If you love the reliability, stability, and efficiency of a Japanese vehicle and you are conscious of the environment, then the next car you buy should be one of the new hybrids from Toyota. According to the company’s Division General Manager Bob Carter, Toyota is planning on backing up environment initiatives by developing and releasing more hybrid vehicles in its lineup for the United States. Toyota feels that reprioritizing their line to fit their customers’ current and future needs is the best course for the auto manufacturer. Toyota suffered one of their very few losses last year when the recession hit.
When you go look at a future Toyota for sale you will most likely find it to be a hybrid. The company has decided that it would rather introduce new hybrid vehicles than develop a new generation of their older models, like the Supra or the Celica. Toyota released a hybrid concept car at the Detroit auto show in 2007. Called the FT-HS, it is expected to become a major production vehicle for the company for the 2012 model year, with manufacturing starting as early as 2011.
While Carter agrees that he would love to see the company release a new sports car, he recognizes that consumers are veering away from the sportier car and going for vehicles that are “high-quality, fuel-efficient, low-impact-environment products.” So far the company has successfully released three different hybrid vehicles: the Prius; the Camry; and the Highlander like Mitsubishi Chariot Grandis. All three of these vehicles have non-hybrid versions also in production, and they all sell about equally, with the hybrids seeing slightly higher sales.
It was only a matter of time before one of the world’s major auto manufacturers took this route in vehicle development. As more people are becoming aware of the environment and what fossil fuels are doing to it, they have begun to actively seek alternative methods to using gasoline in their tanks. Additionally, dependence on oil from other countries only causes gas prices to rise to ridiculous levels, causing many people to seek out alternative methods of transportation all around.
Toyota has always been a pioneering company when it comes to vehicle manufacturing, and eventually Crown will no longer rely on fossil fuel to make them go. It would not surprise us if Toyota was the company that turned out the first car that flew ala “The Jetsons”. It will happen one of these days, and Toyota will be ready for it.