Already 10,000 US Orders For 2004 Toyota Prius

[hatrack]

"Toyota has 10,000 orders in the United States for the redesigned 2004 Prius gas-electric hybrid sedan, which will go on sale Oct. 17, the automaker plans to announce today. That's in addition to 11,000 sales and orders in Japan, where Prius has been on sale two weeks, quadruple what was expected there.

EDIT

The interest in the new Prius translates to a two-month wait for a U.S. buyer who orders one now, Toyota says. And it represents a big chunk of the 36,000 planned for the first year in the USA. Toyota's U.S. managers say they will lobby Japan for more, but demand there threatens to overwhelm production.

EDIT

Detroit automakers have yet to sell hybrids and seem to be getting further from it:

Ford Motor now says the hybrid version of its Escape sport
utility vehicle won't go on sale until late next summer;

DaimlerChrysler's Chrysler Group previously killed plans for a
Dodge Durango hybrid;

General Motors has vehicles coming that shut of the gas engine
at a stop, as hybrids do, boosting fuel economy as much as 15
percent in city driving. But they don't use electric motors to
augment the gasoline engines."

EDIT/END

http://news.statesmanjournal.com/article.cfm?i=68207

[sarin]

1. I want one

But I haven't really seen prices for them, I think they are over 20k, but I could be wrong. They are a nice looking vehicle though.

Sarin

[LastDemInIdaho]

2. Is there any place for a gunrack in the prius?

Is there a 4WD version for getting deep into the backcountry where the big bucks roam?

[cprise]

3. There's money roaming in the back country?

:evilgrin:

[david_vincent]

4. A Saturn salesman told me a hybrid Vue is coming n/t