Zoomi Life

The release of the surprise Honda Insight hybrid and it’s sub-$20k price tag took most of us with a left hook. In order to compete (and get stockpiles off the lot), Toyota almost immediately reacted by lowering the price of the 2009 Prius to compete.

With the Insight coming to America in just a few months, Toyota is hitting the bricks hard to push the new 2010 Prius model to keep from losing market share.  They’ve also got a hopeful ace up their sleeve: the Yaris hybrid.

Not slated for retail sales until 2011, the Yaris hybrid may hit the fast-track in order to keep overall sales from flagging to their chief Japanese competition (Honda).

Although technically the Insight (based on the Fit) and the Prius (basically a Corolla) are not direct competitors in vehicle type-sense, they are competing on the larger “compact hybrid” market.  To price the 2010 Prius down to the Insight’s level would be ridiculous for Toyota, both on a vehicle model-type level and for pure business reasons.

Toyota’s chief engineer Akihiko Otsuka told reporters in both Europe and now here in the U.S. that the Yaris is definitely in the works as a new hybrid model (as are many Toyota models) and will be their flagship for compact sedan sales in the low-end price market.

Meanwhile, it seems likely that the Prius will see slightly lower sales and loss of market due to the Insight, but overall, Toyota has the distinct advantage of branding.  When most people think “hybrid,” they think “Prius.”  That’s a big advantage that can’t be discounted.

Source: Treehugger