Toyota is taking a bold swing, introducing a range of electrified vehicles featuring plug-in hybrid, hybrid, and electric models. Toyota aims to score a home run by offering various powertrain options. Can Toyota’s electric vision hit a home run, or will it strike out on its ambitious EV rollout?
Toyota places big bet on electrified future
Toyota reigns supreme as the pioneer and leader in hybrid technology. When you spot a Prius on the road, its distinctive design and eco-friendly reputation make it unmistakable. As a result, the compact hybrid has been around for more than 25 years now?
As the global market increasingly favors eco-friendly options, Toyota is placing a significant bet on Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs) to propel its growth strategy forward. Toyota’s experience with plug-in hybrids is no stranger to them. The Toyota Prius Prime plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) made its debut in the US market in 2016.
Toyota offers 32 electrified models in the US, boasting the largest portfolio of any automaker, including both Toyota and Lexus brand vehicles. In the initial quarter, Toyota delivered 112,608 electrified vehicles, which accounted for approximately 50 per cent of total sales.
In the next few years, the corporation expects to see a significant surge in demand for plug-in hybrid vehicles in the United States.
According to a recent interview with David Christ, Vice President of Toyota Motor North America, he announced that the company plans to “scale up our PHEV offerings across our lineup over the next few years.”
By 2030, Toyota reportedly aims to have plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) make up around 20% of its total US sales, a significant jump from the current 2.4%.
“To supercharge the electrification experience, Toyota is committed to continually expanding and refining the range of miles you can travel solely on electric power,” Christ explained.
Toyota’s latest PHEV model of its top-selling RAV4, introduced last week, boasts an impressive 50-mile electric vehicle range. Will a range increase from 42 to what extent be sufficient remains unclear.
The bases are loaded
Toyota’s electrified lineup is equivalent to having bases loaded in a baseball game – a strategic advantage that ensures a home run for the future of the company. “We’ve bought ICE. We’ve bought hybrid. We bought plug-in hybrid. He explained that they had invested in electric vehicles, noting, “Since our focus lies solely on scoring runs, the probability of our profit is significantly higher compared to those committed to alternative forms of transportation.”
Toyota posits that plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) can serve as a bridge to fully electric autos, while acknowledging that they also present several significant trade-offs.
As hybrid vehicles combine the best features of electric vehicles (EVs) and traditional gasoline-powered cars, they necessitate the integration of multiple technologies, making them significantly more costly to produce. Toyota’s plug-in models command prices hundreds of dollars higher than their hybrid or gas-powered counterparts.
The 2025 Toyota RAV4 PHEV boasts a Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price of $44,265, representing a significant premium of $15,000 above the base gasoline model and $12,000 more than its hybrid counterpart.
As Toyota boosts its plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) offerings, the automaker is also gearing up to introduce a slew of recent battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) in the US market. The all-new Toyota bZ4X electric SUV, previously referred to as the bZ electrical, is slated to reach US showrooms later this year, featuring enhanced range, refreshed styling, and a NACS port for seamless access to Tesla’s extensive Supercharger network. By 2026, Toyota plans to introduce its compact C-HR and the adventurous bZ4X Woodland electric sport utility vehicles.
Won’t it be sufficient to account for a significantly larger proportion of US electric vehicle (EV) gross sales?
By 2027, Toyota is poised to introduce up to seven electric vehicles (EVs) to the US market under both its Toyota and Lexus brands. Alongside its current RX offering, Toyota is set to debut an electric vehicle (EV) version of the Lexus ES sedan.
Toyota plans to expand its US offerings with a new three-row electric SUV, as well as an additional unrevealed EV model, both set to debut in the coming years.
Toyota is poised to begin producing transport batteries at its North Carolina plant by the end of this month, marking its inaugural in-house battery manufacturing facility outside of Japan.
The enormous complex measures approximately the equivalent of 121 soccer fields in size, spanning an area of roughly seven million square feet. toes. Once fully operational, Toyota anticipates its production capacity will exceed 30 gigawatt-hours annually. To illustrate the scope of the concept, it would be capable of supporting approximately 800,000 hybrids, 150,000 plug-in hybrids, and 300,000 electric vehicles.
The company boasts 14 distinct manufacturing lines, with 10 dedicated exclusively to producing electric vehicle (EV) batteries, while the remaining 4 cater to hybrid variants. Toyota prepares to launch its initial hybrid models for online delivery next month.
Despite substantial investments, Cooper Ericksen, Senior Vice President of Product, Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs), and Mobility Planning for Toyota Motor North America, notes candidly that “Battery Electric Vehicles proper now aren’t an incremental volume play for us; they’re cannibalizing our volume.”
Ericksen noted that, ultimately, this is an extremely vital segment they cannot afford to surrender to their competitors.
As Toyota’s electric vehicle (EV) efforts have slowly gained momentum, it has surprisingly lagged behind major competitors such as General Motors, Ford, Hyundai, and Honda in the highly competitive US market. Toyota sold fewer than 30,000 electric vehicles in the US last year. General Motors exceeded expectations by delivering more than 30,000 all-electric vehicles globally during its first quarter in 2025.
By 2030, Toyota forecasts that electric vehicle (EV) sales in the United States will nearly double. Will Toyota finally grasp its share amidst the influx of new fashion trends?
Electrek’s Take
Will Toyota’s massive bet on hybrids and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) pay off? As the electric vehicle (EV) market experiences unprecedented growth, Toyota’s absence from this emerging trend may prove costly, potentially dealing a significant blow to the company’s reputation and future success.
Japanese automakers, including Nissan and Honda, are pinning their hopes on a surge in hybrid and plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) sales in the coming years.
Nissan pins hopes on its third-generation e-Energy hybrid system to salvage its fortunes, but it may well prove a case of too little, too late, as BYD and other Chinese EV pioneers rapidly introduce more affordable and environmentally-friendly innovations and vehicles.
Given that Toyota is already ahead of the curve with numerous PHEV models available, it’s unlikely to be pricey; however, it’s still stalling for time before embracing the inevitable.
