February 2010 - Toyota's reknowned reliability record has come under the spotlight recently due to a number of recalls to some models. Toyota cars have a reputation to "outlive the universe" and while the recalls are a major concern to their loyal customers it appears that the Japanese car manufacturer is responding rapidly to ensure that the recalls are dealt with quickly.

The affected model's include the legendary Prius. Noted for its reliability, the Prius has taken the brunt of the negative fall out over the recalls, yet it appears that sales are holding up well according to many dealers nationwide. February numbers will tell us more in that regard. Meanwhile Toyota have released an FAQ to reassure their customers that all is being done to rectify the situation.

US January sales of Hybrid Cars numbered 17,157 units, showing an increase of 11 per cent on the January 2009 figure of 15,441 units. The recent fallout over the Prius recall seemed to have had a negligible effect on sales of hybrids in general with the Prius actually increasing its sales amid the January rumblings of  how Toyota were handling the issue. January 2010 sales of the Prius totalled 8,484 units up 363 units on the figure of 8,121 for the same period in 2009, an increase of 4.4 per cent.

Jan 2010 - Ford Motor Company have announced it will invest an additional $450 million in its aggressive electric vehicle plan, paving the way to build a next-generation hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicle in Michigan beginning in 2012 and creating 1,000 new jobs.

This comes in addition to Ford’s already announced plans to invest $550 million to transform Michigan Assembly Plant from a large SUV factory to a modern car plant to build the all-new Focus starting in 2010 and Focus Electric pure battery electric vehicle in 2011. With today’s news, Ford’s Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne, Mich., will be the production site of hybrid, plug-in hybrid and full battery electric vehicles, all of which will be built off the company’s new global C-car platform.

Us 2009 hybrid car sales figures totalled 292,528 units. The number represents a  6.6 per cent decrease on the 2008 figure of 313,486 units.Toyota continue to dominate the hybrid car market with a year end total, that includes the Camry, Prius and Highlander hybrids, of 174,406 units. Lexus division returned sales of 21,499  giving combined totals for TMS of 195,545 units compared with combined totals of 241,456 units for 2008.