Prius

Toyota plans big hike in lithium ion battery output

12:22 pm U.S. ET | May 19, 2013
Toyota is planning to increase production of lithium ion batteries by six times, as the automaker prepares to eventually use them in its flagship Prius gasoline-electric hybrid cars, the Nikkei business daily reported on Sunday.... Read More »

 

U.S. output of the Prius is on hold

12:01 am U.S. ET | May 6, 2013
Once considered a sure bet for U.S. production, the Toyota Prius is now on indefinite hold for assembly here, said Jim Lentz, CEO of Toyota's North American region.... Read More »

 

Ford to pass its own hybrid sales record in five months on Fusion, C-Max

3:41 pm U.S. ET | May 3, 2013
Ford, seeking to challenge Toyota's dominance in gasoline-electric vehicles, said it will pass its own full-year record for hybrid sales in the United States this month on demand for its Fusion and C-Max hybrid models.... Read More »

 

Toyota says Prius line may not reach 2013 U.S. target

2:32 pm U.S. ET | April 19, 2013
Toyota's Prius hybrids, after record sales in the United States last year, may not reach a target for growth in 2013 as gasoline prices fall faster than the automaker expected, its top North American executive said.... Read More »

 

Toyota hybrid sales gain as U.S. demand offsets slump in Japan

9:37 am U.S. ET | April 17, 2013
Toyota, the world’s biggest maker of hybrid vehicles, boosted first-quarter sales of dual-powered autos as a jump in overseas demand outweighed a drop in Japan, where government subsidies expired last year.... Read More »

 

HANS GREIMEL

This Toyota Group hybrid has small sales, huge size

7:06 am U.S. ET | March 27, 2013
While the sales tally for these Toyota Group hybrids aren't huge, the vehicles themselves are big. Really big. In fact, given they are light, medium and heavy-duty trucks, it's perhaps surprising that Hino Motors sold any at all.... Read More »

 

PLUGGING ALONG

Plugging along

12:01 am U.S. ET | March 25, 2013
Are sales of electric-drive vehicles disappointing? No doubt. Has the buzz faded? Undeniably. So are electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids dead? Not really.... Read More »

 

Crossovers, trucks juice Toyota's Feb. gains

5:20 pm U.S. ET | March 1, 2013
Toyota Motor Sales posted a 4 percent sales gain in February, to 166,377 units, with big gains in crossover and truck sales countering declining volumes for Camry and Prius.... Read More »

 

GM targets 20% increase in plug-in hybrid output this year

12:49 pm U.S. ET | Feb. 27, 2013
GM is planning this year to build as many as 36,000 Chevrolet Volt and other plug-in hybrids, 20 percent more than it sold in 2012, two people familiar with the effort said.... Read More »

 

Toyota Prius being evaluated by NHTSA for steering-shaft concerns

1:41 pm U.S. ET | Feb. 26, 2013
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is looking into whether steering shafts in Toyota Prius models spanning from 2004 through 2009 model years are defective.... Read More »

 

Plug-in hybrid, EV sales drop sharply from December

4:41 pm U.S. ET | Feb. 1, 2013
U.S. sales of plug-in electric cars started 2013 slowly, as demand for the Chevrolet Volt, the Toyota Prius plug-in and Nissan Leaf declined in January from December.... Read More »

 

Toyota wins order dismissing Prius brakes class-action claims

12:33 pm U.S. ET | Jan. 10, 2013
Toyota has won a federal judge’s ruling blocking a class-action lawsuit by owners of Prius and Lexus models who sued over a 2010 recall to install a software update that fixed a concern with the cars’ anti-lock braking system.... Read More »

 

NHTSA proposes rules for automakers to add sound to hybrids, EVs

1:29 pm U.S. ET | Jan. 7, 2013
Automakers would need to make hybrids and electric vehicles emit sound under rules that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration proposed today. The rules, ordered by Congress three years ago, are meant to protect pedestrians and bicyclists from vehicles that make little sound when using electric power. NHTSA says that designing the vehicles to make noise at speeds below 18 mph would prevent about 2,800 injuries over the life of each model year of vehicles.... Read More »

 

LINDSAY CHAPPELL

On the mpg front, 2012 had some fizzle

12:01 am U.S. ET | Dec. 28, 2012
This was supposed to be a big year in the push for better auto fuel economy. Electric vehicles and hybrids were supposed to make giant strides in 2012.... Read More »

 

Toyota prices 2013 Camry, Prius c and Scion xB

8:29 pm U.S. ET | Dec. 7, 2012
Toyota Motor Sales announced prices Friday for some of its 2013 models. All prices in this report include a $795 freight charge; for Scion models, the charge is $755.... Read More »

 

Chevy Volt again ranked by Consumer Reports as most-loved car

6:00 am U.S. ET | Nov. 29, 2012
The Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid landed atop Consumer Reports' annual owner-satisfaction ranking for the second straight year. Ninety-two percent of responding Volt owners in a poll of the magazine's subscribers said they definitely would buy a Volt again, tops among 240 models, the magazine said today. Several other fuel-efficient models also scored highly, including Toyota's Camry Hybrid, Prius, and Prius C as well as Nissan's Leaf electric car.... Read More »

 

2012 LOS ANGELES AUTO SHOW

Lentz: Toyota to push hybrids, hydrogen over EVs

3:41 pm U.S. ET | Nov. 28, 2012
Toyota will introduce 21 new or redesigned hybrid vehicles worldwide by the end of 2015 while limiting investment in electric cars, the company's U.S. chief said. Speaking at the Los Angeles Auto Show today, Jim Lentz, CEO of Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A., said hybrids currently account for 3.4 percent of industry sales and 14 percent of Toyota sales.... Read More »

 

Despite the risks, Ford cranks up mpg claims

12:01 am U.S. ET | Nov. 26, 2012
With three new hybrid vehicles on the market and two more on the way, Ford Motor Co. is getting bolder about claiming fuel economy superiority over rival Toyota Motor Corp. -- despite the risks that entails.... Read More »

 

FROM THE CURRENT ANE PRINT ISSUE

Gasoline engines poised to gain share in Europe

Nov. 22, 2012 06:01 CET
Despite all the hoopla over electric cars and fuel cells, gasoline-powered vehicles will be the key powertrain for automakers that must meet the European Union's tough emission standards. That's because a lack of government support for crucial infrastructure – such as roadside charging stations – is hampering automakers' efforts to market electric cars.... Read More »

 

Toyota Prius not popular with car thieves, report says

8:34 am U.S. ET | Nov. 21, 2012
Toyota's hybrid Prius is less likely to be stolen in the United States compared with cars of a similar age as thieves look for parts that can be used in more- common vehicles, according to a trade group.... Read More »

 

GM will focus on plug-ins and EVs, but not hybrids

2:09 pm U.S. ET | Nov. 14, 2012
General Motors' future green-car efforts will focus on plug-in hybrids and electric vehicles, rather than conventional hybrid powertrains, product chief Mary Barra said today.... Read More »

 

FINAL ASSEMBLY

Next-gen Toyota Prius: How much will the wedge look evolve?

12:01 am U.S. ET | Nov. 12, 2012
Will Toyota stick with the distinctly wedgy (OK, iconic) Prius shape when the next generation of the hybrid arrives in spring 2014?... Read More »

 

Electric vehicle prices must fall for sales to take off, Power study finds

4:01 pm U.S. ET | Nov. 8, 2012
U.S. sales of plug-in electric and hybrid vehicles are rising, but they won't gain real traction until manufacturers lower prices and demonstrate clear economic benefits, market researcher J.D. Power and Associates said in a study released on Thursday.... Read More »

 

Toyota mulls new look for next Prius

Nov. 5, 2012 06:01 CET
Toyota is studying whether to keep the hybrid line's aerodynamic wedge-shape as the automaker designs the next-generation car, due to arrive in the spring of 2014.... Read More »

 

Toyota mulls new look for next Prius

3:25 pm U.S. ET | Nov. 4, 2012
Toyota is studying whether to keep the hybrid line's aerodynamic wedge-shape as the automaker designs the next-generation car. "There's an undercurrent among most people that they're ready for a new Prius look," said Chris Hostetter, Toyota's chief for strategic planning. "Maybe our architecture has been a little bit similar for the last two generations."... Read More »