Toyota drops plan for widespread sales of electric car

Toyota announced the following:

"(Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp has scrapped plans for widespread sales of a new all-electric minicar, saying it had misread the market and the ability of still-emerging battery technology to meet consumer demands."

Further, the article said about the Prius Plug-in:

"Toyota is also far from its plug-in hybrid sales target. The automaker planned to sell between 35,000 and 40,000 Prius plug-in hybrids in 2012 in Japan. So far it has sold only 8,400, or about 20 percent of its target.
The plug-in Prius is designed with a battery that can be charged for just over 20 km (12.4 miles) of battery-powered driving. After that, the vehicle behaves like a more traditional hybrid and relies on its gas engine for extended range.
"We believe that there is social demand for the plug-in hybrid, but our efforts to let the customers know what it is have not been enough," Uchiyamada said."

Read the entire article from Reuters:

Toyota drops plan for widespread sales of electric car| Reuters

So, what do you think?

 

Thanks Dan. I always wanted to put something useful on there that stood the test of time. Looks like it is because I never got a complaint, just compliments.

Are you concerned about the direction that Toyota is taking with these electric solutions? I still believe in this technology and would purchase in a heart beat again if I had to.