Toyota is stepping on the gas when it comes to electric vehicles, but they’ve been a bit slow to get to the party. However, they’re making a big move with their next electric car – a fully electric version of their popular Highlander SUV. This could be just the beginning, with electric versions of other familiar Toyota trucks like the Tacoma and Tundra potentially on the way too.
Toyota has been known for focusing on hybrid vehicles, and for good reason – they sell a ton of them! However, other automakers are going all-in on electric cars, and Toyota is starting to catch up. Right now, they only offer two electric vehicles in the US, but the electric Highlander is a big change.
Here’s a quick stat to show how far behind Toyota has been on electric vehicles: Out of all the cars they sold in the first three months of 2024, only about 0.6% were electric. In the meantime, some other car companies are already selling mostly or even all electric vehicles.
So, is Toyota giving up on hybrids entirely? Not necessarily. They still like their hybrid strategy, which includes a mix of regular hybrids, plug-in hybrids, electric vehicles, and even hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. But it seems like they’re finally realizing that electric vehicles are here to stay, and they’re jumping in with both feet.
Toyota knows they need to speed things up on electric vehicles (EVs) to keep pace with other car companies. They’re developing next-generation batteries with fancy new technology to make their electric cars go further and be more efficient. They’re also working on ways to build EVs cheaper so they can compete with other electric cars on price.
Toyota announced last year that they’re building this electric SUV at their Kentucky factory, and they’ve invested even more money to get the factory ready for production. So, while Toyota might be a little behind on EVs right now, it looks like they’re catching up quickly, and the electric Highlander is a big step in that direction.