One Millionth Toyota Prius Sold

Worldwide sales of the Toyota Prius - the world's first mass-produced petrol-electric hybrid vehicle - have passed the one-million mark.

The milestone was achieved in April with total Prius sales to the end of the month totalling almost 1,028,000 cars, including more than 9,000 in Australia.

Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) in Japan said Prius vehicles around the world had reduced carbon-dioxide emissions by about 4.5 million tonnes*.

The company said the estimated reduction was compared with petrol-only vehicles in the same class and of similar size and driving performance.

Prius is sold in more than 40 countries. Sales have accelerated dramatically in recent years.

It took just over eight years for Prius sales to reach half a million - and only two more years to double that to one million.

The total includes 590,000 sold in North America, 315,000 in Japan, 100,000 in Europe and 20,000 throughout the rest of the world.

Australians have bought more than 9,300 since Prius was launched in this country in October 2001.

Local Prius sales have risen every year, including an increase of more than 60 per cent last year to a record of 3,176 cars.

Sales this year in Australia and globally are running ahead of the same period in 2007, largely due to improved availability.

Toyota Australia's senior executive director sales and marketing David Buttner said Prius sales were accelerating as more motorists became aware of the benefits of hybrid technology.

"Prius is successful because it has the size and performance of a regular mid-size petrol car while providing significant savings on the cost of fuel," Mr Buttner said.

"Owners travelling an average 20,000km a year can typically drive for a fortnight or about 800km - or even further - between refills.

"This saves them time and money with fewer trips to the petrol station, especially with petrol nudging $1.50 a litre."

Mr Buttner said the petrol-electric hybrid technology in Prius enabled it to be driven like a regular car.

"The battery pack is recharged while driving, which means you never have to plug it in - and it drives just like a normal car," he said.

Prius uses 4.4 litres/100km** of regular unleaded fuel, based on the official combined cycle.

It emits less carbon dioxide than any other vehicle on the Australian market - just 106g/km.

Mr Buttner said the Prius name has become synonymous around the world with the word 'hybrid'.

He said TMC in Japan was committed to developing hybrid systems as a core technology.

"Globally, Toyota's goal is to reach one-million hybrid sales per year during the 2010s.

"Ultimately, the company will offer hybrid versions of every production car.

"The corporation's worldwide goal is to approach zero impact on the environment in all our activities, including vehicles and production.

"While we can never achieve zero impact, we always strive to do better - and hybrid technology is an important part of that effort."

Prius was first launched in Japan late in 1997.

Just 323 cars were sold that year, increasing to more than 17,000 the following year.

It took five years - until August 2002 - for cumulative sales to top 100,000.

Annual sales exceeded 100,000 for the first time in 2004.

Last year was the best for Prius with 281,265 cars delivered worldwide.

*Number of registered vehicles x distance travelled x actual fuel efficiency in each country x CO2 conversion factor. Source: TMC.

**Fuel consumption will vary depending on driving conditions/style, vehicle conditions and options/accessories. Source of fuel consumption data: ADR 81/01 combined cycle.