Toyota's Prius: No Plug Required

By SHOLNN FREEMAN
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

DETROIT -- In a new push to expand sales of the Prius gas-electric hybrid car, Toyota Motor Corp. wants to get one thing straight: No, you don't have to plug it in.

Toyota hopes to expand sales of the hybrid vehicle by 70% next year -- from 21,000 projected this year to 36,000 in 2004. But the auto maker concedes that most consumers are still puzzled by hybrids, which combine an electric motor with a gasoline engine to get much better fuel economy than traditional cars. In surveys, Toyota has found that about half of all consumers either wrongly believe that you have to plug in hybrids or say they don't know enough to answer the question.

With more hybrids coming, auto makers badly need consumers to grasp the technology.

Toyota will begin selling its redesigned 2004 Prius hybrid to U.S. customers in October and will launch a broad marketing campaign to fuel sales.

In October, Toyota dealers will begin selling the 2004 model of the Prius, which has been redesigned. The new model has more interior room and gets about 55 miles per gallon, a 15% increase over the previous model. The base price of the Prius is $20,000. Later this year, Toyota also plans to begin selling a hybrid version of the full-size Tundra pickup truck and the Lexus RX 330.

Old notions have to die first, though. Consumers haven't forgotten that early versions of fuel-efficient electric cars needed to be plugged in for power. Fuel-efficient cars were also tagged as impractical because they couldn't fit many passengers or people's stuff. Honda Motor Co.'s four-year-old Insight, which only has seats for two, never became popular. But Honda's hybrid version of the Civic, which consumers think of as a normal-size car has sold well. Toyota dealers say they have sold out of their 2003 Prius inventory and are predicting strong demand for the 2004 model.

Toyota officials think its new marketing effort will both explain the technology and help expand the car's customer based beyond a core of celebrity and tech-savvy customers. In new Prius commercials, a voiceover reminds buyers that "you never have to plug it in." The marketing campaign was developed by Saatchi & Saatchi, Los Angeles, and previewed at a news conference in Detroit Wednesday. Deborah Wahl Meyer, a Toyota marketing manager, repeated the point several times. "It's in everything that we talk about," she said.

Toyota is also targeting mainstream customers, and not just tree-huggers. The new commercials will show during prime time during "ER," "Alias," "CSI Miami" and on cable channels such as Discovery Science and Court TV. Toyota will advertise in Fortune, Newsweek and Time. Previously, Toyota had depended on the Internet and word-of-mouth to drive sales. Toyota officials wouldn't say how much they will spend on the new advertising.

Toyota hasn't given up on celebrities. In July, Toyota organized a private showing of the Prius to movie stars, producers and directors in Los Angeles. Toyota said it has 1,200 preorders of the 2004 Prius, including 24 orders from the Hollywood event.

Some of the glitterati were also looking for more than a showing. "Everyone wants a free one," Ms. Meyer said. "But we're not giving away free ones."

Updated September 11, 2003

Originally posted by drurywoodson
Does anyone have any idea as to how much cargo space you lose accomodating all the extra batteries?

Originally posted by LexusPia
"But while the RX400H will be tuned for 4-cyl economy and V-8 performance, all hybrid Toyotas, including the Highlander and Sienna, will be tuned to emphasize high fuel mileage.

Sounds like the new RX400H will emphasize "performance" whereas others will be for "economy".

Originally posted by Lil4X
Can't imagine fuel savings ever making the hybrid cost effective. It's a techno-thing. Hope the performance will make it worth the investment!