Chevrolet Volt | EV World Is Now Powered By Plug-In Conversions Corporation
                           PREMIUM LOGIN

GAIN INSIGHT INTO THE RAPIDLY EMERGING WORLD OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES. SIGN UP TODAY FOR YOUR FREE COPY OF OUR WEEKLY EMAIL NEWSLETTER.

12 Mar 2010 HEADLINE


SYNOPSIS: Damaged corporate image and questions about reliability and safety of the technology could hurt future sales, writes Josie Garthwaite.

Source: Earth2Tech
Class: SYNDICATED NEWS

Toyota Trials Will Slow Uptake of Electric-drive Vehicles, Studies Suggest

Not too long ago, Toyota reigned as the seemingly untouchable hybrid leader. That dominance — in terms of both market share (50 percent of hybrids sold in the U.S.) and mindshare (no alt-fuel vehicle on the market is better known or more widely recognized than the Toyota Prius) — means that as the Prius image takes a beating, other models across the spectrum of green cars will also get bruised.

Mike Omotoso, senior manager for J.D. Power and Associates’ global powertrain unit, told me the firm plans to lower its hybrid and electric vehicle forecast for 2010, although it has yet to determine how big the hit will be. For the first two months of this year, the hybrid share of light vehicle sales hovered at around just 2.3 percent, compared to 2.8 percent for all of 2009 and 2.4 percent in 2008, according to Omotoso. That’s due to a number of factors — including high unemployment, a weak economy and the biggie: gas prices. But the Prius and its technical troubles loom too large to ignore.

READ COMPLETE ARTICLE >>

IMPORTANT NOTICE: To read this Earth2Tech news story, click the READ COMPLETE ARTICLE link above. This will launch a separate window to the original news source. To comment on this story use the Reader's Comment form below.
Article Views: 929




Reader Comments

A valid email address and confirmation is required before your comment can be posted. Comments not confirmed within 24 hours are automatically deleted.

First Name Last Name
Email Address:

[Please check your spelling. Do NOT use double quotes.
Use <P> to separate paragraphs.]

TYPE THE ABOVE CODE WORD INTO THE FORM FIELD

0 comments so far...

a d v e r t i s e r



Sign Up for FREE Weekly Newsletter




a d v e r t i s e r