Worry not though nature lovers. Toyota says that sales of the Prius will rebound with increased inventory, rising gas prices and new Prius models.

“When Toyota is 70 percent of the market and we had to stop Prius production for almost 90 days, it should be no big shock to anybody that the overall hybrid sales volume dropped this year,” said Jim Lentz, president of Toyota’s U.S. sales unit. “It wasn’t due to lack of demand. It was lack of supply.”

Click here for more news on the Toyota Prius.

Starting as early as later this year, the standard Toyota Prius will be joined by the Prius V and the Prius Plug-in Hybrid. Toyota says the additions to the Prii lineup will help boost sales recovery in 2012.

The Prius isn’t the only hybrid that has been struggling. Honda’s Insight fell 21 percent during the first 10 months of 2011 and Ford’s Fusion Hybrid fell 48 percent during the same period.

- By: Omar Rana

Source: Automotive News

Over the past couple years, GM attempted to reinvent the wheel with the Volt in the same way that Toyota reinvented the wheel when developing the second generation Prius: has it paid off? Now that there is a Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid, how does it stack up against the  Chevrolet Volt in cost per mile? The answer is that at some level, we are splitting hairs. The Volt costs less per mile to operate, assuming the distance is under 70 miles. Good mark for GM then; many folks enjoy a commute of under 70 miles, so this makes sense for them.

Furthermore, as GE will be purchasing 12,000 Volts over the next few years, and placing charging stations with them, it should be easier for consumers to adopt the Volt as reliable, sensible and clean American transportation.

For those bent on the American side of things, the Volt is built in the US, but so is the Prius. Certainly both cars are composed of parts from all over the world, bringing into question their viability as environmentally friendly cars, but many and most marques are guilty of this in their regular production vehicles.

The bigger issue at hand especially in this economy is cost: GE can afford the $10,000 premium of the Volt, but can consumers? This is a highly specialized market; those interested in saving money on a commuter car might not be interested in kicking out an extra ten grand just to get an American badge.

- By: Sawyer Sutton

Source: Plugin Cars

Toyota Motor Company announced earlier this year of its efforts to expand the Prius family. So it’s no wonder that the Prius is predicted to become the company’s best seller, surpassing the high-volume sales of the Corolla and the Camry.

By the end of this year along with the usual five-door model that we’ve come to be very familiar with, there will be a plug-in variant, the new Prius V wagon and the compact Prius C.

“We could see Prius eventually leading Toyota sales in the U.S.,” said Ed Larocque, Toyota’s national marketing manager for advanced technology vehicles, “The Prius V will compete in multiple segments,” Larocque continued.

That said, the new Prius V has the potential of being the most economical in the classes that it competes in, mostly with the conventional compact crossovers with EPA ratings of 44mpg city and 40mpg highway.

Additionally, the plug-in variant that will be released early next year has peaked interest by indication of about 23,000 people.

“The U.S. market is unique,” said Larocque. “It’s the only market where we’ll have four Prius models.”

- By: Chris Chin

Source: AutoObserver

Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid

Toyota, which unlike its rivals doesn’t really have much for the ‘electric-car’ segment, is ready to electrify its ‘green’ vehicle lineup. According to reports, Toyota plans to add six hybrid vehicles to its global lineup by 2012 and could have two electric cars in the U.S. market by that time.

While Toyota has been slower to roll out all-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles than rivals Nissan and General Motors, Toyota’s product development chief Takeshi Uchiyamada says that the plug-in version of the Prius will be positioned to be the cheapest car of its kind by 2012. Toyota spokesman John Hanson said that the plug-in version of the Toyota Prius should be available by June 2012 and that the company expects to sell about 20,000 units in the first year with prices coming in at a $3,000 to $5,000 premium over the standard Prius. That would bring the price of the plug-in version of the Prius, which can run on battery power for the first 13 miles, at below $28,000. Its direct competitor, the Chevrolet Volt, which can run on battery power for 40 miles, is selling at $41,000.

Uchiyamada said that Toyota is aiming to have a plug-in version of its Prius priced “so close to the current version that customers really have to hesitate and think about it.” He said that “over time, we would like to offer consumers the option of paying more for a bigger battery and longer range, but that won’t be possible with the first version.”

Uchiyamada also said that Toyota will offer low cost fully-electric vehicles in 2012. The automaker confirmed yesterday that it will unveil an electric version of the RAV4 powered by a Tesla Motors powertrain at the 2010 LA Auto Show in November.

So Toyota plug-in hybrids and EVs are on the way – but pricing will be very competitive. We guess you should wait to jump in on the EV segment.

- By: Omar Rana

Source: Reuters

Toyota’s Executive Vice President Takeshi Uchiyamada says that Toyota will start selling plug-in hybrid vehicles to consumers in 2011 at an affordable price. Uchiyamada made the comments while showing the Prius plug-in hybrid prototype.

Later this month, a total of 350 vehicles will be delivered in Japan and Europe in support of model programs with business and government partners. Early next year, 150 units will start arriving in the U.S., where they will be placed in regional clusters with select partners for market/consumer analysis and technical demonstration.

“When fully charged, the vehicle is targeted to achieve a maximum electric-only range of approximately 13 miles and will be capable of achieving highway speeds up to 60 mph in electric-only mode,” Toyota says. “For longer distances, the Prius PHV reverts to “hybrid mode” and operates like a regular Prius.”

The battery powering the Prius PHV is the first lithium-ion drive-battery developed by Toyota and its joint venture battery production company, Panasonic Electric Vehicle Energy (PEVE). In early November, PEVE began producing more than 500 lithium batteries on a dedicated assembly line at the company’s Teiho production facility in Japan.

- By: Omar Rana

Toyota Motor Corp, which is preparing to deploy over 500 new-generation plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHVs) by 2010 for testing-purposes, said that it plans to start mass producing PHVs in 2012. According to a report by Japan’s Nikkei business daily, Toyota plans to produce 20,000 to 30,000 PHVs during the first full-year of production.

The report said that Toyota is looking to get the price of its PHVs comparable to Mitsubishi’s i MiEV electric-car which is being sold to fleet customers this month starting at 4.59 million yen ($47,800 USD). Toyota’s new 2010 Prius gasoline electric-hybrid costs less than half that.

Toyota’s plug-in hybrids will have the ability to travel 12.4 to 19 miles on battery power alone, Nikkei said. It will be powered by lithium-ion batteries produced in a partnership with Panasonic EV Energy.

Toyota PHEV Plug-in Prius:

- By: Stephen Calogera

Source: Reuters

Even though as President Barack Obama pitches for 1 million plug-in hybrid electric vehicles on U.S. roads by 2015, Toyota says that consumer demand for such vehicles is limited by the price, recharge time and battery durability.

Toyota estimates that plug-in hybrids may account for 50,000 units a year and could be as little as 3,500. The manufacturer of the Toyota Prius sold 159,000 units of its gasoline-hybrid electric-vehicles last year.

Two months ago, President Barack Obama promoted a $2 billion battery research program that was included in his economic stimulus plan. During his campaign, Obama pledged to have 1 million plug-in hybrid EVs on the road by 2015. The Department of Energy said earlier this month that it plans to begin awarding a portion of $25 billion in low-cost loans to companies that produce plug-in hybrids in U.S. facilities.

Toyota has yet to announce any firm plans on plug-in hybrids for its lineup. Honda has confirmed that it is studying plug-in hybrids but has no plans for consumer sales. Both Japanese automakers say that plug-in hybrid technology adds at least $5,000 to $10,000 to a vehicle’s sale price.

Toyota is preparing to deploy over 500 new generation PHVs in Europe, Japan and the U.S. by 2010.

- By: Kap Shah

Source: Bloomberg

Toyota announced today that it will lease over 150 units of its next-generation plug-in hybrid vehicle to a selected few customers across Europe, continuing its three-year program. Toyota said that is preparing to deploy over 500 new generation PHVs in Europe, Japan and the U.S. by 2010.

The new PHVs, which are based on the Toyota Prius, carry a lithium-ion battery pack that extends the vehicle range for zero-emissions driving.

Last we heard anything on the technical specs, Toyota was achieving 12 miles on electric power alone with its lithium-ion battery pack, which is developed by Matsushita Electric Industrial Co.

Toyota PHEV Plug-in Prius:

- By: Kap Shah

The upcoming Toyota Prius plug-in hybrid has been averaging 65 mpg in combined gasoline and electric-mod testing according to Bill Reinert, Toyota Motor Sales USA’s national alternative-fuel vehicle manager.

“That is real-world driving,” Reinert told Automotive News. “I ask my guys to drive them as you drive your normal Prius.”

The 2010 Toyota Prius, with its parallel hybrid and nickel-metal hydride batteries, averages an estimated 50 mpg. Sales of the plug-in hybrid Prius will begin sometimes after 2010.

At the 2009 Detroit Auto Show, Toyota said it will globally lease 500 Prius PHVs powered by lithium-ion batteries. 150 of the plug-in Prius models will come to the U.S. The lithium-ion battery packs are mated to a 1.8L 4-cylinder engine.

2010 Toyota Prius:

During the unveiling of the 2010 Prius at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show, Toyota said that although BEVs and small-vehicles like the iQ will be a key component to the company’s sustainable mobility strategy, the conventional gas-electric hybrid will be Toyota’s long-term core powertrain technology focus. Toyota plans on selling more than one-million gas-electric hybrids a year sometime during early 2010. To reach its goal, Toyota said it will launch as many as 10 new hybrid models by 2010. The first two examples of that are the third-generation Toyota Prius and the all new Lexus HS250h.

Toyota also announced that it will roll-out a large number of plug-in hybrid Prius vehicles a year earlier than planned. Beginning in later this year (originally scheduled for 2010) Toyota will globally lease 500 Prius PHVs powered by lithium-ion batteries. 150 of the plug-in Prius models will come to the U.S.

The Japanese automaker said that the third-generation Prius was designed and engineered to package either a lithium-ion battery pack with plug-in capability or a the nickel-metal hydride battery for the conventional gas-electric system.

The 500 Toyota Prius PHVs will be used for market and engineering analysis. Toyota will monitor the performance and durability of its first-generation lithium-ion battery during the customer leases and will study how consumers respond to the plug-in process.

2010 Toyota Prius:

Toyota’s plug-in Prius hybrid has been testing in Japan for some time now. However, Toyota announced today that it is teaming up with EDF Energy to run tests of the plug-in Prius in the UK as well.

Toyota employees will be driving around and testing the plug-in Prius on UK roads for a full year. Last we heard Toyota was achieving 12 miles on electric power alone with its lithium-ion battery pack developed by Matsushita Electric Industrial Co.

It is rumored that Toyota will show a plug-in Prius concept at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show.

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Toyota PHEV Plug-in Prius: