Toyota has announced that global cumulative sales of Toyota hybrid vehicles have topped the 1 million mark, with approximately 1,047,000 units sold worldwide as of May 31, 2007.
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Toyota launched the Prius — the world’s first mass-produced hybrid vehicle — in Japan in 1997 and began selling it in North America, Europe and elsewhere in 2000.
The second-generation Prius, equipped with the Toyota Hybrid System II, was introduced in 2003 with an emphasis on delivering both environmental performance and power. Over time, Toyota has expanded the use of its hybrid system to minivans, SUVs, rear-wheel-drive sedans and other vehicles.
Toyota began overseas production of hybrid vehicles in Changchun, China in 2005 and in Kentucky in the United States in 2006.
Toyota says that as of April 30, 2007, worldwide sales of its hybrid vehicles since 1997 have greatly contributed to reductions in CO2 emissions, which are considered a cause of global warming, by producing approximately 3.5 million fewer tons of CO2 compared with the same class gasoline-powered vehicles of similar size and driving performance.
Toyota says it aims to double its hybrid lineup and achieve annual sales of one million units in the early part of the 2010s.
