Toyota Celebrates 10 Million Benchmark for Hybrid Vehicle Global Sales

A turning point and definitely a point of celebration for the Toyota Motor Corporation as it crosses 10 million mark for the hybrid vehicle global sales. The company sold 1005 million hybrid cars as of 31st January 2017. What’s interesting is that this 10 million mark was achieved in just nine months after the sale of nine million units was completed by the company in April 2016.

August 1997 was the time when Toyota took its first step to respond to the alarming emission levels and launched the Coaster Hybrid EV. In the same year itself, it came with another vehicle by the name of Prius Hybrid and created a milestone as it was the first mass-produced hybrid passenger vehicle that the world saw. With the never ending popularity and demand for hybrid vehicles since then, there have been four generations of Prius. Sales of hybrid vehicles has been gaining popularity in the more recent years.

It is estimated that Toyota’s hybrid vehicles have saved the Earth of 77 million CO2 emissions and around 29 million kiloliters of gasoline, compared to the gasoline-powered vehicles of similar driving performance and size.

“When we launched Prius, no one even knew what a hybrid was. Those who drove it were called geeks or other names. Today, thanks to those early adopters who gave Prius a chance, hybrids have grown in popularity, and have ridden a wave of success out of the unknown and into the mainstream,” on the happy occasion said Takeshi Uchiyamada, Chairman and Board of Director, Toyota. Known as the ‘father of the Prius’, he added, “We are grateful to each and every one of our customers who has helped us achieve this important milestone of 10 million hybrid sales. We are committed to continue working hand-in-hand with them to tackle global environmental issues.”