Sales of Toyota Hybrid Surpassed 4 Million Mark!!! (Official Press Release)

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.