Prius Family Sales - November 2012

they expired in september... but sales did not drop dramatically and hybrid sales actually went up... if we analyze the data right now, it shows that non-hybrid car sales dropping significantly and hybrid sales going up.

A lot of Japanese market right now is hybrids, a lot... probably more than 20%-30% and for Toyota's more than that.

For last month, what we know as Prius family sold 47k in Japan.

New vehicles with "record low" fuel consumption are introduced every month... next up is new Daihatsu Move which should get best non-hybrid MPG on the market, 10% less than Prius under Japanese testing cycle.

 

My point was that incentives for hybrids continued in Japan years after they stopped in the US. The MarketWatch article was the first source I grabbed for this.

Japan has higher gas prices, and the switch from nuclear to other electric production may have pushed them up some more. So it is no wonder hybrids, and other fuel efficient vehicles, are popular sellers. The typical Japanese commute probably favors hybrids over the US one for more efficient driving. Have plug ins seen some gain now that the hybrid incentives are gone?

 

Danny,

That is good news. Thanks for posting it.

DBCassidy

 

Two pieces of not so good news:

• gas prices down - I saw $3.09 today and Huntsville AL not the least expensive. Gasbuddy shows New York and Connecticut are showing close to $4/gal along with a smattering in other counties but the rest of the USA is significantly lower.
• fiscal cliff - I suspect we'll see car loans a little less available as we approach the edge.

We're in for interesting times.

Bob Wilson