REPORT: Toyota to build Yaris-based hybrid in France, go on sale in Japan in 2011
by Jeremy Korzeniewski on Jul 28th 2009 at 2:56PM 
Toyota Yaris Liftback – Click above for high-res image gallery
Toyota's got hybrids on the brain. Asahi (via Reuters) is reporting that the Japanese automaker, already the undisputed market leader in the fuel-saving hybrid vehicle market, is planning to launch a new compact hybrid to be based on the next-gen Yaris platform and to be put on sale in Japan for 1.5 million yen ($15,760) by 2011. That bargain-basement price will be made possible by a low-cost version of Toyota's Hybrid Synergy Drive as used in the current Prius featuring a downsized four-cylinder engine that may make it even more fuel efficient than its larger sibling.
In addition to production plants in its home market of Japan, the report indicates that Toyota may also assemble the compact hybrid in France for the European market. This news comes just weeks after Toyota officially announced its intentions to build a hybrid version of its Auris hatchback in the United Kingdom. We certainly wouldn't be surprised if Toyota imported either of the new hybrids to the States in light of the success it has seen with the Prius.
It's expected that the new Yaris-based hybrid will go head-to-head with Honda's recently announced Fit Hybrid. While Toyota's interest in hybrid technology is anything but new, the fuel-saving models have just recently earned the top sales spots in Japan and are expected to be increasingly important in over the next few years as the latest rounds of strict emissions and fuel economy requirements are implemented worldwide.
Gallery: Review: 2008 Toyota Yaris 3-door
[Source: Reuters]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
GROM 3:35PM (7/28/2009)
Whaw how many years did it take to for Prius tech. to trickle down and be put it into a small car ...???
Come on Toyota lets go and get us plug ins ALREADY !
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Chris M 3:37PM (7/28/2009)
Well, considering how well the Yaris and Prius are selling, a hybrid Yaris at that price, getting over 50 mpg, will be extremely popular.
What hasn't been revealed yet is whether that model will be using the new LiIon battery or the older NiMH, considering that some types of LiIon will likely be cheaper per Kwh stored, as well as more compact and lighter.
Still looking for plug-in capabilities. Even if very limited, it could still save gas and money for some drivers.
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FitFan 3:43PM (7/28/2009)
It will be interesting to see how this works out. If the Yaris hybrid is more efficient than the Prius it won't be the result of a smaller gas engine. Toyota was able to make the 2010 Prius more efficient partially because they increased the size of the gas engine.
The other problem is that the Yaris won't be as aerodynamic as the Prius, so the highway mileage should be worse than the Prius.
The $15,000 price tag is very appealing.
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Matt 5:01PM (7/28/2009)
Keep in mind that the engine needs to be optimized for the vehicle it's in. The engine choice for the new Prius may be more efficient because they undersized the original. The Yaris weighs about 700 lb less than the Prius, and has a smaller cross section, meaning less power is needed to get the same performance. I say cross section and not coefficient of drag because even though the Prius is more aerodynamic than the Yaris if you compare the Cd's, it is still a larger vehicle. I can't find the total drag force for either vehicle, but I'll bet that the Yaris has less total drag than the Prius at highway speeds.
That said, the Yaris should be able to take advantage of the smaller engine, which uses less fuel and adds less weight. Therefore the smaller engine will result in better fuel economy. Also, there's no reason they couldn't slap an under-body panel on it and get the Yaris' Cd down to .25 or lower, making it the ultimate gas sipper. That's how I see it anyway.
FitFan 6:42PM (7/28/2009)
The Yaris is currently 700 lbs. lighter. That will change with the addition of the hybrid powertrain. And adding an under-body panel on the Yaris wouldn't help differentiate it from the Prius.
I hope they pull off better numbers, but I have been disappointed before (see: Honda Fit's mediocre mpg rating).
nrb 9:15PM (7/28/2009)
Don't set the bar too high.
It's a low-cost version of Toyota's Hybrid Synergy Drive. That probably means it's downsized. Smaller electric motors. Lower electric top speed. Smaller gas motor. Smaller batteries. This will probably be less powerful and less efficient than the Prius.
The starting price is a lot closer to $16K than $15K. That's also the price in Japan. Who knows what the price in the US would be.
demosthenes 5:22PM (7/28/2009)
Has there been any talk of Ford moving Fusion hybrid tech into the Fiesta?
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rob 6:05PM (7/28/2009)
Not really. Aside from knowing that some variants of Fiesta are coming, and that an EV Transit Connect is coming, Ford has been notably quiet on their longer-range plans. For one, they probably don't want to hurt current sales by giving you incentive to wait for the next, better model...
Having a hybrid drivetrain available in the Fiesta from the start would be quit a coup for them and would be a gauntlet thrown down to the other Detroit players. (So of course I'd love to see them do it!)
David Martin 6:40PM (7/28/2009)
Toyota still seems to be doubtful that it's lithium technology is up to scratch, so I would imagine that this will be a NiMH battery.
Panasonic who supply Toyota seem to be behind some of the other suppliers, which allied with Toyota's excellent reliability record and desire to keep it that way seems to be the reason for the plug-in hesitancy.
The Yaris would seem to me a likely better bet for Toyota's first plug-in vehicle, as the small size and lighter weight should economise on battery size and price.
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Mark Kiernan 6:59PM (7/28/2009)
I for one will not buy a car from Toyota if it isn't an EV you can turn everything in to a hybrid but if it isn't possible for me to charge at home and stop paying money to Exxon then no thanks.
Am I the only person who thinks this so Toyota don't give a toss?
Nissan it is so.
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Steve 9:21PM (7/28/2009)
If you run a whp vs. mpg comparison between most German cars and Toyota, Toyota always comes out pathetically behind. The standard Yaris is a gutless wonder but still manages no better than 36 mpg highway. The standard Mini Cooper is significantly faster, weighs 400 lbs more, has a bigger engine, but still manages to beat the Yaris at 37 mpg. Toyota's hybrid hype is just cover for their bad basics.
Toyota can't compete in pure gas engine efficiency, so they're attaching hybrids to everything just to keep up with their non-hybrid competition. Add some "we love the environment / we're green" marketing (even though Toyota's primary income is generated by truck and SUV sales) and Toyota has developed the perfect marketing answer to an engineering deficiency they can't seem to overcome.
The truth is, Toyota's cars are designed with marketing, not engineering, in mind. They are Costco cars, designed to appeal to the widest market (everyone who hates or is bored by driving) while requiring the least amount of overhead to produce and generating the highest possible profit margin.
Because Toyota is focused on hype, not quality or innovation, their cars are inately inefficient. Toyota needs to go back to basics and learn to make efficient engines and drivetrains before they stick a hybrid badge on anything else.
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Serge 4:52PM (7/29/2009)
Yaris starts at $12.2K and Mini Cooper at $18.6. Please compare apples to apples.
skierpage 7:08AM (7/30/2009)
Sure Toyota's combustion-engine cars are nothing special. So what? This is AutoBlogGREEN, and Toyota make the best hybrid car by several measures: aerodynamics, drivetrain technology, reliability, and *50 MPG* for a mid-size! Competition is good, but BMW, Mini, and the other Germans have yet to deliver anything remotely comparable in the USA.
Steve 8:37PM (7/29/2009)
So your point is: the Toyota less efficient because it's a cheaply built (and sold) econobox while the Mini is premium. Ok, I can buy that.
However, if you move up market from the Mini and compare the similarly priced BMW 328i 6-speed vs. the Toyota (Lexus) IS250 6-speed, it's the same story. The BMW 328i gets 28 hwy to the Lexus's 26. It's nearly 2 seconds faster 0-60, makes more power, and has a larger engine.
Toyota needs to take it's over-priced econobox junk, characterless line up, 15 mpg SUV's, and over-hyped hybrids back to engineering school. Maybe there the Germans can teach them how to make a real car.
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Chris 8:45AM (7/30/2009)
Steve - what kind of Yaris gets only 37 MPG(US)?
My folks here in the UK have a Yaris 1.0 (gas) with manual shift and it gets 53 MPG(UK) or about 63 MPG(US). Granted the air-con will drop that by 10% but still... 37?
The Yaris 1.0 has a top speed of 96 MPH and reaches 62 in about 15 seconds. In local driving, it feels a lot nippier than those figures would have you believe.
No offence, but it seems to me that if using less gas is the name of the game here, you guys over there still have a lot to learn. High efficiency and sports car performance simply don't go together in something you would be happy to carry your kids around in.
Your Yaris doesn't by any chance have a 2.0 litre engine and a conventional auto box does it? LOL
You should be pressing Toyota to bring in the Yaris 1.0!
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Steve 1:31PM (7/30/2009)
We simply don't get the fuel efficient models here. But my point still stands, you guys also have a Mini D that gets 64 mpg US.
Steve 1:33PM (7/30/2009)
It has a 1.5 liter engine and a conventional autobox. :p
Steve 1:31PM (7/30/2009)
Skierpage, the Europeans have already been delivering more effiencent cars than the Prius for years now. We just don't get the them here in the US. The Prius is nothing special, there are small ICE cars in Europe that get 10-20 mpg BETTER than the over-hyped, under performing Prius.
Even the much heavier, less aerodynamic BMW 520d gets better mileage than the Prius. Toyota's Prius is nothing to be proud of. It's just a cheap marketing gimmick that only works in America because we haven't been exposed to the kind of efficiency already available over in Europe.
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skierpage 1:59AM (7/31/2009)
Steve, you're mistaken on several points. The Europeans have been delivering more efficient *smaller* cars than the Prius for years. That BMW 520D sounds like a lovely car and it's great BMW is offering light regeneration in Europe, but WhatGreenCar.com UK still lists the Prius as the most green large* family car: 72.4mpg*, 89 g/km CO2; meanwhile the 520D is 55.4mpg ,136g/km CO2. (* European sizes, Imperial gallons, Euro cycle, so not directly comparable to USA numbers.)
Your "nothing special" is an opinion. Most aerodynamic, fuel efficient, and reliable (the 2004-2009 model according to Consumer Reports, JD Power, and TrueDelta), are facts about the Prius. (BTW, I don't drive a hybrid or a Toyota.)
Delivering a 50mpg mid-size car *ought* to be "nothing to be proud of", yet no one else is doing it and there's nothing even rumored to come the USA that will do it until the Chevy Volt rolls. Stranger and sadder, no one's selling a *smaller* car that gets better MPG in the USA.
Chris 1:39PM (7/30/2009)
Apologies - I got my UK and US gallons the wrong way round so the difference is not as great as I thought it was. Where's the 'blushing' smiley when I need one? In fact your 37 (US) plays my 44 (US) and we also have a 1.3 version that gets 39 (US).
Why are US gallons different anyway?
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