Karam el Shenawy
April 11, 2023
The Japanese Group updates its strategy and advances the deadlines for the launch of new zero-emission models. If you want to know what it is about, keep reading.
In December 2021, Toyota shook the foundations of the automotive sector by announcing an ambitious electrification plan for the entire Group that included the launch of no less than 30 100% zero emission models by its two brands, Toyota and Lexus. Famous took the photo of the then CEO of the company, Akido Toyoda, surrounded by those thirty models, all in his conceptual designs.
It may interest you: Toyota continues to be the most valuable brand
Well, Toyoda himself no longer holds the position of top manager having been replaced on April 1 by Koji Sato. In his first speech, the new head of one of the most important automotive groups on the planet announced what we could call phase 2 of this strategy. The most representative of it is without a doubt the progress in terms, since in 2026 the Japanese conglomerate will be able to circulate no less than 10 new models trying to achieve a volume of 1.5 million units put into operation, which is said soon, since it represents almost half of what they had estimated for 2030 (3.5 million) with those 30 models on the street.
in all segments
1 photos
An ambitious figure because compared to this 2022 the Group has managed to sell ‘only’ 22,500 units. And we put in quotation marks only because we have to be fair and say that Today they only have three models that are 100% zero emissions. such as the Toyota bZ4X and the Lexus RZ 450e and UX 300e, the first two being still in the launch phase in some countries (in Spain they are not yet running). That is why it seems feasible that within three years they can get closer to these objectives by multiplying by four the number of models marketed.
The variety will be one of its great spearheads because these 10 models will be present in almost all segments. Some of them we already knew as those that will derive from the Tacoma EV and Crown EV concepts as well as the compact SUV under the bZ family. There will also be several pick-ups for markets such as Asia and other emerging markets, while a seven-seater SUV will arrive in the United States that will also use the batteries assembled at the North Carolina factory. In Europe, according to Yoichi Miyazaki, executive vice president of Toyota, it will be heavy emphasis on style and performance while Hiroki Nakajima, also executive vice president, confirmed that this new batch of electric vehicles “will offer twice the range by using batteries with much greater efficiency.”
Also hybrid and hydrogen
1 photos
However, this avalanche of zero emission models will not leave other technologies aside. It is well known that from high places they have always doubted that the market is electrified by complete abandoning possible solutions such as hydrogen. This will be one of the central pillars, as the company has been announcing for months, either with the launch of new models as well as the conversion of current combustion engines. In another parallel path, the brand will continue to improve the efficiency of its hybrids (technology with which it leads in many markets) while trying to reduce its cost, while at the same time increasing the offer of plug-in hybrids, offering them a longer, zero-emission route. .
