Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) has announced that the global sales of its hybrid vehicles until October 31 this year have crossed the one million units mark with cumulative sales reaching 4.60 million units.

Nobuyuki Negishi, chief representative of Mena Office, TMC said, “The Toyota Motor Corporation has long recognized the need for a sustainable, environmentally-friendly alternative to traditional fuel-powered motoring and for the past decade has researched diversifying fuel sources and developed environmental technologies such as hybrid technology, in which Toyota is the industry leader.

“This has resulted in a versatile range of Toyota hybrid vehicles which are now enabling consumers to make a single, simple change that could have one of the biggest positive impacts on the environment to date. The increased sales of hybrid vehicles globally are a clear reflection of our success in this area.”

As of the end of October 2012, there are 19 TMC-produced hybrid passenger car models and one plug-in hybrid vehicle model available in approximately 80 countries and regions around the world. In the Middle East as of October 2012, Toyota has five hybrid passenger vehicles available.

Currently, approximately 14 per cent of Toyota’s global sales are hybrid vehicles and owing to the rising awareness concerning hybrid vehicles, Globally, Toyota plans to introduce 21 new hybrid models by the end of 2015 and will make further efforts to expand the product lineup and sales territories.

Toyota calculations as of October 31 revealed that Toyota hybrid vehicles sold globally since 1997 have led to decreases in CO2 emissions, considered to be a cause of climate change, of approximately 30 million fewer tons worldwide than would have been emitted by gasoline-powered vehicles of similar size and driving performance.

Toyota further estimates that its hybrid vehicles have saved approximately 11 million kilo liters of gasoline compared to gasoline-powered vehicles of similar size.

Negishi added: “Toyota Racing’s TS030 which features the innovative Toyota Hybrid System – Racing recently completed the FIA World Endurance Championship season with three race victories, three pole positions and four fastest laps.” – TradeArabia News Service