According to a Toyota senior executive, a “silent majority” of car companies are concerned that electric cars won’t be able to eliminate reliance on fossil fuels.
Akio Toyoda is the company’s president and the grandson of Kiichiro Toyoda. He said that many senior executives are reluctant to speak out because of the pressure to be green.
This comes as the industry struggles with diesel and petrol, due to shortages of materials and complicated processes that have made it difficult for electric cars to be built.
Toyoda made the following comments about a visit to Thailand, first reported by Wall Street Journal: “People involved with the auto industry are largely the silent majority.”
“The silent majority is asking whether EVs [electric cars] are allowed to be used as a single option.” They think it’s the current trend, so they don’t have to speak loudly.
These comments were made weeks after Toyota introduced six new electric models, a sign that suggested it was shifting away from its previous bet on hydrogen being the green fuel of tomorrow.
Rival carmakers have established timetables for ending fossil fuel production. General Motors and Honda are planning to switch completely to battery-powered cars. In the meantime, Tesla has seen an astronomical sales increase as a result of consumer enthusiasm.
However, the slow growth in lithium production and other bottlenecks like the supply of Rare Earth metals, which are largely found in China could make electric cars more expensive for some buyers.
Toyota supports hybrid technology in the Prius and hydrogen as alternatives to carbon dioxide emission reductions.
Mr Toyoda stated that “Because we don’t know the right answer, we shouldn’t limit ourselves to one option.”
Toyota isn’t the only one making bets. Renault, a French company, announced in May that it would bring Europe’s first hydrogen-powered family car to market by 2030. This is part of the planned return of Scenic.
Although electricity is becoming more renewable in Britain, many large countries with growing driving populations like India and China still get a lot of their energy from coal. This means that electric vehicles will continue to contribute to global warming.
Toyota could leave itself exposed as electric car pickup expands, according to David Bailey, a Birmingham University expert in the car industry.
He stated that Toyota had misjudged the transition and aimed instead at hybrids in the short- to medium-term, and hydrogen in the long term.
“They are now playing catchup in EVs after being blindsided by firms such as Tesla and regulators eager to reduce CO2 emissions.”
He said that while there is an extensive distribution network for electricity, hydrogen does not have the capacity to be a fuel source for millions of cars.
Mr Bailey stated that “Hydrogen may have a future as a commercial vehicle fuel, and maybe luxury car fuel, but car manufacturers can’t afford multiple fuel options. The mass market is moving to EVs.
Rival Nissan, who opted to invest in the all-electric Leaf a decade back rather than following Toyota into hybrids, has been spending $18bn on electrifying its fleet.
Toyota announced two weeks ago that it would sell six plug-ins to Europe by 2026, as part of its plan to meet the bloc’s targets to eliminate petrol and diesel by 2035.
In 2014, the company launched the Mirai, which was a large family car that has a range of over 300 miles.
However, the fuel hasn’t seen widespread adoption. Although hydrogen pumps can be used to fuel faster than battery cars, they are rare and expensive. The gas is mainly restricted to buses because they share the same depot where fitting a pump might be economical.
Green hydrogen is created by the separation of water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen with electricity from renewable sources like wind. This extra step makes hydrogen more expensive as the same electricity can be used to charge another battery. It can also be difficult to store.
Mr Bailey stated that these comments could cloud Toyota’s commitment towards EVs at precisely the right time when they need to convince consumers that they have it. This is not a smart marketing strategy.
