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Prius sales tank in May, Toyota blames battery supply

Discussion in 'Auto News' started by Autoblog, Jun 4, 2008.

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    Autoblog Guest

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    Prius sales tank in May, Toyota blames battery supply

    Filed under: Car Buying, Hybrids/Alternative, Green, Toyota
    [IMG]

    This stat might seem confusing given the fact that fuel economy is king at dealerships right now, but Toyota just reported that Prius sales were down almost 40% in May compared to the same period in 2007. While overall 2008 sales of the hybrid postercar are up a little over 2%, this just doesn't seem possible. Just over 15,000 Priuses were sold in May '08 compared to more than 24,000 in 2007. Overall sales in 2008 have slightly surpassed '07 sales through May, with a total of 79,675 units moved this year compared to 76,747 last year, but it seems like something is amiss. Then you read about a battery supply problem that's affected production of the Prius and it all starts to make sense. AutoblogGreen reports that Toyota's VP of Communications, Irv Miller, said batteries are in short supply worldwide and this is what affected Prius production and its sales last month in the U.S. He added that last year's figures were slightly inflated due to, wait for it, incentives being used to move slow-selling hybrids. Ah, the good old days. While there is still an obvious demand for the Prius, our brothers at ABG surmise we'll be on a one-day supply of Priuses until the new one comes out in January. Can you say mark up?

    [Source: AutoblogGreen and Toyota]
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    Autoblog, Jun 4, 2008
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    1337Rolla oh my

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    problem with the prius is the price premium vs say a yaris. that's an absolute ton of gas in the price difference between the two for only about 10mpg extra in most conditions.
    1337Rolla, Jun 4, 2008
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    plu Well-Known Member

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    no, the Yaris gets worse gas mileage than the Corolla. Yaris = slower car, smaller car, worth gas mileage. Yaris IMO is worthless.
    plu, Jun 5, 2008
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    GSE21tuner Formerly rollatuner110. Representing AZLexus.club

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    It only gets worse mileage on the highways. It's actually pretty efficient on city streets with stop and go traffic.
    GSE21tuner, Jun 5, 2008
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    Phan Well-Known Member

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    yeah your right, yaris is almost same mpg as corolla but weaker
    Phan, Jun 5, 2008
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    94corolla-chafita uhh im a dude..

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    so true. my aunt was looking to trade in her explorer, and she wanted a yaris, but went with a corolla instead. its bigger, more motor, and better mileage. but still the yaris hatch is nice
    94corolla-chafita, Jun 5, 2008
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    1337Rolla oh my

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    vs the new corolla the yaris has higher mileage.

    the new 09 rollas only get 35mpg or something like that. Nothing like the 40mpg of the old model.
    1337Rolla, Jun 5, 2008
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    ShallowPockets New Member

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    yup. even with how off the old EPA estimates were, you could count on a 1zz giving you at least 40mpg highway.

    I's no so much that the Prius isn't selling...it's that they can't make enough. Right now, there really aren't any just sitting on dealer lots.
    ShallowPockets, Jun 5, 2008
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    94corolla-chafita uhh im a dude..

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    my 94 LE gets around 25miles higway. its now going under a complete rejuvanation process.
    94corolla-chafita, Jun 5, 2008
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