Pruis a popular car to rent and own

Toyota announced this week that worldwide sales of one of the most popular rental cars this year, the hybrid Toyota Prius, have exceeded one million units since the model was first available on the market ten years ago.

The Prius is the world’s first gasoline-electric hybrid car which was able to be mass produced. It was available in 1997 in Japan and reached other markets in 2000.

Toyota is the largest manufacturer of automobiles in the world and leads the market in electric cars, with Honda a close second. A statement from the company confirmed that by the end of April, 1028000 models of the Prius had been sold.

“Toyota believes that Prius vehicles worldwide have contributed to a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions by producing approximately 4.5 million tonnes less CO2 when compared with gasoline-powered vehicles in the same class and of similar size and driving performance,” it said in a statement.

The car has been popular with both consumers and car rental companies. Hertz said that by 2008, it will have spent $68 million on hybrid car additions to its fleet. Avis Budget Group and Enterprise-Rent-A-Car were also keen to get on the Prius bandwagon and offer hybrid cars to their American customers.

“We finished up our first full day with our shiny 2006 Toyota Prius rental, and all I can say is…Wow,” said one satisfied renter. “You press the power button which silently starts up the car. The only way you would know it was on is by all the lights that come up everywhere, as it is dead silent. Moving the gear lever to drive, the car slowly but surely starts crawling away from a stop without making a sound.”

www.hertz.com