Honda to sell 400,000 hybrids a year by 2013
March 19, 2008 by Alborz Fallah
With all the controversy and talk about hybrid .vs. diesel surfacing recently, it’s worth noting that car manufacturers have long ago picked sides. Some are going for both, a full diesel and hybrid range, the French have combined the two, coming out with a diesel hybrid, the Germans, much like the rest of the European manufacturers have for the most part stuck with diesel.
The Japanese on the other hand, can’t get enough of Hybrids. Toyota is currently dominating the world with its 8 model hybrid range. Its closest competitor is fellow Japanese manufacturer Honda, who is hungry for a bigger slice.
Honda has announced plans to sell three new petrol-electric hybrid models to achieve an earnest annual sales target of 400,000 cars by 2013.
The models will include the new CR-X (100,000 sales p.a.), a specifically purpose built Prius killer (200,000 sales p.a.) and the all-new Civic Hybrid (100,000 sales p.a.).
Currently Honda’s total global hybrid sales only account for 1.5 per cent of its overall figures, the aim, make it account for at least 10 per cent (which is about 400,000 vehicles).
It’s not going to be easy to break Toyota’s stranglehold on the hybrid market, but many other manufacturers are also trying.
Volvo (amongst others) has already shown, with its Recharge concept, that it can make a car which practically uses no fuel. General Motors is doing a worthy job and even Porsche has joined the hybrid race.
To make it even harder, Toyota announced last year that it will push to reach 1 million hybrid sales by early next decade, helped along by suggestions of a new hybrid-only brand.
But just how much will demand increase for hybrid cars to fulfil sales targets? Or more importantly, how much will hybrids improve?
According to research by Japan’s Nomura Research Institute, the global market for hybrid cars will increase 300 per cent to 2.19 million by 2012, making it feasible for Toyota to sell 1 million hybrids with the rest splitting up the remaining market.
Nonetheless, which ever way you look at it, the 400,000 figure is more than ambitious. Honda only sold 55,300 hybrid cars (globally) last year (Toyota managed 429,000). The most common hybrid car is the Toyota Prius with worldwide sales of around 1.25 million in total.
Print it: 
TP,
your assesment of things seems to be only skin deep.
for one you see the power figure as a direct relation to a vehicles true speed and overall power,
and now you dont see that consumption is the big player in emissions.
do you know why diesel is more friendly to the environment?
because it has lower consumption.
diesel as a fuel is actually worse than petrol for its emissions when done on a Litre to Litre burnt comparison.
its the much better consumption of diesels that give it the “greener” credentials.
and then there is also the filters fitted to diesels now that also help.
i know i love to say it and ill say it again. LPG is where manufacturers should be investing a few dollars. LPG can deliver 8-10% better economy and power than petrol etc if it is set up on a dedicated engine rather than a conversion which makes for a compromise.
on a litre to litre comparison with burning LPG, LPG is roughly 50% better for the environment. it is the slightly higher consumption of LPG that sees mainly diesel peg it back, yet it is still better than Petrol and marginally better than diesel.
if someone spent just a little more time on LPG I’d reckon LPG would wipe the floor
also there wouldnt be the big problems with people fretting about oil supplies
TP….may you refresh your limited memory in respect to me being on here supposedly weekdays (during work!). REALCARS sums it up quite well! Dont throw shyte when not warranted mate as really quite stupid, makes your character sink to the lowest on this site. Iam rarely on or at arvo’s late. WAKE UP PLEASE! ITS ABOUT TIME!
I’ve just driven home from a friend’s house in northern suburbia, 20 minutes away. The trip computer advised 3.8l/100km, my best ever achieved on a non-country journey. That’s 73 mpg, maybe a little less if the claim of VW’s slightly ambitious trip computer readings is to be believed.
Laurie Sparke, an ex senior Holden engineer came out fighting in support of LPG this week. Maybe support and exposure of that type is what’s needed to lift LPG from its current status of cottage industry curiosity to something more mainstream and serious.
Golf,
i agree,
im still banging my head on the desk as to why ford didnt invest in a LPG turbo model. you cant tell me that once the public see it with 10 or so kw more than petrol version with a saving of 1L/100k that that wouldnt help to turn the perception of LPG around
Just out of interest Pickles have got some ex govt LPG only BFs xt sedans from 16 to 18k with most less than 30k.Many have the full safety pack as well.Talk about economical family motoring on a budget.
TP you said “But a hybrid is still the most environmentally friendly.”
Wrong, how? a 1.5litre Prius does 6′/100km an 1.9lit diesel, as golfies states does say 4’s 100km. The CO2 output from a Prius is i think 119g/km and 1.9 diesel is about the (Polo Bluemotion does 99g/km) So your hybrid is using 30 more fuel and produces about the same CO2.
Also you stated “Various studies have highlighted the harmful gases that a Diesel emits, not necessarily harmful for the environment… but more diretly to humans!”
Petrol contains 15 substances hazardous to health much as diesel does so don’t go thinking that it only diesel thats a killer.
If the Prius is so successful why don’t Toyata upgrade it. Why cos its not financially economical. They have sold about 1.1million in ten years. The Skoda Octavia has sold 1M in 3 years.