Jun 19 Toyota ranked Number 1 as World's Best Green Brand

One of the world's largest brand consultancy firms Interbrand has just released it's Top 50 Best Global Green Brands List for 2013. Toyota takes out the top spot, for the third year in a row!

Toyota leads the pack with a consistent commitment to environmental responsibilities with its ever expanding Hybrid models and Future Fuels Programme.

The Prius model range is leading the charge, with more than 2.9 million models sold worldwide in 2012 (1.2 million in the US alone), and just recently Toyota Global made quite a song and dance over the 5 millionth hybrid being delivered - check out that video further down the page.

It scores #1 for perception in its home country, where it’s exploring the future of mobility at the Toyota Ecoful Town, a low-carbon pilot project in Toyota City, Japan. The world’s biggest auto maker—and Asia’s biggest manufacturer—aims to produce even more efficient, cleaner-emitting cars and further reduce its operational impact.

It's rolling out more than 20 new hybrid models in the next three years (including a refreshed RAV4 EV this year) and a full hydrogen car in 2015, while developing new fuel-cell technologies, lithium-air batteries, and LED lighting technologies.

Operationally, Toyota reduced greenhouse gas emissions and energy and water consumption, and kept millions of pounds of cardboard and wood out of landfills by using reusable metal containers for shipping and distribution.

Partnerships such as TogetherGreen with the US National Audubon Society also help build goodwill with consumers.

5 Million Hybrids!

From the Toyota Global Website:

"Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) announces that cumulative global sales of its hybrid vehicles topped the 5 million unit mark as of March 31, 2013, reaching 5.125 million units.
Positioning response to environmental issues as a management priority and based on its belief that environment-friendly vehicles can only truly have a positive impact if they are used widely, TMC has endeavored to promote the mass-market adoption of hybrid vehicles, TMC launched the “Coaster Hybrid EV” in August 1997 in Japan and launched the “Prius”—the world’s first mass-produced hybrid passenger vehicle—in December.
Since then, TMC hybrid vehicles have received tremendous support from consumers around the world, and in 15 years and 7 months 5 million units have been sold.

As of end of March 2013, TMC sells 19 hybrid passenger car models and one plug-in hybrid model in approximately 80 countries and regions around the world, and between now and December 2015, TMC will launch a total of 18 new hybrid vehicles worldwide and is committed to augmenting its product lineup even further and increasing the number of countries and regions where it sells hybrid vehicles"

and to top it off - here is the aforementioned song and dance!

Developing the prius - a new vehicle with new technology

In September 1993, TMC President Eiji Toyoda said: “In the 21st century, is it acceptable to go on making cars the same way?
Shouldn’t we rethink manufacturing from the ground up?” This resulted in the birth of the G21 project, which sought to create a completely new vehicle using completely new technologies. Exploring what vehicles should embody in the 21st century, far-reaching research was done into user-friendliness, body size, design, fuel economy and even environmental and social issues. The research resulted in the concept of a motor and engine working together—the hybrid system.

October 1995: Prius concept was introduced at the Tokyo Motor Show October 14, 1997: World premiere of the Prius, the world’s first mass-produced hybrid vehicle.

Click here to see the article on the Interbrand Website