Toyota hybrid sales top 1 million, Prius dominates
Toyota said Thursday global sales of its hybrid vehicles, first introduced 10 years ago, have topped 1 million, a landmark for the Japanese automaker that leads the world in gas-and-electric cars. Toyota Motor Corp.'s cumulative sales of hybrid vehicles totaled 1.047 million as of the end of May. Of those, nearly 345,000 hybrids were sold in Japan, while 702,000 were sold abroad, the company said in a statement. The Prius is the clear leader, with a total of 757,600 units sold since its 1997 introduction in Japan. Toyota began selling the Prius in North America, Europe and other places in 2000. Last year, the model made up more than 40 percent of hybrid sales in the U.S. Demand for hybrids, which deliver superior mileage by switching between a gasoline engine and electric motor, has soared amid higher oil prices and greater consumer concern about pollution and global warming. The Prius, which gets 55 miles a gallon on combined city and highway driving conditions, has been enormously popular as a mid-size sedan, which is a best-selling vehicle category. "Toyota is clearly ahead of the pack in hybrids," said Tsuyoshi Mochimaru, auto analyst with Deutsche Securities in Tokyo. Although most automakers are working on hybrids, Toyota has the advantage of selling the technology in its products for nearly 10 years, and using feedback from drivers to make improvements, rather than merely information from labs. Toyota believes hybrid technology is the way of the future. It offers several other hybrid models, including the hybrid Camry and hybrid Lexus models. "Hybrids will play a key role throughout our lineup," Toyota spokesman Paul Nolasco said. "That means all vehicle categories." The company recently started domestic sales of its most expensive hybrid, the $124,000 Lexus LS 600h. It will be exported over the summer, Toyota says. But not all hybrids sell well, and it remains to be seen whether the technology will boost the Lexus brand. Hybrid sport-utility vehicles, for example, have struggled in sales compared to the Prius, partly because an SUV doesn't have a green image to start with, analysts say. Sales of Toyota's RX400h hybrid SUV, sold as the Harrier in Japan, has reached 85,000 worldwide since it was introduced in 2005. Another hybrid SUV, the Highlander, or the Kluger in Japan, has sold 67,000 over the same period. The Prius, by contrast, has sold 478,800 units since the start of 2005. Earlier this week, Honda Motor Co. said it will discontinue the hybrid version of its Accord sedans. Sales of the Accord hybrid, available only in North America, totaled just 439 last month, while Toyota sold 24,000 Prius cars during the same period. Honda also said it will stop making the slow-selling Insight hybrid, but will continues to sell the hybrid Civic, which has sold more than 153,000 since going on sale in 2001 in Japan, Europe and North America. Toyota has, however, repeatedly stressed that the hybrid is the single big ecological technology of the future, holding more potential than the diesel or other innovations. Toyota officials say hybrids will continue to be important, even with the advent of more futuristic technologies like the electric vehicle and fuel-cells that run on hydrogen. Toyota produces its hybrids in Japan, in China since 2005, and in Kentucky in the U.S. since last year.

CAA partners with Universal Music Canada

The Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) has announced a new partnership with Universal Music Canada that will provide CAA members with discounts on CDs, DVDs and downloads at an exclusive on-line store. CAA members will receive 25 per cent off the retail price on mail-order CDs and DVDs, or a 10 per cent savings on downloaded songs and albums. Universal Music Canada is the first music partner with CAA's Show Your Card & Save program. To kick off the partnership, Universal Music Canada has announced a contest for all CAA members, with a chance to see Bon Jovi perform at the Calgary Stampede in July. Members can enter at www.caa.ca.

DuPont to launch corn-based automotive primer and clear-coat

DuPont has announced a new polymer family, Cerenol, made with corn instead of petroleum. The new polymers will be used in automotive finishes and automotive components, as well as end-use products such as running shoes, cosmetics, and spandex fibre. The company earlier announced Sorona, a polymer which also uses renewable resources rather than petroleum. Cerenol, which is being produced at DuPont operations in Canada and the U.S., has a significantly lower environmental footprint than existing alternatives such as polytetramethylene ether glycol. According to an ISO 14000-compliant analysis, Cerenol has a 40 per cent savings in non-renewable energy and a 42 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. The company says that the new polymer will be used in automotive primers and clear-coats from DuPont Performance Coatings, available in the first quarter of 2008; the new products provide increased chip resistance and flexibility.

Volvo to hold rematch in online treasure hunt after finalists fail to solve final puzzle

The Volvo Car Corporation is declaring a "do-over" in its global online treasure hunt, after all 21 finalists failed to solve the final puzzle within the 24-hour time limit last weekend. The contest, which is tied in to the Disney film Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, offers a chance to win a trip to recover a treasure chest filled with US$50,000 in gold doubloons and the keys to a new Volvo. "We really didn't see this coming," says Linda Gangeri, national advertising manager for Volvo Cars of North America. "Our Hunt has been tough from the beginning and we have been in awe of all the amazing puzzle-solving skills and sharp minds out there meeting us at every twist and turn. We really didn't expect to baffle our finalists with the final puzzle." The online contest attracted more than 32,000 online contestants from 22 markets worldwide, including Canada for the first time. Participants solved a series of puzzles that led to a semi-final, and then to a final leg. One Canadian is in the running, along with one participant each from Austria, Bulgaria, Germany, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Romania, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand, the United Kingdom and the United States.