Plug-In Hybrid Fleet Coming, Toyota Chief Says. . .Lithium batteries, two new hybrid vehicles and a clean-diesel engine also on the way

Have you been wondering what Toyota's next steps might be as it moves forward toward cleaner,more efficient cars and trucks? Been wondering, maybe, about where we are on plug-in hybrids and lithium-ion batteries, among other things?

You no longer have to wonder. Reiterating Toyota's intention to exceed new Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards rather than merely meet them, Katsuaki Watanabe, president of Toyota Motor Corp., spelled out at least part of the future Sunday in a stunning series of announcements at the North American International Automobile Show (NAIAS) in Detroit.

As a part of its commitment to the concept of sustainable mobility, Watanabe said that Toyota will build and deliver what he called "a significant fleet" of Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs) that rely on lithium-ion batteries to a variety of global fleet customers.

A large part of that PHEV fleet will be sent to fleet customers in the U.S., Watanabe said. Toyota will deliver its PHEVs as part of the acceleration of its global plug-in hybrid research and development program, scheduled to begin late next year.
Indeed, early iterations of the PHEVs were planned for use transporting Toyota executives to the show this week, Detroit's notorious January weather permitting, and also for limited use by select members of the media - again, weather permitting.

And that wasn't all. As part of its plug-in development plan, Watanabe said, Toyota has begun the planning phase of an expansion of a battery factory it operates as a joint venture with electronics giant Panasonic.

"The expansion will add an assembly line to build our first-generation lithium battery for automotive applications," Watanabe said, signaling that while others continue to bench-test lithium-ion battery prototypes, Toyota is ready to go into lithium-ion battery production.

But that wasn't the end of the announcements from Watanabe. He also promised two new hybrid vehicles.

"Next year, here in Detroit, we will expand our conventional hybrid line-up by staging world premieres for two all-new dedicated hybrids  - one for Toyota, and one for Lexus," he said.

Watanabe noted that Toyota's goal is to sell, in the next decade, a million hybrid vehicles per year. These two introductions will help the company meet that goal, he said.

But there's more to Toyota's vision of sustainable mobility than hybrids. That vision includes other forms of motive power, including diesel and ethanol.

With that in mind, Watanabe confirmed a clean-diesel V8 engine will be offered in the Tundra pickup and Sequoia SUV in what he described as the near future.   

Additionally, he said, Toyota's biotechnologists are developing cleaner and more efficient methods of producing ethanol that can be used as fuel from wood-waste materials, rather than from food crops. 

Toyota is pursuing its vision of sustainable mobility, Watanabe said, because it is interested in doing more than merely meeting the revised CAFE standards passed by the Congress, and signed into law by President Bush, in December.

He said, "Last month, the U.S. Congress agreed on an energy bill calling for a 35 mpg CAFE by 2020. Toyota strongly supports this long-overdue legislation.  However, we will not wait until the deadline to comply.  I have issued a challenge to our engineers to meet the 35 mpg standard well in advance of 2020. I believe that it can be done, that it should be done, and that Toyota is capable of doing it." 

~ Contributed by Irv Miller, Group Vice President, Corporate Communications

Comments

[Yanquetino]

I am sorry, Mr. Watanabe, but I think it is a grave mistake for Toyota --or any car manufacturer-- to start building and selling so many PHEVs instead of pure EVs.

If you are going to adopt lithium ion techology, why not simply put it into a resurrected RAV4-EV, giving it better range than ever? Consumers would be lined up to buy them, believe me! Even now the first generation used RAV4-EVs are selling for nearly twice their original price on eBay, so it is obvious that the customer demand for that vehicle is huge --and growing every day.

Sure, invest in PHs for a few of your "workhorse" vehicles, but by all means dust off the assembly lines for EV vehicles as well. Otherwise, Subaru and Mitsubishi will undercut you in as little as 2 to 3 years.

[Felix Kramer]

We've always thought Toyota could build great plug-in hybrids. Now we get to thank the company for listening to the fleet buyers, drivers, corporate leaders, public officials, electoral candidates, policy makers, advocacy groups and consumers asking it to build them sooner. Toyota's long-awaited announcement that it will deploy demonstration fleets brings the plug-in campaign much closer to our goal -- "successful PHEV commercialization ASAP" -- which will happen as car companies race to mass-produce plug-in hybrids.

We hope Toyota will pick some of the companies, government agencies and others that signed up through Plug-In Partners' campaign to be among the lucky testers of the first fleet cars. CalCars and our partners in the PHEV campaign will continue to make the case for accelerating every aspect of the development cycle. And we'll work to bring in public and private incentives and regulatory measures to help ensure that the interval between the appearance of the first cars and the mass-produced PHEVs the public can buy is as short as possible.

-- Felix Kramer, Founder, The California Cars Initiative (CalCars.org)

[Ken Switzer]

Thank you for this announcement! It restores my faith in Toyota being a leader in what is needed in the US in the near future.
I was having doubts there for a while!
Thanks again.
kws

[Jon Wellinghoff]

Toyota and Katsuake Watanabe are to be commended for stepping up to the plate with a commitment to begin delivering PHEVs to fleet purchasers in the U.S. within the next two years. This announcement supports what many have stated regarding lithium battery technology- It is viable for use in vehicles here and now. I only hope that Toyota will also take an additional step when it rolls out these vehicles to fleet purchasers-Make them vehicle-to-grid capable so that the benefits and synergies of storage support for the grid can be realized by Toyota from a more valuable product, the consumer from payments back from grid operators for the provision of grid support services, and society from a more efficient electric grid.

[Patrick Mazza]

As a loyal Toyota customer who has driven Toyota products since 1989, the latest on '03 Corolla, I want to thank President Watanabe for his announcement. Though I drove my first Toyota for 14 years, I'm planning to switch out my Corolla a bit sooner. It looks like Toyota, which I truly believe is the finest auto company in the world, will have my next vehicle ready to go by 2011 or 2012. I am so ready to begin plugging in!

That will make me one of many citizens of Washington state who will help fulfill a goal in our new state climate plan for 10 percent of miles driven by 2020 to be in plug-in cars and light trucks. We hope to be saving 3.6 million metric tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions by then with plug-ins in our middle-sized state. That is one small indication that plug-ins are one of the most important climate-saving technologies.

Again, thank you, Toyota.

[Bob Halley]

I hope that the auto executives that sit in their luxurious offices in Detroit (GM, Ford, Chrysler)are appropriately embarrassed by the performance of Toyota Motors. Once again, the Japanese have out-planned, out-thought and out-performed the domestic auto companies. Is there anyone in Detroit who has the guts and brains required to lead our auto industry to global preeminence? If there is, put him or her in charge. If there's not, we should be asking ourselves what happened to the American spirit of innovation, our commitment to excellence and our will to win.

[dewitt henderson]

how long are the batteries good for and will toyota take them back when its time to replace.

[rem]

Wonderful news! I have a bank account set aside to buy my new Toyota PHEV when it becomes available.

[Susan Lansford]

I own a '03 Camry. I may not buy another Toyota after viewing your commercials where cars are destroyed just so the person can get a Toyota. Even if faked, it leaves the wrong message...donate a car to a church, hospice etc instead!!!

[steve morrow]

I was told I should write to you about my 1980 toyota celica st.
We have a 1980 toyota celica st that is still running.We drive it everywhere.Our car is 28 yrs.old and has over 400,000 miles at least and gets us where we need to go.We both have had other toyota vehicles,such as the tercel,& corrolla.We think they are
really good vehicles as far as low maintence,and gas mileage.

[Robert A Lybarger]

The first auto manufacturer who

produces and sells an auto that

gets over 60 miles per gallon

hydrogen, electric, gas, will

control the future. It doesn't

have to be large or fast. Two to four passanger. Needs to run a least 450 miles per day.

Thanks,

[ngt]

A plug in that can run 40 miles or more on a single charge will eliminate the most frequent daily use of gasoline for many who make a trip to work or go shopping. This alone will make a great contribution to save the planet. Keep up the good work. Please make one at Corolla prices.

[Prabhakaran]

It's a good thing to know this.But when you think of the economy and service for PHEV's it is quite high.