Toyota has been dealing themselves many self-inflicted wounds, some of them outlined in the article.
I work with people from Toyota regularly, and am frequently surprised. But I’m really surprised at some of the misleading information that the article includes about hydrogen. I’ll leave it at that. Perhaps if more interest is Toyota’s push for more dependence on hybrids in the short term. For decades now, I’ve been antagonistic towards hybrids as a clean air technology, preferring a stronger push to zero emissions, and in recent years, eliminating all incentives to purchase hybrids. But a recent piece posted on LinkedIn by the CEO of Toyota Research Institute has started to make me want to re-think my long-held view. https://www.linkedin.com/posts/activity-6823377504531808256-lBUY I’m not ready to do drastically change my view without a lot more thought, but found the piece interesting enough to merit done consideration. - Mark Sent from my Fuel Cell powered iPhone > On Jul 30, 2021, at 6:37 AM, Peri Hartman via EV <ev@lists.evdl.org> wrote: > > Toyota Led on Clean Cars. Now Critics Say It Works to Delay Them. > https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/25/climate/toyota-electric-hydrogen.html > > The Toyota Prius hybrid was a milestone in the history of clean cars, > attracting millions of buyers worldwide who could do their part for the > environment while saving money on gasoline. > > But in recent months, Toyota, one of the world’s largest automakers, has > quietly become the industry’s strongest voice opposing an all-out transition > to electric vehicles — > ... > Behind that position is a business quandary: Even as other automakers have > embraced electric cars, Toyota bet its future on the development of hydrogen > fuel cells — a costlier technology that has fallen far behind electric > batteries — with greater use of hybrids in the near term. That means a rapid > shift from gasoline to electric on the roads could be devastating for the > company’s market share and bottom line. > ... > Together with other automakers, Toyota also sided with the Trump > administration in a battle with California over the Clean Air Act and sued > Mexico over fuel efficiency rules. In Japan, Toyota officials argued against > carbon taxes. > ... > Toyota, a major sponsor of the Tokyo Olympics, has used that platform to > promote its message of sustainability. Hydrogen fueled the Olympic torch for > part of its journey, and Toyota’s fleet of sleek Mirai hydrogen fuel cell > cars have been whisking Olympic dignitaries around Tokyo. > > Toyota is promoting itself as strongly backing a green transition, but in > effect, it is opposing efforts that others say are crucial to a swift green > transition. > ... > On paper, Toyota’s approach to zero-emissions vehicles, the hydrogen fuel > cell, is a dream: Unlike battery-powered electric vehicles, these cars carry > hydrogen tanks and fuel cells that turn the hydrogen into electricity. They > refuel and accelerate quickly, and can travel for several hundred miles on a > tank, emitting only water vapor. And hydrogen, theoretically, is abundant. > > But a high sticker price, as well as lack of refueling infrastructure, has > hampered the growth of a hydrogen economy, at least for passenger cars. > ... > The automaker, based in Toyota City, Japan, has begun lagging behind in fuel > efficiency across its entire fleet, as it has pushed sales of larger trucks > and sports-utility vehicles, which bring bigger profit margins. Environmental > Protection Agency figures show that Toyota has made relatively little > progress on fuel economy over the past five years, going from an industry > leader to part of the bottom tier, along with General Motors and Ford. > ... > There are several factors that could ultimately force Toyota’s hand. For one, > China, an important market for Toyota, has moved aggressively to require > automakers there to make electric vehicles. That has spurred Toyota to start > producing electric cars under a joint venture. > ... > > ---------- > > Peri > > << Annoyed by leaf blowers ? https://quietcleanseattle.org/ >> > > _______________________________________________ > Address messages to ev@lists.evdl.org > No other addresses in TO and CC fields > UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub > ARCHIVE: http://www.evdl.org/archive/ > LIST INFO: http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://lists.evdl.org/private.cgi/ev-evdl.org/attachments/20210730/e06ee1fd/attachment.html> _______________________________________________ Address messages to ev@lists.evdl.org No other addresses in TO and CC fields UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub ARCHIVE: http://www.evdl.org/archive/ LIST INFO: http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org
