Toyota Motor Sales USA has cut the price of its Prius plug-in models by US$2,010 to $4,690, so the range is now $29,990 to $34,905.
By comparison, the sole, highly specified model available here in the UK is priced at GBP33,245 on the road ($53,019) though that reduces to GBP28,245 ($45,046) after a GBP5,000 rebate for electric cars is applied
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The US plug-in qualifies for a federal tax credit of up to $2,500 in addition to California state Clean Vehicle Rebate Program (CVRP) which offers a further $1,500 rebate.
The model is also eligible for the state HOV (carpool) lane sticker.
TMS sells the plug-in in 15 states (California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Maine, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia and Hawaii).
Alec Gutierrez, senior analyst at Kelley Blue Book, said: “Toyota is the latest manufacturer to slash pricing on a plug-in hybrid or all-electric vehicle, a clear indication pricing in this space remains out of reach for most consumers. Even at $30,000 or below, manufacturers will find it difficult to attract buyers, especially with gas prices trending downward and gas-powered vehicles becoming more fuel-efficient than ever before.
“The Prius Plug-In will likely see a slight bump in sales after this price decrease but overall volume will pale in comparison to its Corolla and other compact cars that are capable of achieving close to 40 mpg on the highway for less than $20,000.”
His colleague, Eric Ibara, director of residual values, added: “We now have nearly two years of history with EV and plug-in hybrid sales, and the results have been disappointing at best. Gas prices haven’t helped as they have remained below $4 a gallon for most of the time. KBB’s residual values reflect this sorry fact as the electric vehicle segment, which includes plug-in hybrids, are lower than any other segment by more than eight percentage points. This reflects the price premiums that accompany most of the vehicles in this segment and the soft consumer demand.”
