4,000,000 Sold and Counting
 

Prius family’s humble beginnings turn into a juggernaut.

Wayne Gerdes - CleanMPG - May 22, 2012

In the beginning there was the first generation Toyota Prius – It was ungainly yet advanced and who would have known it was the start of something much bigger to come?

Toyota unleashed a bevy of PR’s from around the world showing global sales of Toyota and Lexus full hybrid vehicles have finally topped topped the 4 million vehicles sold as of April 30.

In response to environmental and fuel costs, Toyota embarked on a bold plan to revamp a significant percentage of automobile offerings in a manner the world had never seen before. With management backing the belief that environmentally friendly vehicles can only truly have a positive impact if they are used disbursed, Toyota took upon itself a massive undertaking to promote the mass-market adoption of fuel efficient and low emissions producing hybrid vehicles.

It Started with a Bus

The world’s first mass-produced hybrid passenger vehicle was launched in December, 1997 in Japan, but the first hybrid vehicles was actually a bus, the Toyota Coaster Hybrid EV which was introduced to the Japanese market in August, 1997.

Sales of the Prius began in Europe and North America in 2000. The second generation Toyota Prius was launched in 2003 and expanded further when according to the company its full hybrid technology was installed in Japanese Domestic Market minivans, SUV’s, luxury sedans and family hatchbacks. The third-generation Prius launched in May 2009 and was a hit with customers around the world, leading to global cumulative sales of Toyota hybrid vehicles topping 3 million vehicles by the end of February, 2011.


Europe

As Toyota’s hybrid range expanded localized production began including the UK built Toyota Auris Hybrid and upcoming Toyota Yaris Hybrid which will be built in France. Later this year, the range expands yet again with the launch of the seven seat Prius+ (our v) and Prius PHEV.

Cumulative sales of full hybrid vehicles in Europe reached 423,000 units. In the UK the number is 94,000.

Globally, Toyota currently sells 18 full hybrid passenger vehicle models in approximately 80 countries. This year, hybrid vehicles have accounted for 15% of Toyota’s global vehicle sales while in Europe full hybrid vehicles account for 10% of sales of Toyota and Lexus vehicles.

Toyota Motor Europe plans to increase sales share of Toyota and Lexus full hybrid vehicles in 2012 to 14%.


A Global Milestone

This year, hybrid vehicles have accounted for 15% of TMC's global vehicle sales. With the upcoming "Yaris Hybrid" scheduled for launch in Europe and the Lexus "ES 300h" for the United States, TMC is committed to augmenting its product lineup even further and increasing the number of countries and regions in which it sells hybrid vehicles.

Toyota estimates its full hybrid vehicles have led to a reduction of as much as 30 million tons of CO2 compared to what would have been emitted by Prius owners driving gasoline or diesel powered vehicles of similar size and performance.

The fuel savings has been estimated to be almost 2.4 Billion gallons which is the equivalent to the total annual gasoline and diesel consumption of a country like Belgium in 2012!


To think of the market the domestics have given up over the last decade in pursuit of inefficient PU’s, SUVs and Crossovers instead of a world class hybrid automobiles. To be fair, Toyota also designs and sells similar inefficient vehicles as well.

Re: 4,000,000 Sold and Counting
 

I was at the dealer today for an oil change and state inspection and was checking out the new Prius. I really like the newly designed front bumper assembly and wheel covers.

Not much of a change but enough for you to easily pick out a 2012 over a 2010-2011 coming at you.

Re: 4,000,000 Sold and Counting
 

From what I can tell - ALL the new taxis in the Washington DC Metro Area are either the 3rd gen Prius Hatchback or the Prius v. I'm also seeing quite a number of Prius c on the road. Even without any government incentives, the Toyota Prius is a reasonably popular vehicle here in the DC Metro Area because of our naturally higher cost for gasoline which is due in part to how crude oil is distributed ( most of the gasoline that we use in the DC area is made from OPEC oil so normally the Washington DC Metro Area pays on the upper end of the spectrum for our gasoline and diesel fuel). However, the number of Prii on the east coast has not hit the critical mass of vehicles like on the west coast where it can support third party/independent Prius experts like Luscious Garage.

Re: 4,000,000 Sold and Counting
 

It is amazing how the designs reaches this point! it is only matter of 1 to 2 year/s and a lot of features were added. As a driver of Lexus GS 450h, I have to say: I have never drove a car like this one!