Toyota hybrids pass 10 million global sales

Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) is celebrating 10 million sales of its hybrid vehicles.

TMC hopes to increase global sales of its hybrid vehicles to 15 million customer deliveries by 2020 – an increase of 50 per cent.

Last year was the most successful in history for the group’s hybrid sales with 1.4 million vehicles sold by the Toyota and Lexus brands, representing approximately 15% of sales.

New Zealanders have purchased more than 9600 Toyota and Lexus hybrids since their introduction to the local market – 7409 from the Toyota brand and more than 2200 from the Lexus brand. The top-sellers being the Camry hybrid (2,795) and the Prius (2,598).

Japan is the biggest market for hybrids with more than 4.8 million sales, followed by North America (3.2 million) and Europe (1.3 million).

The world’s best-selling hybrid vehicle is the Prius with almost 4 million cars sold since it was launched in Japan in late 1997. Prius arrived in New Zealand in 2003.

Globally, Toyota estimates its hybrid vehicles have saved approximately 29 billion litres* of fuel and 70 billion kilograms* of CO2 emissions when compared with conventional petrol cars of similar size and driving performance.

TMC chairman and “father” of the Prius, Takeshi Uchiyamada has committed the company to continue working with customers to tackle global environmental issues.

“When we launched Prius, no one even knew what a hybrid was; those who drove it were called geeks or other names,” Uchiyamada says.

“Today, thanks to those early adopters who gave Prius a chance, hybrids have grown in popularity and have ridden a wave of success out of the unknown and into the mainstream.”

TMC says the sale of 10 million hybrids demonstrates the staying power of technology that is a mainstream solution for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other pollutants.

“Now that customers around the world are opting to purchase hybrid and other fuel-efficient vehicles, the entire automobile industry has been able to contribute to the solution of global environmental problems,” the company says.

In October 2015, TMC announced the Toyota Environmental Challenge 2050 that aims to help reduce the negative impacts of automobiles on the global environment to as close to zero as possible.