Rivals challenge Toyota’s hybrid push, Toyota says GM in trouble
With the unveiling of hybrid versions of its two high-profile, flagship sedans – the Lexus LS and the Toyota Camry – giant Japanese automaker Toyota further pushes the hybrid envelope, even as rivals sought to tone down the “hype”, citing high costs to manufacturers and claiming “inflated truths” about vastly improved mileage.
Nissan says that hybrids are not a profitable proposition, while DaimlerChrysler AG – unimpressed by the popularity of hybrids – zealously endorsed diesel engines as the excellent solution to the U.S.’ fuel woes. The automaker will launch this fall what it says is the “cleanest diesel in the world”, the Mercedes E320 BLUETEC diesel car.
Honda, while the first to introduce the hybrid car in the US – isn’t about to pronounce the hybrid as the green car of the future just yet, saying that zero-emission fuel-cell vehicles should be the ultimate goal for the industry since supply of its power source, hydrogen, is inexhaustible.
Still, the hybrids’ potential are certainly not lost on all the major automakers.
General Motors Corp. has unveiled two hybrid models, the Saturn Vue Green Line car and the Chevrolet Tahoe SUV at the Detroit show, while Ford Motor Co. has pledged a 10-fold increase in hybrid output by 2010 – following the launch of hybrid versions of the Ford Escape and the Mercury Mariner Hybrid. Nissan will also be bringing out its first hybrid with the Altima sedan later this year.
In other news, Hiroshi Okuda, chairman of the Toyota Motor Corporation and President of the Japan Business Federation, has stated in a press conference that he believes that General Motors is in serious trouble.
Uh-oh. The folks there at Autoblog are going for each other’s necks again.
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