I agree with everything you’re saying, including how you believe Toyota has changed its corporate attitude towards BEVs between 2021 and 2026.
The most important sign that Toyota is serious about BEVs, though, is that they’re releasing a BEV Lexus ES (the top selling Lexus model), selling the all-electric version for cheaper than the hybrid, and manufacturing it in China for the Chinese market.
That, to me, shows a level of commitment that is surprising, coming out of the same company that was doing things completely differently a few years ago.
And in the end, they have manufactured many millions of cars with hybrid drivetrains, with batteries, motors, regenerative braking, etc., so they have the engineering know-how and the supply chains to be able to manufacture all parts of an EV, and are better positioned than most traditional automakers at switching to electric.
Toyota has changed its corporate attitude towards BEVs between 2021 and 2026.
Why: because Toyota is a company not supported by a religious cult, they need to make profit to survive. While the internet manbuns and sandals crowd is telling us we need to make EVs…very few bought EVs in 2021. Given poor charging infrastructure in the US and overnight charging impossible for apartment dwellers, hybrids made much more sense. And they sold hundreds of thousands.
You wanna go broke fast? Listen to the internet about how to make cars.
Millions, actually. Toyota North America sales in 2025 showed that 47% of the 2.5 million vehicles sold had some kind of electrification. Add up prior years, plus whatever they’ve sold in the first 9 months of 2026, and it’s pretty obvious they’ve sold several million electrified vehicles in North America alone.
I agree with everything you’re saying, including how you believe Toyota has changed its corporate attitude towards BEVs between 2021 and 2026.
The most important sign that Toyota is serious about BEVs, though, is that they’re releasing a BEV Lexus ES (the top selling Lexus model), selling the all-electric version for cheaper than the hybrid, and manufacturing it in China for the Chinese market.
That, to me, shows a level of commitment that is surprising, coming out of the same company that was doing things completely differently a few years ago.
And in the end, they have manufactured many millions of cars with hybrid drivetrains, with batteries, motors, regenerative braking, etc., so they have the engineering know-how and the supply chains to be able to manufacture all parts of an EV, and are better positioned than most traditional automakers at switching to electric.
Why: because Toyota is a company not supported by a religious cult, they need to make profit to survive. While the internet manbuns and sandals crowd is telling us we need to make EVs…very few bought EVs in 2021. Given poor charging infrastructure in the US and overnight charging impossible for apartment dwellers, hybrids made much more sense. And they sold hundreds of thousands.
You wanna go broke fast? Listen to the internet about how to make cars.
Millions, actually. Toyota North America sales in 2025 showed that 47% of the 2.5 million vehicles sold had some kind of electrification. Add up prior years, plus whatever they’ve sold in the first 9 months of 2026, and it’s pretty obvious they’ve sold several million electrified vehicles in North America alone.