xcel
11-09-2006, 01:58 AM
Toyota dealership in London reaches record sales thanks to Prius. (http://www.askaprice.com/torque-article.asp?article=Toyota_Jemca_reach_record_sales_thanks_to_Prius&item=2354)
Tracy Wilkinson - Askaprice - August 11, 2006
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/2007_Toyota_Prius_II_-_Touring_Edition.jpgLondon´s Mayor Ken Livingstone may not drive, but Toyota must love him. Not only have he and his partner recently bought a Prius from the capital´s Jemca Toyota - but it was his congestion charging policy that helped to boost September´s sales for the centre to be the highest ever recorded in any one month by a Toyota dealership.
358 new vehicles were sold during the period and of these, more than 30% were Toyota´s environmentally friendly Prius petrol-electric hybrid car. If you include used and fleet partnership cars, 468 vehicles were driven off the forecourt of Jemca´s Edgware Road showroom in September, smashing the previously held monthly sales record of 345 units which was set 4 years ago - again by Jemca.
“We sold 111 Prius cars in September, and the majority were top-of-the-range T-Spirits,” said Jemca Sales Executive Roger Hart, who specialises in Prius sales. “There’s no doubt that much of this was driven by concerns over the extension of congestion-charging west into Kensington and Chelsea next February.”
Drivers of the low-emission Toyota Prius are exempt from the £8 daily congestion charge. “People driving into the capital during the day can save up to £2000 a year by driving a Prius – and even those residents who get a 90 per cent discount can save several hundred pounds on council charges,” said Roger Hart. But congestion-charging is only part of the story. “Drivers’ children are increasingly encouraging their parents to go green, and the age range of those who want to drive Prius has come down over the past year as hybrids become more fashionable.”
The Prius has become the car of choice for many celebrities, and several of them are Jemca customers - including Jude Law, Koo Stark, Esther Rantzen and promoter Harvey Goldsmith. Says Mr Hart “Another factor is that a lot of people in London have been passengers in Prius taxis run by fast-growing companies such as Green Tomato – another Jemca customer – and the experience has encouraged them to look into buying.”
Interest in Toyota´s hybrid has grown even more since Roger Hart appeared on BBC and GMTV demonstrating the Prius T-Spirit´s Intelligent Parking Assist (IPA), which uses cameras and sensors to assess a space and steer into it automatically. All the driver has to do is activate the device and to control the speed and braking.
Jemca’s September figures would seem to make it the envy of any motor dealership in what are far from easy times for retail sales. “Although Prius has become our best-selling model over the course of 2006, these results are really about the fact that Toyota has such a good product range across the board.”
Tracy Wilkinson - Askaprice - August 11, 2006
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/501/2007_Toyota_Prius_II_-_Touring_Edition.jpgLondon´s Mayor Ken Livingstone may not drive, but Toyota must love him. Not only have he and his partner recently bought a Prius from the capital´s Jemca Toyota - but it was his congestion charging policy that helped to boost September´s sales for the centre to be the highest ever recorded in any one month by a Toyota dealership.
358 new vehicles were sold during the period and of these, more than 30% were Toyota´s environmentally friendly Prius petrol-electric hybrid car. If you include used and fleet partnership cars, 468 vehicles were driven off the forecourt of Jemca´s Edgware Road showroom in September, smashing the previously held monthly sales record of 345 units which was set 4 years ago - again by Jemca.
“We sold 111 Prius cars in September, and the majority were top-of-the-range T-Spirits,” said Jemca Sales Executive Roger Hart, who specialises in Prius sales. “There’s no doubt that much of this was driven by concerns over the extension of congestion-charging west into Kensington and Chelsea next February.”
Drivers of the low-emission Toyota Prius are exempt from the £8 daily congestion charge. “People driving into the capital during the day can save up to £2000 a year by driving a Prius – and even those residents who get a 90 per cent discount can save several hundred pounds on council charges,” said Roger Hart. But congestion-charging is only part of the story. “Drivers’ children are increasingly encouraging their parents to go green, and the age range of those who want to drive Prius has come down over the past year as hybrids become more fashionable.”
The Prius has become the car of choice for many celebrities, and several of them are Jemca customers - including Jude Law, Koo Stark, Esther Rantzen and promoter Harvey Goldsmith. Says Mr Hart “Another factor is that a lot of people in London have been passengers in Prius taxis run by fast-growing companies such as Green Tomato – another Jemca customer – and the experience has encouraged them to look into buying.”
Interest in Toyota´s hybrid has grown even more since Roger Hart appeared on BBC and GMTV demonstrating the Prius T-Spirit´s Intelligent Parking Assist (IPA), which uses cameras and sensors to assess a space and steer into it automatically. All the driver has to do is activate the device and to control the speed and braking.
Jemca’s September figures would seem to make it the envy of any motor dealership in what are far from easy times for retail sales. “Although Prius has become our best-selling model over the course of 2006, these results are really about the fact that Toyota has such a good product range across the board.”