Toyota chairman and former CEO Akio Toyoda doesn't want to bet everything on electric cars. He believes there are more people who just don't dare talk about it out loud.
Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda has expressed concern that electric cars are being presented as the only solution in the automotive industry.
According to Toyoda, a silent majority in the industry shares this skepticism but fails to voice it.
– The silent majority wonders whether electric cars are really okay to have as the only option. But they think it's the trend, so they can't speak out, says Toyoda.
The discussion about the future of electric cars comes at a time when many car manufacturers have promised a full transition to electric cars within the next few years.
Volvo Cars and Mercedes-Benz, among others, plan to stop producing combustion engines and plug-in hybrids by 2030. Or rather, they did. Read more about it here .
Toyota stands out with a more reserved view of electric cars, although the company has also invested heavily in developing electric models.
Toyota believes that other technologies, such as internal combustion engines and hydrogen cars, still have a role to play. For example, the company has invested significant amounts in the development of hydrogen cars, a technology that BMW, with the help of the Japanese, will now also use.
In 1997, Toyota launched the world's first mass-produced hybrid car, the Prius. It was an important step in the company's focus on alternative powertrains. However, the latest Prius model is no longer imported to certain markets. In Sweden, for example, the importer does not have it on its program at all.
Toyoda emphasizes the importance of keeping options open.
– Since the correct answer is still unclear, we should not limit ourselves to just one option, he says .
Although Toyota has been critical of a one-sided focus on electric cars, the company has announced plans to invest over 200 billion Danish kroner in electric car development in the coming years.
The first pure electric car from Toyota, the bZ4X, came to the market in April 2022. But the model has been challenged by technical problems. Including loose wheel bolts and a range that, according to several tests, does not live up to the official claims.
Despite the challenges with electric vehicles, Toyota continues to explore different technologies to find the best balance between environmental concerns and practicality.
Toyoda's statements, however, suggest that the company will not allow itself to be pressured in the direction in which the industry is generally being pushed.
The Golf class of cars remains a key segment for many manufacturers, including Toyota, which will have to navigate between electric cars and other powertrains in the future.
This is reflected in Toyota's strategy, where flexibility and multiple options are emphasized as necessary to meet different customer needs and regional requirements.
With that perspective, Toyota questions whether it is realistic to meet global electrification goals without including other technologies.
Akio Toyoda's comments can be seen as a call for a broader and more nuanced debate about future mobility, where different technological solutions should not be excluded over others. Not even if, for example, the EU wants to ban new petrol and diesel cars in 2035.
