Global Prius Sales Explode: Number 3 Selling Car In World

Subject to ridicule in some quarters, the Prius and its hybrid engine is having the last laugh on its way to becoming Toyota's most important vehicle ever produced.

Toyota knew that 2012 would be a big year for the company, after a horrendous stretch, made even worse by the 2011 Japanese earthquake and tsunami that devastated production.

The heart of Toyota's hopes for 2012 was an expansion of the Hybrid Prius line by introducing new Prius models.  The first quarter 2012  auto sales figures confirm Toyota's hopes for hybrid technology and the Prius line, with sales significantly exceeding its best case forecasts, rising 125% globally.  http://www.autoguide.com/auto-news/2012/05/toyota-prius-ranked-worlds-third-best-selling-car-so-far-this-year.html.

Indeed, the Prius line now ranks as the third best selling car in the world at 247,230 vehicles, and the new Prius C is the leading car sold in Japan.  http://www.autoblog.com/toyota/prius+c/.  Only the Toyota Corolla with sales a bit over 300,000 and the Ford Focus sold more than the Prius line.

Led by the Prius, rising fuel efficiency in the USA is a major reason why oil consumption in the USA is back to 1999 levels.