Toyota has used the Beijing Motor Show to announce
plans to launch ten electrified vehicles in China by 2020. Toyota unveiled plug-in hybrid versions of the Corolla and Levin.
The company was tight-lipped on details but confirmed the models will be built
in China and launched next year. The vehicles will become the first Toyota
plug-in hybrids built outside of Japan and they are slated to have an
electric-only range of at least 50 km.
On the styling front, there isn’t much to report as
the models only receive minor modifications. Changes include a new charging
port, purple accents and plug-in hybrid badging on the front fenders.
Besides introducing the Corolla and Levin plug-in
hybrids, Toyota revealed plans to offer an electric version of the C-HR / IZOA.
Little is known about the model but it is scheduled to be launched in 2020.
Toyota said it is working with its
Chinese partners to build a local production base for key components used in
the company’s electrified models. As part of this effort, the company will
increase its annual production capacity for nickel-metal hydride battery packs
to 220,000 units in 2020.
Besides increasing battery production, Toyota will
open a new battery testing facility at their Chinese research and development
center in 2020. The automaker is also “steadily enhancing its local production
structures” in preparations to build electric vehicles in the country.
Toyota only sold around 140,000 electrified vehicles
in China last year but the company expects that number will grow in the future
as it continues to enhance its electrified vehicle lineup.
