Isra-Mart srl:Toyota hybrid boom paves way for greener technologies

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Toyota's European arm has announced that it sold more hybrid vehicles than ever in 2010, despite challenging market conditions across the auto industry.

The company made the announcement yesterday and revelead that its hybrid vehicle sales reached an all-time high of 70,529 units, up 29 per cent from 2009 against the backdrop of an otherwise sluggish car market.

The figures, which cover all of western, central and eastern Europe, including Turkey and Russia, revealed particularly strong demand for the Auris Hybrid, which began production in Derby in June last year and emits 89g carbon dioxide per kilometre.

Toyota had sold 15,237 Auris cars by the end of the year, nine per cent more than its initial target of 14,000 units. The company said it now hopes to sell 30,000 units in 2011.

Speaking to BusinessGreen, Toyota spokesman Etienne Plasa said customers are becoming increasingly comfortable with hybrid cars and no longer regard it as a niche market.

He added that Toyota sees hybrid vehicles as the backbone of its future zero-emission vehicle development.

"Hybrid vehicles are our core technology, not only because of their strong environmental performance and low cost of ownership, but also because hybrids pave the way for the development of other technologies, such as all-electric vehicles and hydrogen fuel cells," he said.

The Japanese firm has said it plans to launch hybrid versions of every one of its models by 2020 and aims to start selling plug-in hybrids and all-electric models in 2012. It is also on track to launch hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in 2015.

Earlier this week, Toyota unveiled a five-seater Prius v, intended to appeal to families, and a smaller Prius c Concept for city drivers, in a bid to build on the Prius's iconic brand.

Plasa said Toyota has yet to decide if those particular models will land in European showrooms. However, it is planning an all-electric vehicle launch in Europe in 2012, which is expected to be based on the IQ microcar.

Yesterday, Toyota also pledged to work with 12 other Japanese automakers and fuel cells suppliers to help pave the way for the domestic roll-out of fuel cell vehicles (FCV) in Japan from 2015.

The companies, which include Nissan and Honda, confirmed they are working to drastically cut manufacturing costs to launch FCVs in four Japanese cities in 2015.

Hydrogen fuel suppliers said they are planning to build around 100 hydrogen fueling stations by 2015 in Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka and Fukuoka as part of the initiative.

The companies plan to meet with local governments to draw up strategies for creating consumer demand for FCVs and to ensure fueling stations are placed in the best possible locations.