chinese; and /we/ merges with /je/ . Some forms rather more familiar to Modern Japanese speakers begin to appear – the continuative ending - te begins to reduce onto

2990-509: Is correlated with the sex of the speaker and the social situation in which they are spoken: men and women alike in a formal situation generally refer to themselves as watashi ( 私 , literally "private") or watakushi (also 私 , hyper-polite form), while men in rougher or intimate conversation are much more likely to use the word ore ( 俺 "oneself", "myself") or boku . Similarly, different words such as anata , kimi , and omae ( お前 , more formally 御前 "the one before me") may refer to

3105-578: Is equipped with 100-volt AC power outlets, to power external appliances such as laptops and emergency lights. In Japan, the Alphard Hybrid locally qualifies as an Ultra-Low Emissions Vehicle (ULEV), achieving emission levels 75% lower than the Japanese government's year 2000 benchmark. After being previewed as the FT-MV in 2007, the second generation Alphard went on sale in May 2008. For this generation,

3220-463: Is from 1892, #2492. No US patent for the Utilite Engine is known. The ideal Atkinson cycle consists of: In the late 20th century, the term "Atkinson cycle" began to be used to describe a modified Otto-cycle engine—in which the intake valve is held open longer than normal, allowing a reverse flow of intake air into the intake manifold. This "simulated" Atkinson cycle is most notably used in

3335-417: Is important, it can be indicated by providing a quantity (often with a counter word ) or (rarely) by adding a suffix, or sometimes by duplication (e.g. 人人 , hitobito , usually written with an iteration mark as 人々 ). Words for people are usually understood as singular. Thus Tanaka-san usually means Mx Tanaka . Words that refer to people and animals can be made to indicate a group of individuals through

3450-755: Is less common. In terms of mutual intelligibility , a survey in 1967 found that the four most unintelligible dialects (excluding Ryūkyūan languages and Tōhoku dialects ) to students from Greater Tokyo were the Kiso dialect (in the deep mountains of Nagano Prefecture ), the Himi dialect (in Toyama Prefecture ), the Kagoshima dialect and the Maniwa dialect (in Okayama Prefecture ). The survey

3565-505: Is longer than the compression stroke, and by this method the engine achieves greater thermal efficiency than a traditional piston engine. Atkinson's engines were produced by the British Gas Engine Company and also licensed to other overseas manufacturers. Many modern engines now use unconventional valve timing to produce the effect of a shorter compression stroke/longer power stroke. Miller applied this technique to

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3680-573: Is needed. This forms the basis of an Atkinson cycle-based hybrid electric drivetrain. These electric motors can be used independently of, or in combination with, the Atkinson-cycle engine, to provide the most efficient means of producing the desired power. This drive-train first entered production in late 1997 in the first-generation Toyota Prius . As of July 2018 , many production hybrid vehicle drivetrains use Atkinson-cycle concepts—for example, in: The 1887 patent (US 367496) describes

3795-420: Is often called a topic-prominent language , which means it has a strong tendency to indicate the topic separately from the subject, and that the two do not always coincide. The sentence Zō wa hana ga nagai ( 象は鼻が長い ) literally means, "As for elephant(s), (the) nose(s) (is/are) long". The topic is zō "elephant", and the subject is hana "nose". Japanese grammar tends toward brevity; the subject or object of

3910-443: Is only offered in a single grade level (2.5 HEV CVT). The Thai market Alphard and Vellfire were revealed on 16 August 2023. It is offered in 2.5 HEV E-Four and 2.5 HEV Luxury E-Four. The Bruneian market Alphard was launched on 18 August 2023. It was available in two variants, Standard with the 2.5-litre 2AR-FE petrol engine and Executive Lounge with the 2.4-litre T24A-FTS turbocharged petrol engine. The Vietnamese market Alphard

4025-498: Is preserved in words such as matsuge ("eyelash", lit. "hair of the eye"); modern mieru ("to be visible") and kikoeru ("to be audible") retain a mediopassive suffix - yu(ru) ( kikoyu → kikoyuru (the attributive form, which slowly replaced the plain form starting in the late Heian period) → kikoeru (all verbs with the shimo-nidan conjugation pattern underwent this same shift in Early Modern Japanese )); and

4140-463: Is reduced power density. Due to a smaller portion of the compression stroke being devoted to compressing the intake air, an Atkinson-cycle engine does not take in as much air as would a similarly designed and sized Otto-cycle engine. Four-stroke engines of this type that use the same type of intake valve motion but also utilize forced induction to make up for the loss of power density are known as Miller-cycle engines. The Atkinson cycle can be used in

4255-665: Is the principal language of the Japonic language family spoken by the Japanese people . It has around 123 million speakers, primarily in Japan , the only country where it is the national language , and within the Japanese diaspora worldwide. The Japonic family also includes the Ryukyuan languages and the variously classified Hachijō language . There have been many attempts to group the Japonic languages with other families such as

4370-402: Is the version of Japanese discussed in this article. Formerly, standard Japanese in writing ( 文語 , bungo , "literary language") was different from colloquial language ( 口語 , kōgo ) . The two systems have different rules of grammar and some variance in vocabulary. Bungo was the main method of writing Japanese until about 1900; since then kōgo gradually extended its influence and

4485-471: Is used for the present and the future. For verbs that represent an ongoing process, the -te iru form indicates a continuous (or progressive) aspect , similar to the suffix ing in English. For others that represent a change of state, the -te iru form indicates a perfect aspect. For example, kite iru means "They have come (and are still here)", but tabete iru means "They are eating". Questions (both with an interrogative pronoun and yes/no questions) have

4600-420: Is used in some modern automobile engines. While originally seen exclusively in hybrid electric applications such as the earlier-generation Toyota Prius , later hybrids and some non-hybrid vehicles now feature engines with variable valve timing , which can run in the Atkinson cycle as a part-time operating regimen, giving good economy while running in Atkinson cycle, and conventional power density when running as

4715-405: Is why some linguists do not classify Japanese "pronouns" as pronouns, but rather as referential nouns, much like Spanish usted (contracted from vuestra merced , "your ( majestic plural ) grace") or Portuguese você (from vossa mercê ). Japanese personal pronouns are generally used only in situations requiring special emphasis as to who is doing what to whom. The choice of words used as pronouns

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4830-478: The 2GR-FKS that replaces the outgoing 2GR-FE (except for Hong Kong, due to the emission rules). Output has increased to 300 PS (221 kW; 296 hp) and 362 N⋅m (267 lbf⋅ft). Also new is a Direct-Shift 8-speed automatic, that replaces the 6-speed Super ECT that is only found in V6-powered variants. Accelerating from 0–100 km/h (0–62 mph) can be achieved in 7.5 seconds. The debut of

4945-563: The Ainu , Austronesian , Koreanic , and the now-discredited Altaic , but none of these proposals have gained any widespread acceptance. Little is known of the language's prehistory, or when it first appeared in Japan. Chinese documents from the 3rd century AD recorded a few Japanese words, but substantial Old Japanese texts did not appear until the 8th century. From the Heian period (794–1185), extensive waves of Sino-Japanese vocabulary entered

5060-462: The Japonic language family, which also includes the Ryukyuan languages spoken in the Ryukyu Islands . As these closely related languages are commonly treated as dialects of the same language, Japanese is sometimes called a language isolate . According to Martine Irma Robbeets , Japanese has been subject to more attempts to show its relation to other languages than any other language in

5175-549: The Netz Store dealership chain until 2020. Since 2019, a modified and more upscale version of the model has been sold as the Lexus LM . The vehicle was named after Alphard , the brightest star in the constellation Hydra . Until the third generation, the Alphard wears a special front emblem which depicts the lowercase alpha letter. A prominent design feature of the Alphard is its shield-like grille, which it's had since

5290-514: The Philippines , and various Pacific islands, locals in those countries learned Japanese as the language of the empire. As a result, many elderly people in these countries can still speak Japanese. Japanese emigrant communities (the largest of which are to be found in Brazil , with 1.4 million to 1.5 million Japanese immigrants and descendants, according to Brazilian IBGE data, more than

5405-538: The Toyota 1NZ-FXE engine from the early Prius and the Toyota Dynamic Force engines . The effective compression ratio is reduced—for the time the air is escaping the cylinder freely rather than being compressed—but the expansion ratio is unchanged (i.e., the compression ratio is smaller than the expansion ratio). The goal of the modern Atkinson cycle is to make the pressure in the combustion chamber at

5520-738: The United States (notably in Hawaii , where 16.7% of the population has Japanese ancestry, and California ), and the Philippines (particularly in Davao Region and the Province of Laguna ). Japanese has no official status in Japan, but is the de facto national language of the country. There is a form of the language considered standard : hyōjungo ( 標準語 ) , meaning "standard Japanese", or kyōtsūgo ( 共通語 ) , "common language", or even "Tokyo dialect" at times. The meanings of

5635-806: The de facto standard Japanese had been the Kansai dialect , especially that of Kyoto . However, during the Edo period, Edo (now Tokyo) developed into the largest city in Japan, and the Edo-area dialect became standard Japanese. Since the end of Japan's self-imposed isolation in 1853, the flow of loanwords from European languages has increased significantly. The period since 1945 has seen many words borrowed from other languages—such as German, Portuguese and English. Many English loan words especially relate to technology—for example, pasokon (short for "personal computer"), intānetto ("internet"), and kamera ("camera"). Due to

5750-527: The 1.2 million of the United States ) sometimes employ Japanese as their primary language. Approximately 12% of Hawaii residents speak Japanese, with an estimated 12.6% of the population of Japanese ancestry in 2008. Japanese emigrants can also be found in Peru , Argentina , Australia (especially in the eastern states), Canada (especially in Vancouver , where 1.4% of the population has Japanese ancestry),

5865-696: The 2.5-litre A25B-FXS petrol hybrid engine. The Malaysian market Alphard and Vellfire were revealed on 6 July 2023 and officially launched on 23 October 2023. Unlike in most markets, the Malaysian-spec Vellfire is powered with the 2.5-litre 2AR-FE petrol engine, serving it as an entry-level grade. While the Alphard is only available in Executive Lounge grade and it is powered with the 2.4-litre T24A-FTS turbocharged petrol engine. The Hong Kong market Alphard and Vellfire were revealed on 8 July 2023. The Indian market Vellfire hybrid

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5980-537: The Alphard G featured a distinct grille design and was exclusive to the Toyopet Store. Toyota set a monthly sales target of 4,000 units for the V model and 2,500 units for the G model in Japan, totaling 6,500 units. The Alphard was refreshed in April 2005. The design of the front grille, bumper, headlamps, and rear combination lamps and garnish was updated. For the 3.0-litre model, the 4-speed automatic transmission

6095-474: The Alphard a full six stars for occupant crash safety and outstanding safety features. Safety features such as Anti-lock Braking System , Electronic Brakeforce Distribution , Brake Assist , Vehicle Stability Control and seven airbags (Dual front, Driver and passenger side airbags, Driver's knee and curtain airbags) are standard across all variants. Higher end variants offer a first-in-class Pre-Crash system as an option (only for Japanese models). Features include

6210-534: The Alphard competes in the same segment as the second-generation Nissan Elgrand , which was released a day before the Alphard. Notably, the first-generation Alphard introduced rear side windows that could be rolled down and an optional electric-powered tailgate, distinguishing it from other vehicles in the segment at that time including the Elgrand. The Alphard V was exclusively available at the Netz Store, while

6325-467: The Alphard sold by Toyota's Toyopet Store dealership chain, while the Vellfire is sold at Toyota's youth oriented Netz Store dealership chain. Variants of the Alphard/Vellfire include: The second generation Alphard was launched in the Philippines on 3 August 2010. A facelift model was announced by Toyota on 27 September 2011, with sales in Japan started from 1 November 2011. Also introduced

6440-405: The Atkinson cycle was in 1882; unlike later versions, it was arranged as an opposed-piston engine , the Atkinson differential engine. In this, a single crankshaft was connected to two opposed pistons through a toggle-jointed linkage that had a nonlinearity; for half a revolution, one piston remained almost stationary while the other approached it and returned, and then for the next half revolution,

6555-434: The Atkinson cycle. A depression capsule opens a secondary path for the incoming charge. While a modified Otto-cycle piston engine using the Atkinson cycle provides good fuel efficiency , it is at the expense of a lower power-per-displacement as compared to a traditional four-stroke engine. If demand for more power is intermittent, the power of the engine can be supplemented by an electric motor during times when more power

6670-486: The Japanese language is of particular interest, ranging between an apical central tap and a lateral approximant . The "g" is also notable; unless it starts a sentence, it may be pronounced [ ŋ ] , in the Kanto prestige dialect and in other eastern dialects. The phonotactics of Japanese are relatively simple. The syllable structure is (C)(G)V(C), that is, a core vowel surrounded by an optional onset consonant,

6785-559: The Japanese market, but is also sold in many Asian countries, Belarus, Russia, and the Middle East. Similar to the Camry , it is often regarded as a luxury car in Southeast Asian markets. Since the second generation, a twin model called Toyota Vellfire ( Japanese : トヨタ・ヴェルファイア , Hepburn : Toyota Verufaia ) has also been available, which is marketed as a sportier alternative to the Alphard and exclusively marketed by

6900-736: The Old Japanese sections are written in Man'yōgana , which uses kanji for their phonetic as well as semantic values. Based on the Man'yōgana system, Old Japanese can be reconstructed as having 88 distinct morae . Texts written with Man'yōgana use two different sets of kanji for each of the morae now pronounced き (ki), ひ (hi), み (mi), け (ke), へ (he), め (me), こ (ko), そ (so), と (to), の (no), も (mo), よ (yo) and ろ (ro). (The Kojiki has 88, but all later texts have 87. The distinction between mo 1 and mo 2 apparently

7015-488: The Ryūkyūan languages as dialects of Japanese. The imperial court also seems to have spoken an unusual variant of the Japanese of the time, most likely the spoken form of Classical Japanese , a writing style that was prevalent during the Heian period , but began to decline during the late Meiji period . The Ryūkyūan languages are classified by UNESCO as 'endangered', as young people mostly use Japanese and cannot understand

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7130-508: The Vellfire in Japan were reduced to one special edition trim, Golden Eyes II, due to decreasing sales as the result of the dealership line-up unification in 2020. In the same month, the Vellfire in China was renamed to Toyota Crown Vellfire ( simplified Chinese : 皇冠威尔法 ; traditional Chinese : 皇冠威爾法 ; pinyin : Huángguàn Wēiěrfǎ ), with the inclusion of the Crown logo replacing

7245-543: The addition of a collective suffix (a noun suffix that indicates a group), such as -tachi , but this is not a true plural: the meaning is closer to the English phrase "and company". A group described as Tanaka-san-tachi may include people not named Tanaka. Some Japanese nouns are effectively plural, such as hitobito "people" and wareware "we/us", while the word tomodachi "friend" is considered singular, although plural in form. Verbs are conjugated to show tenses, of which there are two: past and present (or non-past) which

7360-413: The changes are only to the exterior and powertrain, whereas interior equipment remains largely similar with minor changes. New rectangular taillights replace the horizontal ones on the Vellfire, mimicking the design of the second generation's taillights. The Alphard gets slimmer LED headlights and a larger grille up front. Both models can be optioned with sequential blinkers. Also new is an updated V6 engine,

7475-593: The cylinder and exhaust escape until the port is covered by the piston. After the exhaust port is covered the piston begins to compress the remaining air in the cylinder. A small piston fuel pump injects liquid during compression. The ignition source was likely a hot tube as in Atkinson's other engines. This design resulted in a two-stroke engine with a short compression and longer expansion stroke. The Utilite Engine tested as even more efficient than Atkinson's previous "differential" and "cycle" designs. Very few were produced, and none are known to survive. The British patent

7590-578: The effect of changing Japanese into a mora-timed language. Late Middle Japanese covers the years from 1185 to 1600, and is normally divided into two sections, roughly equivalent to the Kamakura period and the Muromachi period , respectively. The later forms of Late Middle Japanese are the first to be described by non-native sources, in this case the Jesuit and Franciscan missionaries; and thus there

7705-565: The efficiency. Roy Fedden at Bristol tested an arrangement in the Bristol Jupiter IV engine in 1928, with variable retard timing allowing part of the charge to be blown back into the intake manifold, in order to have sustainable reduced operation pressures during takeoff. Modern engine designers are realizing the potential fuel-efficiency improvements the Atkinson-type cycle can provide. The first implementation of

7820-400: The end of the power stroke equal to atmospheric pressure. When this occurs, all available energy has been obtained from the combustion process. For any given portion of air, the greater expansion ratio converts more energy from heat to useful mechanical energy—meaning the engine is more efficient. The disadvantage of the four-stroke Atkinson-cycle engine versus the more common Otto-cycle engine

7935-513: The expansion and exhaust strokes. The "Cycle" engines were produced and sold for several years by the British Engine Company. Atkinson also licensed production to other manufacturers. Sizes ranged from a few up to 100 horsepower. Atkinson's third design was named the "Utilite Engine". Atkinson's "Cycle" engine was efficient; however, its linkage was difficult to balance for high speed operation. Atkinson realized an improvement

8050-455: The flow of loanwords from European languages increased significantly, and words from English roots have proliferated. Japanese is an agglutinative , mora -timed language with relatively simple phonotactics , a pure vowel system, phonemic vowel and consonant length, and a lexically significant pitch-accent . Word order is normally subject–object–verb with particles marking the grammatical function of words, and sentence structure

8165-443: The form of a stylized "V". It is located on the window frames of the front doors. According to Toyota's Chief Branding Officer Simon Humphries, who also oversees design work, the company wanted to end the Vellfire nameplate in light of its decreasing sales in Japan. However, the decision was reversed during development due to the pushbacks from dealers. The fourth-generation Alphard is offered in G, Z and Executive Lounge trims, while

8280-543: The four-stroke engine, so it is sometimes referred as the Atkinson/ Miller cycle , US patent 2817322 dated Dec 24, 1957. In 1888, Charon filed a French patent and displayed an engine at the Paris Exhibition in 1889. The Charon gas engine (four-stroke) used a similar cycle to Miller, but without a supercharger. It is referred to as the "Charon cycle". Hugo Güldner argued in his 1914 book that Körting

8395-590: The front Toyota logo, and in other places such as the hubcaps and instrument cluster. In June 2022, orders of the AH30 Alphard and Vellfire were suspended, and production ended, resulting in the minivans being unavailable for brand new purchase for a year. As a result, when the AH40 Alphard and Vellfire launched in June 2023, demand for the new minivans was huge, forcing orders to be suspended in late 2023 when

8510-609: The genitive particle ga remains in intentionally archaic speech. Early Middle Japanese is the Japanese of the Heian period , from 794 to 1185. It formed the basis for the literary standard of Classical Japanese , which remained in common use until the early 20th century. During this time, Japanese underwent numerous phonological developments, in many cases instigated by an influx of Chinese loanwords . These included phonemic length distinction for both consonants and vowels , palatal consonants (e.g. kya ) and labial consonant clusters (e.g. kwa ), and closed syllables . This had

8625-403: The intake, compression, power, and exhaust strokes of the four-stroke cycle in a single turn of the crankshaft , and was designed to avoid infringing certain patents covering Otto-cycle engines. Atkinson's third and final engine, the utilite engine , operated much like any two-stroke engine. The common thread throughout Atkinson's designs is that the engines have an expansion stroke that

8740-430: The language, affecting the phonology of Early Middle Japanese . Late Middle Japanese (1185–1600) saw extensive grammatical changes and the first appearance of European loanwords . The basis of the standard dialect moved from the Kansai region to the Edo region (modern Tokyo ) in the Early Modern Japanese period (early 17th century–mid 19th century). Following the end of Japan's self-imposed isolation in 1853,

8855-458: The languages of the original Jōmon inhabitants, including the ancestor of the modern Ainu language . Because writing had yet to be introduced from China, there is no direct evidence, and anything that can be discerned about this period must be based on internal reconstruction from Old Japanese , or comparison with the Ryukyuan languages and Japanese dialects . The Chinese writing system

8970-449: The languages. Okinawan Japanese is a variant of Standard Japanese influenced by the Ryūkyūan languages, and is the primary dialect spoken among young people in the Ryukyu Islands . Modern Japanese has become prevalent nationwide (including the Ryūkyū islands) due to education , mass media , and an increase in mobility within Japan, as well as economic integration. Japanese is a member of

9085-427: The large quantity of English loanwords, modern Japanese has developed a distinction between [tɕi] and [ti] , and [dʑi] and [di] , with the latter in each pair only found in loanwords. Although Japanese is spoken almost exclusively in Japan, it has also been spoken outside of the country. Before and during World War II , through Japanese annexation of Taiwan and Korea , as well as partial occupation of China ,

9200-501: The launch of the AH30 generation in 2015. The name "Vellfire" was derived from "velvet" and "fire" to emphasize "smooth" and "passionate" as characteristics of the vehicle. Starting from the AH30 generation, the Vellfire has been given aggressive styling to reflect being the sportier version of the Alphard. As of the AH40 generation, the Vellfire received its own unique insignia in the form of

9315-425: The only strict rule of word order is that the verb must be placed at the end of a sentence (possibly followed by sentence-end particles). This is because Japanese sentence elements are marked with particles that identify their grammatical functions. The basic sentence structure is topic–comment . For example, Kochira wa Tanaka-san desu ( こちらは田中さんです ). kochira ("this") is the topic of the sentence, indicated by

9430-430: The other measures like the use of rubber bushings in the attachment portions of the cushion frames and memory foam in the seats, the minivan received a 30% reduction in vibrations. A notable change to the Alphard is its insignia, which is moved from the front end to the front door window frames. The front of the Alphard now wears Toyota's corporate emblem. For the first time, the Vellfire receives its own unique insignia in

9545-470: The out-group gives a benefit to the in-group, and "up" to indicate the in-group gives a benefit to the out-group. Here, the in-group includes the speaker and the out-group does not, and their boundary depends on context. For example, oshiete moratta ( 教えてもらった ) (literally, "explaining got" with a benefit from the out-group to the in-group) means "[he/she/they] explained [it] to [me/us]". Similarly, oshiete ageta ( 教えてあげた ) (literally, "explaining gave" with

9660-415: The particle wa . The verb desu is a copula , commonly translated as "to be" or "it is" (though there are other verbs that can be translated as "to be"), though technically it holds no meaning and is used to give a sentence 'politeness'. As a phrase, Tanaka-san desu is the comment. This sentence literally translates to "As for this person, (it) is Mx Tanaka." Thus Japanese, like many other Asian languages,

9775-466: The poorly designed ring in order to minimize friction. The Alphard Hybrid uses " by-wire " technology that monitors brake pedal pressure and vehicle speed in order to calculate the optimum hydraulic pressure. By-wire works with the E-Four AWD system to maximize the collection of kinetic energy from braking for conversion into electric power. The Alphard Hybrid can also generate up to 1,500 watts and

9890-481: The proposed larger Altaic family, or to various Southeast Asian languages , especially Austronesian . None of these proposals have gained wide acceptance (and the Altaic family itself is now considered controversial). As it stands, only the link to Ryukyuan has wide support. Other theories view the Japanese language as an early creole language formed through inputs from at least two distinct language groups, or as

10005-459: The same structure as affirmative sentences, but with intonation rising at the end. In the formal register, the question particle -ka is added. For example, ii desu ( いいです ) "It is OK" becomes ii desu-ka ( いいですか。 ) "Is it OK?". In a more informal tone sometimes the particle -no ( の ) is added instead to show a personal interest of the speaker: Dōshite konai-no? "Why aren't (you) coming?". Some simple queries are formed simply by mentioning

10120-553: The second generation Toyota Safety Sense system is launched with the facelifted Alphard and Vellfire, which became standard equipment across all variants. On 1 May 2020, the Alphard and Vellfire became available at all Toyota dealership sales channels in Japan ( Toyota Store, Toyopet Store, Corolla Store and Netz ), and the Netz logo emblem on the Vellfire's front grille was replaced by the Toyota logo emblem. In April 2021, trim levels for

10235-405: The second-mentioned piston was almost stationary while the first approached and returned. Thus, in each revolution, one piston provided a compression stroke and a power stroke, and then the other piston provided an exhaust stroke and a charging stroke. As the power piston remained withdrawn during exhaust and charging, it was practical to provide exhaust and charging using valves behind a port that

10350-439: The speaker, the listener, and persons mentioned. The Japanese writing system combines Chinese characters , known as kanji ( 漢字 , ' Han characters') , with two unique syllabaries (or moraic scripts) derived by the Japanese from the more complex Chinese characters: hiragana ( ひらがな or 平仮名 , 'simple characters') and katakana ( カタカナ or 片仮名 , 'partial characters'). Latin script ( rōmaji ローマ字 )

10465-817: The state as at the time the constitution was written, many of the elders participating in the process had been educated in Japanese during the South Seas Mandate over the island shown by the 1958 census of the Trust Territory of the Pacific that found that 89% of Palauans born between 1914 and 1933 could speak and read Japanese, but as of the 2005 Palau census there were no residents of Angaur that spoke Japanese at home. Japanese dialects typically differ in terms of pitch accent , inflectional morphology , vocabulary , and particle usage. Some even differ in vowel and consonant inventories, although this

10580-481: The street. (grammatically incorrect insertion of a pronoun) But one can grammatically say essentially the same thing in Japanese: 驚いた彼は道を走っていった。 Transliteration: Odoroita kare wa michi o hashitte itta. (grammatically correct) This is partly because these words evolved from regular nouns, such as kimi "you" ( 君 "lord"), anata "you" ( あなた "that side, yonder"), and boku "I" ( 僕 "servant"). This

10695-443: The third-generation Vellfire is offered in Z Premier and Executive Lounge Premier trims. In Japan, Toyota targeted the sales of the Alphard and Vellfire to number 8,500 units per month, of which the Alphard accounts for 70 per cent and the Vellfire for 30 per cent. In late 2023, orders for the Alphard and Vellfire in Japan were suspended due to overwhelming demand after orders of the previous generation were suspended in June 2022. When

10810-565: The topic with an interrogative intonation to call for the hearer's attention: Kore wa? "(What about) this?"; O-namae wa? ( お名前は? ) "(What's your) name?". Negatives are formed by inflecting the verb. For example, Pan o taberu ( パンを食べる。 ) "I will eat bread" or "I eat bread" becomes Pan o tabenai ( パンを食べない。 ) "I will not eat bread" or "I do not eat bread". Plain negative forms are i -adjectives (see below) and inflect as such, e.g. Pan o tabenakatta ( パンを食べなかった。 ) "I did not eat bread". Atkinson cycle A variation of this approach

10925-419: The two consonants are the moraic nasal followed by a homorganic consonant. Japanese also includes a pitch accent , which is not represented in moraic writing; for example [haꜜ.ɕi] ("chopsticks") and [ha.ɕiꜜ] ("bridge") are both spelled はし ( hashi ) , and are only differentiated by the tone contour. Japanese word order is classified as subject–object–verb . Unlike many Indo-European languages ,

11040-577: The two methods were both used in writing until the 1940s. Bungo still has some relevance for historians, literary scholars, and lawyers (many Japanese laws that survived World War II are still written in bungo , although there are ongoing efforts to modernize their language). Kōgo is the dominant method of both speaking and writing Japanese today, although bungo grammar and vocabulary are occasionally used in modern Japanese for effect. The 1982 state constitution of Angaur , Palau , names Japanese along with Palauan and English as an official language of

11155-480: The two terms (''hyōjungo'' and ''kyōtsūgo'') are almost the same. Hyōjungo or kyōtsūgo is a conception that forms the counterpart of dialect. This normative language was born after the Meiji Restoration ( 明治維新 , meiji ishin , 1868) from the language spoken in the higher-class areas of Tokyo (see Yamanote ). Hyōjungo is taught in schools and used on television and in official communications. It

11270-467: The use of alternative fuels such as diesel and hydrogen. Disadvantages of this design include the requirement that rotor tips seal very tightly on the outer housing wall and the mechanical losses suffered through friction between rapidly oscillating parts of irregular shape. See external links below for more information. The Sachs KC-27 Wankel engine in the Hercules W-2000 motorcycle used

11385-461: The vehicle conform with the size constraints of standard vertical automated parking systems in Japan. The vehicle is equipped with straight rockers and a V-shaped brace in the rear-lower part of the vehicle for a 50% improvement in rigidity compared to their predecessors. Toyota also optimised the use of structural adhesives to limit deformation of the body. It uses MacPherson struts at the front and an updated double wishbone rear suspension. With

11500-407: The verb (e.g. yonde for earlier yomite ), the -k- in the final mora of adjectives drops out ( shiroi for earlier shiroki ); and some forms exist where modern standard Japanese has retained the earlier form (e.g. hayaku > hayau > hayɔɔ , where modern Japanese just has hayaku , though the alternative form is preserved in the standard greeting o-hayō gozaimasu "good morning"; this ending

11615-417: The wait time for delivery of the models extended to August 2024, the decision was made to suspend orders until the backlog can be cleared. The Taiwanese market Alphard was launched in the same day as Japan launched the vehicle on 21 June 2023. It is only available in one grade and it is paired with 2.5-litre A25A-FXS petrol hybrid engine. The Chinese market Crown Vellfire was introduced on 22 June 2023 with

11730-518: The wait time for delivery of the models extended to a year. The Lexus -badged version of the third generation Alphard, called the Lexus LM , was unveiled on 16 April 2019 at the 18th Shanghai International Automobile Industry Exhibition and first released on 20 February 2020 in China . The LM designation stands for "Luxury Mover". The LM is slightly longer than the Alphard it is based on, measuring in at 5,040 mm (198.4 in) long, and fitted with

11845-402: The width by 20 mm (0.8 in), and the wheelbase has grown longer by 50 mm (2.0 in); but the height is shorter by 10 mm (0.4 in) compared to the previous generation. The platform of the third-generation Alphard was updated, featuring a newly developed double wishbone rear suspension to replace the previous torsion beam setup. The new suspension is chosen to maintain

11960-548: The world. Since Japanese first gained the consideration of linguists in the late 19th century, attempts have been made to show its genealogical relation to languages or language families such as Ainu , Korean , Chinese , Tibeto-Burman , Uralic , Altaic (or Ural-Altaic ), Austroasiatic , Austronesian and Dravidian . At the fringe, some linguists have even suggested a link to Indo-European languages , including Greek , or to Sumerian . Main modern theories try to link Japanese either to northern Asian languages, like Korean or

12075-557: Was also added to the lineup in MY 2003, featuring a 2.4-litre 2AZ-FXE Atkinson cycle petrol engine with a power output of 133 PS (98 kW; 131 hp) and 190 N⋅m (140 lb⋅ft) of torque which has been developed specifically for use in Toyota's Hybrid Synergy Drive technology and features a high-expansion ratio cycle that raises efficiency and reduces friction; however, this led to reliability problems of pistons' rings premature wear and consequent high oil consumption due to

12190-539: Was based on 12- to 20-second-long recordings of 135 to 244 phonemes , which 42 students listened to and translated word-for-word. The listeners were all Keio University students who grew up in the Kanto region . There are some language islands in mountain villages or isolated islands such as Hachijō-jima island , whose dialects are descended from Eastern Old Japanese . Dialects of the Kansai region are spoken or known by many Japanese, and Osaka dialect in particular

12305-478: Was covered during the compression stroke and the power stroke, and so the valves did not need to resist high pressure and could be of the simpler sort used in many steam engines, or even reed valves . The next engine designed by Atkinson in 1887 was named the "Cycle Engine" This engine used poppet valves, a cam, and an over-center arm to produce four piston strokes for every revolution of the crankshaft. The intake and compression strokes were significantly shorter than

12420-735: Was imported to Japan from Baekje around the start of the fifth century, alongside Buddhism. The earliest texts were written in Classical Chinese , although some of these were likely intended to be read as Japanese using the kanbun method, and show influences of Japanese grammar such as Japanese word order. The earliest text, the Kojiki , dates to the early eighth century, and was written entirely in Chinese characters, which are used to represent, at different times, Chinese, kanbun , and Old Japanese. As in other texts from this period,

12535-541: Was introduced in Russia, the model's primary, and only European market, but only with the 3.5-litre V6 engine. The V6 model is also available in other left-hand drive markets, like China and Taiwan. In India, the Vellfire has been offered since February 2020 as the brand's only import model in the country with the 2.5-litre hybrid engine. The facelifted third generation Alphard and second generation Vellfire were unveiled on 25 December 2017 and released on 8 January 2018. Most of

12650-537: Was launched on 22 November 2023, it was available in two variants, powered by either a 2.4-litre turbocharged petrol engine or a 2.5-litre petrol hybrid engine. Pre-order sales for the South Korean market have been initiated. The Alphard is expected to launch in the second half of 2023 alongside the Prius plug-in hybrid . Japanese language Japanese ( 日本語 , Nihongo , [ɲihoŋɡo] )

12765-430: Was launched on 3 August 2023. The Indonesian market Alphard was launched at the 30th Gaikindo Indonesia International Auto Show on 10 August 2023. It is available in 2.5 X, 2.5 G and 2.5 HEV grade levels. The Vellfire followed later at the 31st Indonesia International Motor Show on 15 February 2024, available solely in 2.5 Executive Lounge HEV grade. The Philippine market Alphard became available on 11 August 2023. It

12880-474: Was lost immediately following its composition.) This set of morae shrank to 67 in Early Middle Japanese , though some were added through Chinese influence. Man'yōgana also has a symbol for /je/ , which merges with /e/ before the end of the period. Several fossilizations of Old Japanese grammatical elements remain in the modern language – the genitive particle tsu (superseded by modern no )

12995-456: Was needed to make his cycle more applicable as a higher-speed engine. With this new design, Atkinson was able to eliminate the linkages and make a more conventional, well balanced engine capable of operating at speeds up to 600 rpm and capable of producing power every revolution, yet he preserved all of the efficiency of his "Cycle Engine" having a proportionally short compression stroke and a longer expansion stroke. The Utilite operates much like

13110-429: Was replaced with a 5-speed. In 2006, a Royal Lounge Alphard was introduced. It is a more upmarket, four-seat version of the Alphard G. For model year 2007, on Japanese models only, G-BOOK , a subscription telematics service, was offered as an option. The Alphard is also the first Japanese market minivan to feature a laser-guided Adaptive Cruise Control , although only as an option on V6 variants. A hybrid version

13225-406: Was the first firm to build a gas engine with a short compression stroke and a longer expansion phase in 1891, based on a design first proposed by Otto Köhler in 1887. This engine also had an engine-load dependent valve train which increased the intake and compression stroke with increasing engine load. On the other hand, the compression was decreasing at low and medium loads, which ultimately reduced

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