CarBuyersNoteBook

2010 Prius

Toyota is predicting that its new 2010 Prius hybrid will gather enough orders to outsell its rival, the Honda Insight hybrid in Japan. Scheduled to go on sale in Japan on Monday, the new Prius has reportedly already scored more than 75,000 sales. This information comes from Japan’s Nikkei business daily, and if it turns out to be accurate, the orders will represent a significant amount of sales for the car’s annual sales as last year, 73,000 units of the Prius were sold in Japan.

This is good news for Toyota, which is still preparing for an all-out price war with Honda’s Insight, the car which has already beaten Toyota’s Prius in Japanese sales for one month this year. The new Prius will reportedly still cost more than the Honda Insight, which sells for less than ¥2 million (approximately $21,000), but provides a larger engine and more standard features. Toyota is hoping to eventually sell 400,000 units of the new Prius around the world next year, while Honda’s sales have easily surpassed their own predicted sales forecasts.