September 12, 2005
There could be nearly twice as many Toyota Prius sedans available in the U.S. next year as Toyota Motor Corp. plans to boost annual production of motors for its gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles to meet strong demand.
Toyota plans to sell 250,000 hybrid vehicles in 2005 which will nearly double 2004 sales of 130,000 vehicles.
Toyota has not set specific production goals but industry reports suggest that the company will boost annual production of the hybrid motors by 30 percent its headquarters plant in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, next year.
The increase will produce 400,000 hybrid motor units, with almost all of the new units destined for the U.S.
In other hybrid news, Toyota, Ford Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Corp. showed off their newest hybrid cars and technology in San Francisco at the national convention of the Sierra Club, the country's largest environmental organization.
Honda unveiled its latest hybrid offering at the San Francisco event, the 2006 Civic Hybrid, which can get 50 miles to a gallon on the highway and in the city.
German automakers Volkswagen AG, Audi AG and Porsche AG have announced plans at the International Motor Show in Frankfurt to work together to develop a new fuel-efficient hybrid engine for their automobiles.
The announcement comes less than a week after BMW AG said it would join with General Motor corp. and DaimlerChrysler to develop their own hybrid engine.
