Hybrid leader Toyota turns on electrics
SHANGHAI: Toyota, which pioneered hybrid cars, unveiled Monday plans for its first global line-up of battery electric vehicles as other carmakers have pulled ahead in electrification.
The Japanese automaker announced at the Shanghai motor show its future bZ line, or Beyond Zero, which should see seven models hitting showroom floors by 2025.
“We’re establishing ourselves as a full line-up manufacturer,” said Masahiko Maeda, Toyota Motor Corporation’s chief technology officer.
The announcement at the Shanghai motor show was appropriate as China is the only market where Toyota sells electric versions of a number of its cars.
The first bZ model, an SUV whose characteristics and price were not disclosed, should reach consumers in just over a year.
The annoucement comes just a month after Volkswagen, which took back the title of the top carmaker by sales volume last year from Toyota, unveiled a massive 46 billion-euro ($55 billion) investment plan to become the top maker of electric vehicles by 2025.
All of the major automakers such as Stellantis (Peugeot, Fiat,
Chrysler), Renault-Nissan, GM, Ford, Hyundai-Kia and China’s Geely (Volvo) have announced in recent years plans to move towards electric vehicles.
All except for Toyota, whose line-up is dominated by hybrids, from the sub-compact Yaris to the big 4x4 Highlander.
The automaker has only a handful of battery electric vehicles on sale outside of China, including the ProAce small van and the ultra-compact C+pod.
That is hangover from the poor welcome an electric version of its Rav4 SUV received in the United States in 1997 owing to its limited range and a lack of recharging stations.
Meanwhile, Toyota’s new hybrid Prius which launched at the same time and didn’t have range limitations, was a commercial success.
“At Toyota we always looks at the needs of our customers,” Maeda said.
“It is necessary for people to be able to use our products in every environment,” he added.
But with progress in battery technology that has expanded the range of vehicles, the construction of more charging stations and public subsidies, sales of electric vehicles has increased.