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TOKYO: Toyota Motor Corp. is in talks with General Motors about
producing the hybrid Prius at their joint production venture in
California, the Tokyo Shimbun reported on May 30. If the two
carmakers reach an agreement, it would be the first time that the
Prius—the world’s first mass-produced gas-electric hybrid
vehicle—is made in the US.
Toyota may produce Prius cars at New United
Motor Manufacturing Inc. , a venture established by the two groups
in 1984 that currently makes the Corolla, Tacoma and Pontiac Vibe
vehicles, it said.
The Japanese company plans to ship key
components from Japan and assemble them at the venture in Fremont,
California, where demand for environmentally friendly cars is high,
the newspaper said.
Toyota aims to sell at least one million hybrid
vehicles a year from the early 2010s. It currently produces the
Prius in Japan and China. The carmaker said this month sales of the
Prius had topped one million vehicles since its launch in Japan in
1997, followed by North America, Europe and elsewhere in 2000.
-- AFP
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