Toyota slashes Prius price
With the arrival of the similarly-priced Lexus CT200h luxury hybrid hatch, Toyota has finally dropped the price of its iconic green machineAs the Carsales Network forecast last month, Toyota has slashed the price of its highly recognisable Prius hybrid car, slicing almost $5000 off entry level variants and more than $7500 off the range-topping i-Tech Prius cars.
Prius sales have been falling off in the past year, down by more than two thirds, and with the recent arrival of the Lexus CT200h priced just $90 more than Toyota's hybrid car, the Japanese car giant had to move.
The adjusted pricing for the Toyota Prius is as follows:
- Prius $34,990 (previously $39,900)
- Prius $40,590 (previously $45,500) with navigation pack
- Prius i-Tech $45,990 (previously $53,500)
- Prius i-Tech $44,590 (previously $52,000) with 17-inch alloys, minus moonroof
Other contributing factors for the significant price reductions include the strength of the Australian currency and increasing economies of scale at Toyota's manufacturing plants.
Toyota's official reason for the price cut is due to market acceptance, which in turn reduces the cost of technology involved, such as the battery systems, electric motors and so on.
"Toyota has been working hard over many years to reduce the cost of the technology in its flagship hybrid," said Toyota Australia's senior executive director (sales and marketing) David Buttner, in a statement.
"A key factor in lowering the cost of any advanced technology is market acceptance, leading to strong sales. Prius is the world's most popular hybrid car and its rapidly increasing global sales have made this move possible."
Avoiding the fact that Australian sales of the Prius had plummeted in 2011, Buttner instead focussed on the global picture, saying that demand has been increasing across the globe. "Total Prius sales have now exceeded half a million for the first time, with more than 16,000 sold in Australia."
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