Toyota unveils new Hybrid

Toyota unveiled a new hybrid concept car that is smaller than the Prius and geared toward younger buyers, part of the Japanese automaker's strategy to expand its lineup of hybrid and alternative-fuel vehicles.

Toyota showed off the FT-CH compact car at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. No official timetable has been set for sale of the vehicle to the public, but Toyota plans to sell more than 1 million hybrids per year globally by the end of the decade. It also plans plug-in hybrids and electric cars starting in the 2012 model year and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles in 2015.

The plan to broaden the Prius brand is a sign of its success and loyalty among buyers. The Prius, which launched in the U.S. in 2000, has long been the nation's top-selling hybrid and was the best-selling vehicle overall in Japan last year.

Source : The Eagle Tribune, January 16th, 2010