Bakemono
10-03-2005, 04:17 PM
http://www.nyse.com/interface/jsp/NHDetail.jsp?RequestID=2&pageID=NewsHeadlines&sid=ON%2010/03%20442&isdowjones=true
Toyota President: Welcomes Growing Hybrid Development Race
03 Oct 05 03:26 TOKYO -(Dow Jones)- Toyota Motor Corp. (7203.TO) President Katsuaki Watanabe said Monday that he welcomes rival car makers stepping up efforts to develop gasoline-electric hybrid technologies that help reduce fuel consumption and costs. "'s good that we'll need to work harder (on hybrid systems) and we'll be able to offer more sophisticated products" as a result, Watanabe told reporters after a press conference to introduce the company's new compact model. BMW AG (BMW.XE) said last month that it will join a team formed by General Motors Corp. (GM) and DaimlerChrysler (DCX) to jointly develop hybrid engines, while German car makers Audi AG (NSU.XE), Volkswagen AG (VOW.XE) and Porsche AG (POR3.XE) are starting a cooperation to develop a hybrid engine. Toyota, Japan's No. 1 auto maker by sales volume, doesn't need to dramatically change its strategy to boost hybrid sales, Watanabe said. Toyota aims to sell 1.0 million hybrid vehicles globally in the future, though the exact timing to hit this target hasn't been determined yet. Watanabe reiterated that the company needs to halve the cost of its hybrid systems to spark further sales of such environmentally friendly vehicles. He declined to clarify the cost of the system. Hybrid versions of Toyota models are about Y400,000 more expensive than the gasoline-engine powered models. These higher costs have been preventing hybrid car sales from growing at a faster pace in general. -By Yoshio Takahashi, Dow Jones Newswires; 813-5255-2929; yoshio.takahashi@ dowjones.com -Edited by Chris Gallagher Cap'n
Toyota President: Welcomes Growing Hybrid Development Race
03 Oct 05 03:26 TOKYO -(Dow Jones)- Toyota Motor Corp. (7203.TO) President Katsuaki Watanabe said Monday that he welcomes rival car makers stepping up efforts to develop gasoline-electric hybrid technologies that help reduce fuel consumption and costs. "'s good that we'll need to work harder (on hybrid systems) and we'll be able to offer more sophisticated products" as a result, Watanabe told reporters after a press conference to introduce the company's new compact model. BMW AG (BMW.XE) said last month that it will join a team formed by General Motors Corp. (GM) and DaimlerChrysler (DCX) to jointly develop hybrid engines, while German car makers Audi AG (NSU.XE), Volkswagen AG (VOW.XE) and Porsche AG (POR3.XE) are starting a cooperation to develop a hybrid engine. Toyota, Japan's No. 1 auto maker by sales volume, doesn't need to dramatically change its strategy to boost hybrid sales, Watanabe said. Toyota aims to sell 1.0 million hybrid vehicles globally in the future, though the exact timing to hit this target hasn't been determined yet. Watanabe reiterated that the company needs to halve the cost of its hybrid systems to spark further sales of such environmentally friendly vehicles. He declined to clarify the cost of the system. Hybrid versions of Toyota models are about Y400,000 more expensive than the gasoline-engine powered models. These higher costs have been preventing hybrid car sales from growing at a faster pace in general. -By Yoshio Takahashi, Dow Jones Newswires; 813-5255-2929; yoshio.takahashi@ dowjones.com -Edited by Chris Gallagher Cap'n