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DETROIT, MI - Toyota's problems with runaway acceleration just won't go away.

The company said Friday that it will expand its recall of vehicles for unintended acceleration to include about 154,000 Lexus SUVs. Floor mats can trap the gas pedal and cause the vehicles to speed up without warning. U.S. safety regulators, who asked Toyota to recall the SUVs, said they may investigate whether the company reported the problem to them fast enough.

Toyota now adds the 2010 Lexus RX 350 and RX 450H to a string of embarrassing safety recalls that began three years ago. The Japanese automaker has recalled more than 14 million vehicles globally to fix problems including sticky gas pedals and floor mats. The recalls tarnished the company's sterling reputation for reliability and cut into sales.

In Canada, Toyota said its 2010 Lexus RX350 and RX450h models are affected including a total of about 14,500 vehicles.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration sought the Lexus SUV recall after reviewing complaints from customers and information from the company. The agency does not believe any additional Toyota vehicles have the same problem.

Toyota spokesman Brian Lyons said the company is co-operating with NHTSA and provided information in a timely manner after investigators asked for it.

If NHTSA decides to open an investigation, it wouldn't be the first dustup between Toyota and the agency. In 2010 and 2011, Toyota paid the government a record $48.8 million in fines for failing to promptly alert regulators to safety problems.

Owners of the Lexus SUVs should take out the driver's side floor mat and have their vehicles serviced as quickly as possible, NHTSA said.

They will be notified of the problem by mail in early August, and dealers will fix it for free, Toyota said. Although Toyota is still developing a plan to fix the problem, it will include replacement of the gas pedal.

Experts say if your car accelerates unexpectedly, you should step on the brake and shift into neutral, steer safely to the roadside and shut off the engine.

The automaker's string of unintended acceleration recalls occurred in 2009 and 2010, raising suspicions about Toyota's electronic throttle controls. NHTSA brought in scientists from NASA to help investigate, finding nothing wrong with the electronics in a probe that ended early in 2011. NHTSA said at the time recalls for sticky gas pedals and floor mats would take care of unintended acceleration.

Although Friday's recall comes nearly three model years after the Lexus SUVs were introduced, a NHTSA spokeswoman said the agency had no data to seek a recall before that.

When NHTSA closed its Toyota unintended acceleration probe in 2011, there were no complaints about the RX 350 from model years 2008 and 2009, and only three complaints from the 2010 model year, agency spokeswoman Lynda Tran said. There also were no complaints about the RX 450 H gas-electric hybrid.

But government investigators noticed an increase in consumer complaints about the Lexus SUVs late last month, and it asked Toyota about the problem. Last week, Toyota told the agency that it had a "significant volume" of complaints about the same issue, so NHTSA asked for the recall, the agency said in a statement.

Now, NHTSA has asked Toyota for more documentation to see if the company "met its obligation to notify the agency and conduct a recall in a timely manner," NHTSA's statement said.

The Canadian Automobile Dealers Association (CADA) has reported new car sales are on pace for a new record in Canada in 2012. With total new vehicle sales up more than 8 per cent so far this year over 2011, the market is on pace to eclipse 1.7 million new units sold for the second time ever, and to post a record for new vehicle demand in Canada.

The biggest factor driving this record demand has been affordability: average new vehicle prices have never been lower and have been on a downward trend for the past two decades. This, combined with strong consumer confidence and a return of a full suite of finance products now available to consumers, is resulting in record-setting sales across the country.

If the domestic new car market has a second half of 2012 as strong as the first half, new sales records will be set this year.

TORONTO - With gasoline prices at the pump near record highs, some Canadians are rethinking whether car ownership is worth the soaring cost.

But for those who simply can't sacrifice their vehicles, a few smaller changes can save hundreds of dollars.

Julian Jean-Pierre, a 36-year-old landlord who moves a lot of furniture around Toronto to his rental apartments, says high pump prices have him wishing he could walk or use public transit more often, but that's just not realistic for him.

He says a big squeeze from high pump prices in the past few weeks is forcing him to cut back in other areas.

"I have less money to spend with my family and stuff. It seems like everyday I'm paying more and more," Jean-Pierre says.

"I'm saving my change more, collecting more pennies and emptying my pocket and trying to put that toward my disposable income."

Consumers in central Canada recently saw gasoline prices spike and analysts say that's not the end. Prices are expected to push higher to as much as $1.50 a litre before the summer.

That has budget-minded and debt-loaded Canadians worried about how cope with not only a spike in pump prices but the related effects on grocery, taxi and flight prices — among other changes consumers will have to deal with.

Here are some tips from Jim Davidson, gas savings expert and author of 75 Ways to Save on Gas:

— Reduce the number of trips taken by car: try cycling, taking public transit or an auto sharing program that includes the price of gas.

— Rethink the time of day you're travelling, is it worth the gas to sit in rush hour traffic for a bag of milk?

— Slow down! Most vehicles get maximum fuel efficiency around 93 kilometres per hour. "Every ten kilometres you go over 93, you're burning 10 per cent more fuel," Davidson says.

—Turn off the air conditioning/defroster unless it's completely necessary — it can use up to 20 per cent more gas.

— Service your car regularly, vehicles that are out of shape can use between 10 per cent and 35 per cent more gas.

— Pay attention to your tires, each underinflated tire can waste up to five per cent more gas. "Last time I tried to ride a bicycle with underinflated tires, It was really tiring, so it's the same concept," Davidson says. Make sure they are properly inflated, but don't overinflate either, he advises.

— Don't idle. Get off your car seat and walk in for that early morning coffee rather than sitting in the drive-through line.

Jason Toews, co-founder of gas price complication website GasBuddy.com, adds these tips:

— Do your research before you fill up. Gas prices can vary by as much as 10 cents a litre even within the same city. Websites like GasBuddy and others can point out the cheapest stations in a given region. "It's a huge savings just knowing where to fill up," Toews says, adding choosing the right station can save $20 or more each time.

— Plan a road trip route that goes through the U.S. "You're going to save money on gas by driving through the U.S. because it's roughly 33 per cent cheaper in the U.S. right now," Toews says.

— Flying is not necessarily the better option. Air fares are also affected by higher prices for jet fuel. Calculate the costs, which can be cheaper if you find a seat sale or book before new fuel surcharges kick in.

— Choose a more fuel efficient vehicle. Many Canadians are trading in their old gas guzzlers for smaller, more fuel efficient choices. Although a new car may seem extravagant, a decade-old pickup truck could be too costly to keep.

For example, he says, a round trip from Vancouver to Toronto (about 8,800 kilometres) in a Chevy Silverado pickup truck costs about $1,044. He says the same trip in a Toyota Prius car would cost about $438.

MISSISSAUGA, ONTARIO - The SUV with the driving fun of a sports car is entering its second generation. Indeed, Porsche is celebrating the world premiere of the new Cayenne GTS at the 2012 Beijing Auto Show. Its concept: concentration on sporty performance. Its recipe: a more powerful engine, more dynamic power delivery, a tauter chassis with lower ride height, and emphatically sporty equipment. In the process, the new Cayenne GTS doesn't just fill the gap between the Cayenne S and the Cayenne Turbo but also differentiates itself clearly from the other models with its own special character.

The Cayenne GTS's hood conceals a 420 hp uprated V8 engine, based on the Cayenne S power unit. Power transmission is ensured by the
eight-speed Tiptronic S with integrated auto start/stop function. An especially dynamically tuned engine and transmission design reinforces
the unequivocally sporty characteristics. The Cayenne GTS sprints from a standing start to 100 km/h in 5.7 seconds, reaching 160 km/h in 13.3
seconds. The top track speed is 261 km/h.

The specially tuned chassis ensures thrilling driving dynamics. It is more tautly tuned, equipped with Porsche Active Suspension Management
(PASM), air suspension, and a 20 mm lower riding height relative to the Cayenne S. As a result, the new Cayenne GTS is even closer to the
road and moves with the sports car's trademark composure and agility.

The Cayenne GTS's looks openly proclaim its pronounced sportiness with eye-catching features such as the front-end borrowed from the Cayenne
Turbo, frames and trims in high-gloss black, prominent side skirts and wider wheel arches as well as a distinctive roof spoiler with twin-wing profile. The prevailing ambiance of the interior is sporty elegance and the GTS features a standard leather interior with Alcantara elements. Front sports seats with eight adjustment options are also featured as standard in the new Cayenne GTS.

Offered at a starting price of $93,600, the Cayenne GTS is expected to arrive in Canada this fall.