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For Toyota , it's a question of whether the tank is half-empty or half-full. The automaker is the unquestionable leader in the fast-growing U.S. hybrid-electric vehicle market. But hybrids are coming under increasing criticism for failing to deliver the sort of mileage manufacturers like Toyota are promising.
The Japanese automaker's Prius has become the world's best-selling hybrid, while the U.S. has become Toyota 's biggest market for the gas-electric mid-size sedan, accounting for about 60 percent of worldwide Prius sales. With additional hybrids coming into production, such as the recently-launched Lexus RX400h, Toyota is looking to sell 1 million hybrids annually by 2010, according to Don Esmond, senior vice president of automotive operations for Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc., and "if you put a pencil to that, (the U.S. ) would be doing 600,000."
The question is what it will take to get there. While the recent run-up in U.S. fuel prices has made the economic equation for hybrids increasingly attractive, that may not be enough to nurture a truly mass market. And in the coming years, Toyota and its Lexus luxury arm are likely to shift focus to expand the appeal of hybrids, according to senior company officials.
After a slow and uncertain start, many analysts have come to agree that hybrids are gaining momentum, aided in part by the run-up in U.S. fuel prices. But other observers remain skeptical.
"We see the general desire for these types of vehicles growing," said Jeff Martini, vice president of the Polk Center for Automotive Studies. "However, the compelling argument to actually buy one has to be made more strongly," he added.
http://www.thecarconnection.com/Ind...yota_Rethinks_Hybrid_Strategy.S175.A8928.html
The Japanese automaker's Prius has become the world's best-selling hybrid, while the U.S. has become Toyota 's biggest market for the gas-electric mid-size sedan, accounting for about 60 percent of worldwide Prius sales. With additional hybrids coming into production, such as the recently-launched Lexus RX400h, Toyota is looking to sell 1 million hybrids annually by 2010, according to Don Esmond, senior vice president of automotive operations for Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc., and "if you put a pencil to that, (the U.S. ) would be doing 600,000."
The question is what it will take to get there. While the recent run-up in U.S. fuel prices has made the economic equation for hybrids increasingly attractive, that may not be enough to nurture a truly mass market. And in the coming years, Toyota and its Lexus luxury arm are likely to shift focus to expand the appeal of hybrids, according to senior company officials.
After a slow and uncertain start, many analysts have come to agree that hybrids are gaining momentum, aided in part by the run-up in U.S. fuel prices. But other observers remain skeptical.
"We see the general desire for these types of vehicles growing," said Jeff Martini, vice president of the Polk Center for Automotive Studies. "However, the compelling argument to actually buy one has to be made more strongly," he added.
http://www.thecarconnection.com/Ind...yota_Rethinks_Hybrid_Strategy.S175.A8928.html