Toyota Hybrid Strategy

Toyota is focusing on hybrid powertrains and hydrogen fuel cells for its global lineup.

Toyota acknowledged that the world is suffering from an excess of carbon emissions, many of them created by the millions of Toyota vehicles on the road worldwide. Consequently, Toyota has given itself a giant task. In its Toyota Environmental Challenge 2050, the company plans to reduce global average CO2 emissions by 90% from its 2010 levels.

The average battery capacity in an EV is about 60 kWh. The average battery capacity in a Toyota hybrid is 1.4 kWh. In practical terms, that means you could build 42 Toyota Prius in place of the 60 kWh battery in one EV. Forty-two Prius — each reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 30% — would have the impact of 12 EVs. So, Toyota believes that it would be meaningful to build 42 hybrid vehicles that would use a 1.4 kWh battery rather than building a single EV which will use a 60 kWh battery.

Toyota considers if the adoption of electrified vehicles has to speed up, a comprehensive, long-term strategy geared towards overall carbon reduction is needed, which includes a variety of technology options and encourage consumers to make choices that make meaningful reductions in carbon emissions.

From a lineup standpoint, Toyota has committed that by 2025 every vehicle in its global lineup will at least have an electrified option, whether that’s a battery, electric, fuel cell, hybrid or plugin. Toyota has hybrid powertrain available in India for Camry and the upcoming Vellfire including in its Lexus luxury division.

Toyota is clearly no longer thinking about electric cars as a virtue signal. Though it is the hybrid sales leader, it has not become uncreative about that market while ignoring the other potential opportunities. Toyota seems to be intentionally dismissing the electric car revolution lead by Tesla.

– Toyota plans to reduce global average CO2 emissions by 90% in its Environmental Challenge 2050
– Toyota introduced the first hybrid, Prius in 1997
– Toyota to electrify every vehicle in the global lineup by 2025