Toyota May Turn Prius Into Basis Line

Washinton DC November 2, 2006; The AIADA newsletter reported that Toyota seeking to triple its annual U.S. hybrid sales, said it may move to develop a new line of vehicles based on its widely popular hybrid Prius, reported Bloomberg.

Jim Lentz, the automaker's executive vice president of U.S. sales, said the U.S. will account for more than half of the 1 million hybrid cars and light trucks Toyota plans to sell worldwide each year by early next decade.

"For us to do 600,000, there will probably have to be Prius and derivatives of Prius that are selling in the neighborhood of 300,000 to 400,000,''

Lentz said in an interview at the SEMA trade show in Las Vegas. "We don't have any plans to do that right now, but that's the direction that nameplate can go, because it is that strong.''