Toyota's global hybrid sales top 2 million units

TOKYO September 5, 2009; Japan Today reported that Toyota Motor Corp said Friday the total number of gas-electric hybrids sold worldwide since their debut in 1997 has topped 2 million units with demand for fuel-efficient cars particularly strong this year thanks to global government stimulus measures.

The world’s biggest automaker has pioneered the hybrid technology, rolling out the hybrid microbus ‘‘Coaster Hybrid EV’’ and the Prius, the world’s first mass-produced hybrid vehicle, in 1997. Toyota’s hybrid sales have been mostly driven by its hugely popular Prius, now into its third generation, which made up 1.43 million units, or about 70%, of the cumulative 2.02 million units it had sold globally as of Aug 31.