Toyota has confirmed that the Sai hybrid, a Toyota based on the Lexus HS 250h, will be available for sale on October 20th.  The Toyota Sai will most likely come with the same 2.4L HSD engine that is included in the Lexus HS 250h. And, like the HS, that increase in power will equal lower fuel efficiency (the HS gets 35 combined MPG). The Sai has a revised grille (with less chrome) and a new lower fascia and wheels. Different taillights distinguish the Toyota from the Lexus and, inside, there are fewer buttons and a revised mouse control.

With some new 2010 Prius owners being charged $100+ for an oil change due to the 0W-20 synthetic oil requirements, we have some good news.  PriusChat forum member Sphyrna has posted a document provided by his dealership in Miami showing that the 2010 Prius oil change interval will be changed to 10,000 miles instead of the current 5,000 miles.  The document appears to be a training material for dealerships and contains other pages showing that th

Info from Toyota's Prius Team, posted right here on PriusChat:

Toyota Motor Corp plans to start mass producing plug-in hybrid vehicles in 2012, with a projected first-year output of about 20,000 to 30,000 units, the Nikkei business daily reported on Saturday.

No word on how many will reach the U.S., or when sales will start here. Toyota has said the vehicle will be powered by lithium-ion batteries developed and produced by its joint venture with Panasonic. The cars would be able to run up to 18 miles on battery power alone before a backup gas powerplant kicked in.

It looks like the new Honda Insight is in for some hard times, sales-wise.  Honda sales figures for June show that Insight sales dropped 25% from 2,780 units in May to 2,079 units in June.  Over the same period the Prius' sales have risen from 10,091 units to 12,998.  It's hard not to point out that the Prius' increase from May to June was greater than the number of Insights sold in June. 

At this rate, it's going to be tough for Honda to reach their 90,000 sales goal by the end of the first model year. 

In it's first month on the block, the 2010 Prius is looking to be solid seller for Toyota - at least compared to the rest of the line-up.  With sales of 12,998 cars, Toyota sold 6% more Prius models in June than they did in June 2008.  Not too shabby considering the gas situation of June 2008.

The Prius is also the only Toyota with a positive increase compared to June 2008.  The RAV4 had a 0.6% increase, but that's small enough to call a wash. Year To Date sales are still down roughly 39%.

Seriously, Toyota.  I was making a JOKE when I wrote on April Fools' Day that Toyota is going to co-produce the Volt with GM.  This time, though, it's not the Volt at the center of the conversation, it's the Prius.  And this time, it's not a joke.

Motortrend, via Automotive News, reported yesterday that Toyota is mulling moving future US production of the Prius from the currently built, but empty, Tupelo, Mississippi plant.  Here is MT's take:

From the Washington Post:

"A legion of Toyota brass explained during hours of PowerPoint presentations that the new Prius has been designed to elbow its way into the upper ranks of the U.S. passenger car market..."

The economy sucks, we all know that.  But the decline in Prius sales may have finally hit bottom as we saw a rise in May sales compared to April.  Taking into account that the 2010 Prius was not available for about 95% of May, it looks like Prius sales may have been on their way up on their own without sales of the new model.

May sales were still down 30% compared to May 2008, but gas was about $1.50 higher last May.