Toyota on the podium in Europe is the victory of gentle electrification

Everyone fears the Chinese, but it is Japan's Toyota, for the second year, that is the second best-selling brand in Europe. The world's leading manufacturer - with 11.2 million vehicles sold (+7.2%) globally - sold 828,484 cars in Europe in 2023, an increase of 8% against 13% for the market. The figure rises to just over one million if commercial vehicles (+7%) are also counted. Volkswagen looks down on everyone with its 3.8 million (+19.7%). But behind the Japanese group are the historic European brands such as Audi, Peugeot, Skoda, Opel, Fiat, Renault and Dacia.

It sounds like a victory for the philosophy of the company based in the city of the same name, Aichi prefecture. In recent years, several times Criticised Toyota management had argued in favour of electrification based on a broader choice and not only focused on the battery car race. In essence, the European Commission's choice to step on the accelerator of stopping combustion engines (2035), including hybrids, in order to achieve the ambitious goals of the Green Deal. A very costly and risky revolution for manufacturers. Meanwhile Toyota is going and its secret, explained Felipe Munoz, analyst at Jato Dynamics to AutomobilWoche, lies in hybrid technology. Toyota 'started more than 20 years ago, and now it is the best solution for many consumers who do not want to worry about looking for a recharge and want to spend less on fuel'.

About 70 per cent of the cars sold by Toyota in Europe are electrified, i.e. full hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fully electric vehicles. In Western Europe it is almost 100 per cent. Most of these are plug-in hybrids: Toyota's only battery-powered model, the bZ4X, was sold in just 17,000 units in 2023, according to Dataforce. In 2022, the range of plug-in hybrids was limited to the off-road RAV4; this year, the C-HR crossover is added.

The success of Toyota's hybrid models, apart from the technology factor (appreciated by the general public) lies in the price. Munoz emphasised to AutomobilWoche that Toyota's three best-sellers in Europe, the Yaris Cross, Yaris and Corolla, are particularly popular as hybrids. 'Hybrids are definitely cheaper than electric vehicles, despite the fact that car manufacturers strive to develop affordable electric cars and despite government incentives,' Munoz said.

Meanwhile, Daihatsu's subsidiary Daihatsu has restarted part of its vehicle production more than a month and a half after suspending all operations at its factories in Japan in the aftermath of the safety test tampering scandal. The company specialising in small cars, the Kei cars (a very Japanese phenomenon), has resumed production of two models at the plant located in Kyoto prefecture after obtaining approval from the Japanese Ministry of Transport.