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In the U.S. alone Toyota has 1,000,000 Prius owners. Moreover Toyota has built a substantial environmental reputation as the global leader in hybrid vehicles with sales of Toyota and Lexus hybrids now well over 3,000,000 vehicles.

In spite of clear fuel economy benefits and high U.S. fuel prices, hybrids remain a tiny portion of the U.S. auto market – a little over 2% of sales because mainstream buyers refuse to pay a premium amounting to several thousand dollars over a comparable gasoline-fueled car. Plug in hybrids with expensive lithium ion battery packs will compound the problem. The Prius plug-in coming this year adds another $4,000 to the cost of the standard Prius hybrid. Continue reading →