Toyota big bets on increasing family Prius

Betting that is better late than never, Toyota is preparing to roll out hybrid according to bring out the Prius in the u.s. market. The move should be followed by the introduction of an entire "family"-badged offers Prius.

Some skeptics warn that the strategy might wind to confuse consumers. Toyota planners argue that the name of Prius is well known and widely accepted will be easier to sell the new hybrid buyers who have proven surprisingly reluctant to embrace the technology of energy saving, even as gasoline prices were settling record levels.

"At the end we could see a point where [various models nicknamed] Toyota Prius could lead sales in the United States," noted And LaRoque, head of the Japanese automaker in the United States hybrid marketing.

Prius already accounts for about half of the electric hybrid vehicles sold in the United States as a result the disaster March in Japan, which seriously hampered car production in that market, supplies have dwindled severely.

American car dealers normally like having anywhere from 30 to 60 days for inventory of cars, but the so-called "days" for the original Prius is currently about four days, warned LaRoque.

Somehow that might work for the benefit of the Toyota Prius when V is the market around October, an estimated two months later than originally expected.

While sales of other hybrids actually have slipped in recent months, brand recognition and huge pent-up demand could send buyers scurrying to nothing with the badge Prius production starts picking up again.

Initial reviews were generally favourable to the new model. Adopts a Bill longer, taller and wider wagon similar offering in particular more interior and cargo space of Prius "classic" and a variety of new features. Among them are a system of audio-highly efficient "green", a choice of two updates of different navigation system and radar-guided cruise control.

With added space and features, buyers will be sacrificing some of the economy of the original Prius ' fuel, which the EPA rates to 51 mpg city and highway 48 to the year 2011-model. The Prius V, will launch as a 2012, will be assessed to Highway 44, 40 cities.

Both models share the same Toyota Hybrid Synergy Drive system, with only modest changes to gas-electric powertrain on the Prius V to accommodate the added dimension and weight.

Some surprising, Toyota decided not to adopt a more advanced lithium-ion battery, although overall sentiment echoes LaRoque industry that "lithium ion battery are the future".

Time-tested nickel-metal hydride batteries will still provide fallback to the Toyota third model to enter the new hybrid brand within-a-C, the Prius brand, due for launch next year. If the v stands for "versatile", the next model will be compact and cheap, family member, a class of smaller and probably thousands of dollars less than the original.

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At this time next year will also be the Toyota preparing to roll out its first plug-in hybrid, a classical version of the Prius that will migrate to the power of lithium.

This offer is already controversial because it is expected to provide only 13 miles range per charge before moving on to his internal combustion engine. Rival Toyota, General Motors gave its Chevrolet Volt plug-in a range of 38 miles. GM claims that it is enough to satisfy the daily Driving needs by about 70 percent of u.s. commuters. It allows them to go weeks — even months — without refuelling the tank of gas.

The plug-in Prius will cover a much smaller fraction of the population. Considering its already considerable mileage will likely yield additional fuel savings, at best, less than 1 $ per day. But also is expected to bring a price many thousands of dollars less volts. And it will be bearing that Prius badge.

But it's a safe bet? Not everyone agrees.

"That could cause confusion with the Prius V and c and other models, such as Lincoln did by calling his models MKT and MKS, MKZ and" warned analyst Aaron Bragman, consultancy IHS downtime,

The counter-argument, quickly, he added, is that "this could be the new standard," If Toyota can "build the reputation" of the original and convince potential buyers that all the various Ippc (the plural of Prius, as suggested by the owners) are a step above the competition.

Like many observers, analysts expect demand for battery be closely linked to what happens with the fuel economy standards here and abroad. A recent study by J.D. Power & Associates claimed that all forms of electric vehicles — from basic plug-in hybrid electric vehicle battery — not more than 7 percent by 2020. Other experts have the number as high as the 20 percent to and grow even more if the Obama administration goes ahead with a proposed federal mileage standards 56 mpg for 2025.

The real winners, Bragman believes, will be products that stand out, like the original Prius and later models, says Toyota will only hybrid or based on drums.

Apparently, others are buying into this topic. Ford has scrubbed plans to produce a gasoline version of its C-Max "people mover" and it will launch next year exclusively in electrified buyers form, choosing a standard or a hybrid plug-in version.

"This is our Prius fighter," said Ford's global marketing director Jim Farley, pointing to studies saying that the creator of the U.S. needed a visually distinct in your model that will be hybrid, declare themselves as green and clean every time that goes by.

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