Toyota Begins Production of Auris Hybrid

In brief: The first mass-produced, European-made hybrid car is now the Toyota Auris Hybrid. The car began rolling off the production line in the UK on July 1.

Vehicle in the news

Make/Model: Auris Hybrid
Manufacturer: Toyota

The word

Toyota plans to produce 30,000 of the European-only hybrids per year. The company plans to market the Auris Hybrid in 32 countries by the end of the next year at a base price of $27,000USD.

The Auris is based on the Corolla chassis and has the popular sedan's general look with some refinements for aerodynamics and interior changes to accommodate the hybrid drive train.

That drive train is the Toyota Hybrid Synergy Drive - the same that appears in the Prius. The Auris is a limited plug-in with the ability to go just over a mile all-electric up to 30mph. On the European driving cycle, however, the Auris Hybrid achieves 61.9mpg (US).

And so ...

Toyota has no plans to market the Auris in North America, but rumors say that the Corolla could see a hybrid U.S. version.

Photo credits: Toyota