As EV demand slows and subsidies fade, hybrid cars are quietly taking center stage again worldwide
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The world’s leading car company plans to build 11.3 million cars in 2028.
Approximately 60 percent of Toyota’s 2028 lineup will be hybrids.
Toyota sold 4.994 million electrified vehicles last year, mostly hybrids.
If it feels like every other Toyota on the road is a hybrid, you’re not imagining things. Toyota is already a global leader in hybrid vehicle sales, and in two years, it expects to produce and sell even more. In fact, the world’s largest carmaker is forecasting a 30 percent increase in hybrid production
Read: Only One Brand Broke The Global Sales Record, And It’s The One Holding Back On EVs
Last year, the Japanese manufacturer sold 10,536,807 vehicles worldwide, with 4.994 million of those falling under the electrified category. Of those, 4.433 million were traditional hybrids. For the year ahead, Toyota aims to boost production of both hybrids and plug-in hybrids to 5 million units, with plans to reach as many as 6.7 million by 2028.
What’s Driving the Push?
This projected surge will push the share of hybrids among Toyota’s total vehicle sales from around 50 percent to roughly 60 percent. By 2028, the company expects to build a total of 11.3 million vehicles, meaning that hybrid growth is expected to far outpace overall production, which is projected to rise by just 10 percent over the same period.
Some of that growth will come from expanded manufacturing in the US. Toyota plans to invest $10 billion in its American operations over the next five years, according to a report from Nikkei Asia.
That includes upgrades to five plants focused on producing hybrid powertrains and related components. Late last year, the company rolled out a new hybrid version of the RAV4, and by 2028, it plans to begin assembling a Corolla hybrid at its Mississippi facility.
Hybrid variants of high-volume models like the Camry sedan and Tacoma pickup continue to see strong demand, especially in the US.
What About Battery-Electric?
Curiously, there’s no word on how much Toyota expects production and sales of its battery-electric vehicles to rise. Evidently, as long as President Trump remains in the Oval Office, the company will double down on its investments in hybrid vehicles, underscoring how smart the firm’s decision to invest in a diverse range of powertrains has been, rather than committing entirely to EVs and then having to change course.
That approach comes as both US and some European governments scale back subsidies and mandates that once heavily favored fully electric vehicles.
Global Hybrid Growth
Market data backs this up. UK-based research firm GlobalData now forecasts 29 million hybrid vehicles will be sold globally in 2030. That estimate is 2.8 million units higher than the firm’s previous projection, reflecting stronger than anticipated demand for hybrids and plug-in hybrids alike.
For now, Toyota holds a commanding 58 percent share of the global hybrid market, and there’s little indication that position will slip any time soon
