The automotive industry is quickly transitioning to EVs. Some companies have claimed to be completely transitioning to an EV lineup with billions being thrown at new EV development and a phase-out of ICE engines. There is one hold out though: Toyota. As Automotive News reported, Toyota thinks there will still be a market for non EV vehicles.
Toyota has been on the fence about EVs for a while now. While it pioneered hybrid tech with the revolutionary Prius, the company still hasn’t offered a pure EV to the general public in the US. So why won’t the company commit to EVs yet? Speaking at an investor conference last week, Toyota director Shigeki Terashi stated: “It’s too early to concentrate on one option.”
Terashi believes that hybrids, fuel cell tech, and EVs all have to compete first. Only then will the company know which is the best route to take. Toyota’s chief technology officer echoed the same argument with him adding that consumers will ultimately have the final say so. “In the end what matters is what customers choose.”
All of this is why Toyota has committed to continuing investment in hybrids and fuel cell tech until 2050. The companyhas said previously that it isn’t against EVs and will build them when the market shows signs of demanding them.
While it’s doubled down on fuel cell tech with a second generation of the Mirai and an EV partnership with Subaru that will bring a production version of the bZ4X, taking the time to consider that not everyone will want or be able to buy an EV could prove smart.