Push for Camry Hybrid

Senior executives at Toyota Motor Corporation say a Camry hybrid is looking more and more likely, with one pointing to a production plan within the lifespan of the current car; which means within three years.

Australia will still have to beat opposition from Thailand, which is becoming an Asian production hub for Camry, and worries at TMC about future support from the federal government and the current strength of the Australian dollar. But Toyota Motor Corporation executive vice-president Tokuichi Uranishi says the signs are good.

Speaking at the Tokyo Motor Show; he predicted a decision possibly within a year, as his company aims for an early start to local production of the Camry hybrid.

“I am thinking about the possibility to introduce the hybrid version, even on the current model.

It depends on the Government,” Uranishi says.

“The basic arrangements should be suitable for that type of production.”

The Camry hybrid was originally aimed at the US, where Toyota does well with its Prius, but there is growing demand from other countries, including Australia and the Middle East.

However, the company is now looking at some other options for production locations.

Management at Toyota Australia has jumped in and has been pushing for local assembly since the car was first revealed in the US.

“The Camry hybrid will be our main hybrid system, so production in Australia is very likely,” says the TMC executive in charge of research and development Kazuo Okamoto.

“The hybrid system is a very delicate system. We are narrowing down the list of candidate countries for production and I think in a little while we'll be able to increase volume (and) disperse production in several countries.”

He steers clear of the politics of the move and, unlike Uranishi, is not convinced the green machine will be ready for production by 2010.

“Probably not within the lifetime of this current model,” Okamoto says. “Maybe the next-generation model, by that time for sure."

It depends on which components we will be using from Australia and which will come from Japan. We have to make that decision.”

Meanwhile, the hybrid push at Toyota has reached another milestone with delivery of the 1000th Lexus hybrid in Australia, a Lexus GS400h.