Although March is shaping up as a good month for hybrid sales with a record 31,652 units sold just by Toyota and Honda (data from Ford and Nissan still pending, and GM not reporting), it was the best month ever for Toyota and its hybrid sedans. (Even with the incomplete tally of 31,652, hybrids broke the 2% threshold for marketshare of new vehicles sales.)
March also marked a significant milestone for Toyota, with aggregate US sales of Toyota and Lexus hybrids topping the half-million mark.
Toyota posted sales of 28,453 hybrid vehicles in March, up 137% over the same period last year. The bulk of that came from the Prius, with a record-breaking 19,156 units sold, up 133.2% from the prior year.
The Camry hybrid was the second-best selling Toyota model, posting 5,144 units in March—its best monthly results to date. Hybrids represented 12.2% of all Camry models sold in the month. The Highlander Hybrid sold 2,501 units, down 16% from March 2006.
The Lexus Rx 400h sold 1,471 units, down 40% from the prior year. The Lexus GS450h sold 181 units, representing 92.8% of the combined GS 430/GS 450h models sold, and 8.6% of all GS models (including the GS 300).
Toyota’s calendar-year-to-date hybrid sales in the US totaled 61,635 units, an increase of 68% over the same period last year.