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New Prius set to be huge hit in Japan
By Yuri Kageyama |
June 1, 2009, Monday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
ORDERS in Japan for Toyota Motor Corp's new Prius hybrid have topped a booming 110,000, a major dealership chain said on Saturday, in what is turning out to be a rare bright spot in the auto market.
The third-generation Prius officially rolled out in Japan just two weeks ago but dealers are already flooded with orders, according to the dealer.
Toyota, the world's biggest auto maker, said two weeks ago it received 80,000 advance orders, but has not updated that number.
The Toyota Tokyo Corolla dealer, however, said on Saturday that nationwide orders at Toyota dealerships in Japan, including those of rivals, have soared to 110,000.
Toyota has set its monthly sales target for Japan at 10,000 new Prius cars - a figure that should make it the top-selling car in the country.
Petrol savings
As the orders stack up, the company looks on track to meet or even surpass its goal and take that crown - an astonishing accomplishment for a hybrid, although the Prius is fighting competition from another new hybrid, Honda Motor Co's Insight.
Hybrids are in demand partly because the Japanese government began offering tax exemptions for the cars earlier this year.
Hybrids also promise savings on gas. In Japan, where frequent stop-and-go traffic lowers the fuel efficiency of gas-engine cars but actually raises it in hybrids, the Prius is promising nearly 38 kilometers per liter.
In heavy traffic, hybrids rely on their electric motors and thus burn no gas.
The third-generation Prius officially rolled out in Japan just two weeks ago but dealers are already flooded with orders, according to the dealer.
Toyota, the world's biggest auto maker, said two weeks ago it received 80,000 advance orders, but has not updated that number.
The Toyota Tokyo Corolla dealer, however, said on Saturday that nationwide orders at Toyota dealerships in Japan, including those of rivals, have soared to 110,000.
Toyota has set its monthly sales target for Japan at 10,000 new Prius cars - a figure that should make it the top-selling car in the country.
Petrol savings
As the orders stack up, the company looks on track to meet or even surpass its goal and take that crown - an astonishing accomplishment for a hybrid, although the Prius is fighting competition from another new hybrid, Honda Motor Co's Insight.
Hybrids are in demand partly because the Japanese government began offering tax exemptions for the cars earlier this year.
Hybrids also promise savings on gas. In Japan, where frequent stop-and-go traffic lowers the fuel efficiency of gas-engine cars but actually raises it in hybrids, the Prius is promising nearly 38 kilometers per liter.
In heavy traffic, hybrids rely on their electric motors and thus burn no gas.
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