Toyota Motor president Akio Toyoda said the automaker would continue to make a variety of vehicle types even though tighter global regulations are prompting development of more electric vehicles.
“EVs (electric vehicles) are in focus at the moment but customers and the market will ultimately decide which powertrains will be successful,” he said at an event to launch the new GR line of sports cars, according to a Reuters report.
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“Toyota will continue to focus on powertrains that focus on hybrid technology, including fuel cell vehicles, plug-in hybrids and – although we were a bit late to the game – EVs,” Toyoda said.
He added Toyota was not considering focusing solely on EVs, Reuters reported.
A Japanese media report last July said Toyota was planning to launch an EV equipped with solid state battery technology in Japan by 2022.
The Chunichi Shimbun report suggested the new battery technology would facilitate quicker charging and longer range than the current lithium ion batteries that are used for most EVs.
Toyota had been researching solid state batteries for many years. The company announced last year it had discovered a solid material suitable for electrolytes in collaboration with Tokyo Institute of Technology and others.
The report also said that Toyota was planning a new EV platform for the new set up.
The newspaper also noted that a full EV based on the compact crossover/SUV hybrid C-HR will be produced and sold in China by 2019 using existing lithium-ion battery technology.
