Orders for new Prius hybrid total 180,000 units 1 month after debut

Domestic orders for Toyota Motor Corp.’s all-new Prius gasoline-electric hybrid car totaled 180,000 units as of Wednesday, a month after its debut, the automaker said Friday. Half of the cumulative 180,000 orders are for the 2.2 million yen middle-grade model fitted with a CD player, Toyota officials said. Industry analysts traced the popularity of the Prius to consumers’ burgeoning awareness of its environmentally friendly features and tax breaks and subsidies that the government has begun offering to buyers of vehicles that clear officially set standards for gas mileage and harmful emissions. They also attributed the popularity of the Prius to Toyota’s marketing strategy of limiting the suggested retail price of its base-grade model to as low as 2,050,000 yen despite the third-generation Prius’ improved performance over the previous model. The flood of orders for the Prius model could signal a silver lining for the global auto industry at a time when automakers are suffering amid the worldwide economic slowdown. Toyota is now confronting the urgent task of boosting Prius production capacity, now that those who have placed orders are facing a wait of seven months on average before taking delivery, the analysts added. (June 19, 2009)