Toyota to sell plug-in electric car from 2011

Toyota has this week confirmed that its long-awaited plug-in hybrid car will be available from 2011, revealing that it expects to sell "several tens of thousands" of the new plug-in Prius each year.

"Toyota believes that plug-in hybrids are a realistic solution among vehicles using electricity," Toyota executive vice president Takeshi Uchiyamada told reporters at a presentation on the plug-in Prius yesterday, adding that the car would be available at an "affordable" price range.

Uchiyamada, who heads up Toyota's R&D efforts and developed the original Prius, refused to set a price for the new car, but hinted that it would likely be priced at less than three million yen ($33,770, £20,800).

"Nowadays in the US, they sell after-market kits [for converting conventional hybrids] for about one million yen ($11,260)," he said. "Of course, we would have to do much better than that as a mass producer."

The new model will be the first Prius to use powerful lithium-ion batteries such as those pioneered by electric vehicle firms, and will allow motorists to drive an expected 14.5 miles using a full battery before the conventional petrol-electric hybrid system kicks in.

The car would charge in about 100 minutes and halve the running cost of traveling 30km in comparison with a regular Prius if recharged at night, when electricity costs are often lower, Uchiyamada said.

His comments come as the company prepares to undertake global trials of the new car that will see a small number of models leased to government and corporate clients in the US, Europe and Japan later this year. Feedback from the trials will then be evaluated by the company ahead of the expected launch in 2011.

The next two years are expected to see intense competition between car firms as they each seek to launch mainstream low carbon vehicles.

General Motors recently announced that it plans to build up to 60,000 of its Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrids a year, starting in late 2010, while Ford and Volkswagen have also announced plans for their own plug-in models. Meanwhile, Nissan is expected to launch what is being touted as the first mainstream electric car from next year.