Over the years, Toyota has become known for its fuel-efficient hybrids, but has been more cautious than other major car manufacturers when it comes to investing in pure electric cars.
Electric cars are not the only solution to environmental problems, but rather a combination of different technologies, has been the company’s stance. This has led to sharp criticism of the company from many camps.
Now it continues on the same track, after the Australian sales and PR manager Sean Hanley has championed the excellence of the diesel engine in an interview with Australian Drive.
Researchers: Congestion tax is needed in more places
No death for diesel
– The diesel, despite the popular voices, is not dead. It’s got a little bit left, the diesel, so it’s not going to die out anytime soon, Sean Hanley said.
According to Hanley, diesel is still “a very credible fuel source”, especially for heavy haulage and large SUVs.
However, he believes that the diesel engine will have to adapt to increasingly strict environmental requirements in order to survive. Diesel-powered mild hybrids can be such a solution.
1 in 4 electric cars in Europe is expected to come from China – already this year
Toyoda skeptical of electric cars
Hanley also does not rule out the possibility of running internal combustion engines on synthetic fuel in the future. Toyota is already in the process of saving the internal combustion engines by running them on hydrogen gas.
The investment is necessary because the chairman of the board, Akio Toyoda, believes that electric cars will never account for more than 30 percent of new car sales globally.
The trendy Twingo electric car will cost SEK 200,000 – in Europe
Looks dark in Europe
In Europe, the diesel engine has become unpopular in recent years due to punitive taxes, rising fuel prices and an increasing focus on air quality in cities.
In 2023, for the first time, more electric cars than diesel cars were sold in Europe, according to figures from the industry organization EAMA. And it will become more difficult as the emission requirements become increasingly strict. By 2035, the sale of diesel cars will be completely banned within the EU.
The risk is thus that Toyota’s love for the diesel engine will not help the Swedes who want to continue driving diesel forever.
The Saab cars on the verge of extinction: So many remain today