Written by Megan Treacy on 14/09/10
The Prius has been a great success for Toyota, especially in Japan, but the carmaker is feeling pressure to stay on top as competitors release all-electrics (namely the Nissan LEAF). Trying to keep its share of the hybrid and electric market, Toyota has announced that they will be producing six new hybrid models by the end of 2012. Two will be under the Lexus brand and the other four will be Toyota models.
The six new hybrids will all be first-generation models, not next-generation versions of existing hybrid models. Some models will also have a gasoline-engine counterpart.
In addition to the six hybrid models, Toyota is revealing an all-electric RAV4 at the L.A. Auto Show this November through its partnership with Tesla. Toyota is also working on releasing two other iterations of the Prius in the next two years – a plug-in version and a minivan.
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