Toyota switches on to electric vehicles to counter Chinese threat

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Toyota is pushing the accelerator on electric vehicle sales even as other automakers scale back their ambitious targets, in a sign that the hybrid pioneer is facing up to the threat posed by such cars — especially those made by Chinese rivals.

The world’s biggest car company more than doubled EV sales in the first three months of 2026 to a record 79,002 compared with the same period last year, as the introduction of seven new models lifted its line-up of electric cars to 19.

“We think 2026 is going to be the starting point for Toyota’s full electric shift,” said Masahiro Akita, analyst at Bernstein.

The move by Toyotawhich releases annual results on Friday, comes as surging petrol prices due to the Middle East conflict reignite consumer interest in EVs and boost sales for rivals, including Volkswagen and Renault.

The expansion of its EV range, particularly in the US, comes despite a global retreat by the likes of Fiat owner Stellantis, Honda and Ford, which have taken massive writedowns following the cancellation of EV credits by Donald Trump’s administration. Last week, Nissan scrapped a $500mn investment to produce two electric models at its Mississippi plant.

In contrast, Toyota in March announced an $800mn investment in its Kentucky plant to roll out a second US-built EV.

Most global carmakers had “cancelled or wound back EV targets and booked large losses”, Akita said. “On the other hand, Toyota, which was criticised as the biggest laggard in this area, is now ramping up their EV adoption.”

Toyota’s EV volumes are still just a fifth of Tesla’s, less than half those of Volkswagen and minuscule compared with its own hybrid sales. The Prius went on sale in late 1997, becoming the first mass-produced hybrid, and sold 4.4mn units last year.

Yukie Tomoshige, consultant at automotive data intelligence firm JATO Dynamics, said Toyota’s EV sales burst “does not mean that the competitive gap” with its rivals has closed. But other analysts believe Toyota is in a strong position to catch up and come close to its goal of selling 3.5mn electric cars by 2030.

The automaker has long touted its “multi-pathway” approach to spread its bets on different drivetrain technologies to offer consumers the choice of electric, plug-in hybrid, hydrogen fuel cell, hybrid or combustion engine.

Industry experts had questioned whether the slogan was shorthand for Toyota maintaining its pursuit of hybrid vehicles such as the Prius, while only producing as many EVs as needed to avoid big penalties under regulatory compliance systems.

The pressure to rapidly expand EV sales to meet regulatory targets is most acute in the UK and the EU.

EVs and plug-in hybrids accounted for nearly 16 per cent of Toyota sales in those markets in the first two months of this year. That means the company is close to meeting targets itself this year without buying carbon credits from rivals such as Tesla, according to Schmidt Automotive Research.

“There are signs that Toyota is taking EVs seriously but I think they don’t want to show they’re doing it because of external pressure,” said Mariko Shiohata, a campaigner at Greenpeace, the environmental lobby group.

Toyota’s newer EV models integrate the battery into the floor of the vehicle but still house parts under the bonnet, where the engine would usually be. From next year, it will start to deliver its first vehicles using an architecture fully optimised for batteries in the third step of its long-term EV plan.

In China, Toyota has adopted a “local-for-local” strategy, consolidating research and development functions in the country, as well as using more domestic suppliers and the knowhow of its joint venture partners to create vehicles tailored for Chinese buyers, such as the bZ3 developed with BYD.

Toyota’s EV sales in China have tripled in the first three months of the year to 22,000 but remain very modest compared with rivals.

EV sales in Japan have received a leg-up from generous subsidies, after the maximum support per car was lifted from ¥400,000 to ¥1.3mn ($2,468 to $8,112) at the start of this year. Toyota’s bZ4X was Japan’s best-selling EV over the six months to March.

A salesperson at one Toyota dealer in Japan said that subsidies played a big role in turning the updated bZ4X into a “hit product”, but warned that limited charging infrastructure would cap sales.

Toyota declined to comment.