Current Events > Toyota is pushing Congress to slow the shift to electric vehicles

(+) Yeah! (+)

Shocker, Toyota's in the news again for being a piece of shit company

https://www.theverge.com/2021/7/26/22594235/toyota-lobbying-dc-ev-congress-biden-donation

The US is slowing moving toward adopting policies that would put more electric vehicles on the road, but for Toyota, its not slow enough. The Japanese automaker, which is the largest car company in the world, has been quietly lobbying policymakers in Washington, DC to resist the urge to transition to an all-electric future partly because Toyota is lagging behind the rest of industry in making that transition itself.

According to The New York Times, a top Toyota executive has met with congressional leaders behind closed doors in recent weeks to advocate against the Biden administrations plans to spend billions of dollars to incentivize the shift to EVs. The executive, Chris Reynolds, has argued that hybrids, like the Toyota Prius, as well as hydrogen-powered fuel cell vehicles should also be in the mix.

In addition, Toyota is also pushing back against EV-friendly policy through the auto industrys main DC-based lobbying group, the Alliance for Automotive Innovation. The group, which represents the major car companies and their suppliers and is chaired by Reynolds, has been arguing against the Biden administrations plan to adopt the so-called California compromise as its official position, the Times reports.

Last year, a group of car companies made a deal on tailpipe emissions with California, which had been seeking to set tougher rules than the US as a whole. Under President Donald Trump, the Environmental Protection Agency had sought to strip California of its power to set its own emissions standards. But under Biden, that rule was reversed, allowing California and other states to impose tougher standards.

Toyota, which sided with the Trump administration in its battle with California, was not part of the original compromise. And the company has argued against EV-friendly policies in India and in its native country, Japan, as well.

Toyotas behind-the-scene efforts to slow the momentum behind EV-friendly policies is surprising, given its status as an early adopter of battery-powered transportation. With the release of the Toyota Prius in 1997, the company helped pave the way for Tesla and others by proving that vehicles with alternative powertrains could be immensely popular. And more recently, the automaker has revealed plans to release 70 new models by 2025, including battery-electric, hydrogen fuel cell, and gas-electric hybrids.

But that doesnt hide the fact that Toyota has fallen far behind its competitors, appearing content to rest on its laurels while the rest of the industry has lapped it several times. Companies like Nissan, General Motors, and Volkswagen have been selling pure battery-electric vehicles for years, while also revealing their plans to phase out gas cars completely. And Toyotas failure to embrace EVs is not a new concept; The New York Times noted as much in this article from 2009.

Toyotas top executives, including billionaire CEO Akio Toyoda, have been on the record calling the trend toward electric vehicles overhyped in part because of emissions associated with power plants which is a favorite talking point used by the oil and gas industry.

The company came under fire recently after it was revealed that it was the largest corporate donor to Republican lawmakers who objected to the certification of the 2020 presidential election. A majority of those politicians also dispute the scientific consensus on climate change. Toyota initially defended the contributions, but then later said it would halt them. You know things are bad for the company when a Toyota spokesperson has to confirm to the Times that the automaker does indeed believe that climate change is real.

Toyotas argument that hybrids and fuel-cell vehicles should also be included in the conversation is not a bad one. Hybrid vehicles in particular are an important stepping stone to the wider adoption of EVs, especially as the charging infrastructure is still in its infancy.

But that argument might carry more weight if the automakers track record on fuel economy was actually, well, good. According to the EPA, Toyota has slipped in its ranking in fuel efficiency across its entire fleet, going from an industry leader to near the bottom with GM and Ford. This comes as the company has pushed the sale of huge gas-guzzling trucks and SUVs, which tend to command a larger profit than smaller sedans and hatchbacks.

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How much money are they offering?

This comes as the company has pushed the sale of huge gas-guzzling trucks and SUVs, which tend to command a larger profit than smaller sedans and hatchbacks.

What we actually want, and what government wants us to want, will always disagree.

What "measures" are Toyota specifically bribing away, anyway?

Legacy automakers are complete scum that have been lobbying against climate change policies, emission standards, etc instead of investing a single cent into the future.

Teslas forcing every last one of these clowns out of business and they deserve it.

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Krojen posted...

Teslas forcing every last one of these clowns out of business and they deserve it.

That's not going to happen until electric slips into the "proletariat" price range.

Yeah sounds like Toyota is fucking up. Electric is the way to go and will be the future, that's why you're seeing almost every car company transitioning.

Honestly toyota should be wanting this, it seems much easier to manufacture a Electric car.

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Jesus, I thought VW were the bad guys but they're looking better than Toyota.

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Toyota bet on the wrong tech and trying to hold us back. Guess Im switching to Honda

Feels like forever ago but didn't Toyota recall millions of cars for defective brakes? Seems like this company is always incompetent af.

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"Adapt or die" doesn't apply to huge megacorps.

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What? Toyota has always been a reliable vehicle to have compared to the other car makers. They're just trying to push for hydrogen instead of all electric. This isn't a scum bag move as people are taking it


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Questionmarktarius posted...

That's not going to happen until electric slips into the "proletariat" price range.

20k model 2 on the horizon. Xpeng already sells a nice 20k EV because China took EVs seriously.

These EV companies had/still have plenty of time to scale affordability since legacy automakers are incapable of going electric.

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EV still isn't the solution though.

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Jagr_68 posted...

Feels like forever ago but didn't Toyota recall millions of cars for defective brakes? Seems like this company is always incompetent af.

The fuck? Year in and year out for decades they've made the most reliable vehicles.
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hyperpowder posted...

Honestly toyota should be wanting this, it seems much easier to manufacture a Electric car.

It requires these companies to completely rebuild from the ground up. Thats why they never made the transition and their only option now is to fight it. And why the new companies are eating their lunch. Easier to start from scratch.

Transitioning to electric makes every factory they currently own worthless, have to change their entire supply chain and workforce. Eliminate every car dealership since they subsist on maintenance that EVs dont need.

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to be honest, the current infrustructure can barely keep up with the small amount of EV's we have now. If we were to push forward faster, it would be a complete shitshow.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XwevvreoNjE

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pogo_rabid posted...

to be honest, the current infrustructure can barely keep up with the small amount of EV's we have now. If we were to push forward faster, it would be a complete shitshow.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XwevvreoNjE

this, and not to mention in most cases it is less environment friendly to have these massive battery manufacturing plants and charge stations rather than just use gas


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hsvhighlife posted...

this, and not to mention in most cases it is less environment friendly to have these massive battery manufacturing plants and charge stations rather than just use gas

Source? I could believe either way, but I'm assuming you read this from a reputable source I am interested in reading.

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If you can't keep up in the free market, just change the rules until you can!

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What will having EVs even solve?

Most energy is dirty, mining batteries is dirty, hell the power grid is already catching on fire or freezing tons halt.

A reliable long lasting vehicle is a better and sustainable idea at the moment while the rest of the system gets itself in order. Buying a used car and driving it until it's absolutely destined to be scrap is better than buying any EV or new vehicle. Toyota is arguably the best at doing that too

Honestly I wish they'd just push the nuclear desalination plants who's byproduct is hydrogen that you can put in fuel cells

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Jagr_68 posted...

Feels like forever ago but didn't Toyota recall millions of cars for defective brakes? Seems like this company is always incompetent af.

Are you talking about the Prius issue where the floor mats could potentially slide up under the brake pedal preventing it from being pushed in?

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I'm mean sure. Electric vehicles suck ass.
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pogo_rabid posted...

to be honest, the current infrustructure can barely keep up with the small amount of EV's we have now. If we were to push forward faster, it would be a complete shitshow.

Too late. Climate change is a bigger shit show. It couldve been slow, but the companies you constantly propagandize for have fought any attempts to save the planet for decades.

Charging stations are expanding since theyre much easier to build than gas stations and governments are finally making moves on green infrastructure.

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Krojen posted...

Too late. Climate change is a bigger shit show. It couldve been slow, but the companies you constantly propagandize for have fought any attempts to save the planet for decades.

Unless there's a huge push for nuclear, all EVs do is push the emissions elsewhere.

Krojen posted...

Too late. Climate change is a bigger shit show. It couldve been slow, but the companies you constantly propagandize for have fought any attempts to save the planet for decades.

Charging stations are expanding since theyre much easier to build than gas stations and governments are finally making moves on green infrastructure.

Toyota hasn't made an interesting vehicle in ages. I don't know what you're talking about.

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Deinvest in vehicles altogether and focus invest massive amounts into public transportation infrastructure

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NinjaWarrior455 posted...

Deinvest in vehicles altogether and focus invest massive amounts into public transportation infrastructure

This plus ramping up modern nuclear plants and waste management is my dream. too bad I'll probably die before it happens.

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NinjaWarrior455 posted...

Deinvest in vehicles altogether and focus invest massive amounts into public transportation infrastructure

If the bus goes from the suburbs to tacobell at 2:17 in the morning, only then will cars be obsolete.

NinjaWarrior455 posted...

Deinvest in vehicles altogether and focus invest massive amounts into public transportation infrastructure

This. Electric cars are the equivalent of putting a bandaid over an amputated limb

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Corporations are stupid and stubborn, this is a prime example too. They see Tesla come and destroy their shit but instead of competing with Tesla they drag their feet and continue living in the past

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Questionmarktarius posted...

Unless there's a huge push for nuclear, all EVs do is push the emissions elsewhere.

Better elsewhere, away from where everyone breathes, and with greater efficiency. And Cybertruck got a solar panel in the bed

Theres a huge push for a greener energy grid. Greater EV adoption will only increase the support for it.

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Toyota is the world leader in hybrid vehicles. I don't understand how they can't make great all-electric cars and compete against Tesla.

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NinjaWarrior455 posted...

Deinvest in vehicles altogether and focus invest massive amounts into public transportation infrastructure

first step, tear down most cities in the US and rebuild them in a way that mass public transit would actually work...

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Pepys Monster posted...

Toyota is the world leader in hybrid vehicles. I don't understand how they can't make great all-electric cars and compete against Tesla.

Its like saying how can Nokia, the world leader in mobile phones, not compete against the iPhone? What it takes to make the product is just so fundamentally different in spite of them both being phones/cars.

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