Toyota
Motor Corporation (TMC) announces that global cumulative sales of its hybrid vehicles
have topped the 4 million mark as of April 30. Positioning response to
environmental issues as a management priority and based on its belief that
environment-friendly vehicles can only truly have a positive impact if they are
used widely, TMC has endeavoured to promote the mass-market adoption of hybrid
vehicles.
In
1997 in Japan, TMC launched the "Coaster Hybrid EV" in August and
launched the "Prius"—the world's first mass-produced hybrid passenger
vehicle—in December. Sales of the Prius
began in North America, Europe and elsewhere in 2000. Next came the second-generation Prius in 2003
and the expanded use of TMC's hybrid system on such vehicles as minivans, SUVs,
rear-wheel-drive sedans and compact hatchbacks.
In particular, the third-generation Prius launched in May 2009 received
strong support from customers around the world, leading to global cumulative
sales of TMC’s hybrid vehicles topping 3 million vehicles by the end of
February 2011.
TMC
currently sells 18hybrid, passenger vehicle models in approximately 80
countries and regions around the world.
This year, hybrid vehicles have accounted for 15% of TMC’s global
vehicle sales. With the upcoming “Yaris
Hybrid” scheduled for launch in Europe and the Lexus “ES 300h” for the United
States, TMC is committed to augmenting its product lineup even further and
increasing the number of countries and regions in which it sells hybrid
vehicles.
As
of April 30, 2012, TMC calculates that TMC hybrid vehicles2, since 1997,
have led to approximately 26 million fewer tons of CO2 emissions—considered
to be a cause of climate change—than would have been emitted by
gasoline-powered vehicles of similar size and driving performance.
Having positioned hybrid technologies—consisting of the
component technologies necessary for development of various
environment-friendly cars—as key technologies, TMC plans to continue working to
further raise performance and expand its product lineup, including that of
non-hybrid environment-friendly vehicles, to create vehicles that are popular
with consumers.
source: UMW Toyota Sdn. Bhd.
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