While Toyota received a good deal of negative press last year over issues with some “run away” vehicles due to some technical defects, their flagship in the hybrid arena, the Prius, continues to gain popularity among Americans and around the world.
In a move to capitalize on this momentum, the Japanese auto maker has announced plans to expand the Prius into an entire line of vehicles. The change is much like the strategy Toyota used for its Lexus line, essentially a high end version of its Toyota vehicles.
According to reports from the BBC, head of Toyota in the U.S., Bob Carter said when referencing the new line of Prius vehicles, “As the family expands, each member will be an all-new model, not a re-badged version of an existing Toyota hybrid.” The line will include a totally electric plug-in, a larger family vehicle (the Prius V), and a smaller Prius C. The Prius V is expected to be the first of the new class of cars from Toyota to be released.