Via Slashdot:
Toyota’s vice president in charge of powertrain development, Masatami Takimoto, has said cost cutting on the electric motor, battery and inverter were all showing positive results in reducing the costs of hybrid technology and that by the time Toyota’s sales goal of one million hybrids annually is reached, it ‘expect margins to be equal to gasoline cars.’ Takimoto also made the bold claim that by 2020, hybrids will be the standard drivetrain and account for ‘100 percent’ of Toyota’s cars as they would be no more expensive to produce than a conventional vehicle.
I can’t wait to get my Prius back Friday. Another Prius here got hit the other day, this one on the street by someone running a stop sign. His damage was a lot worse than mine.