The 2012 Toyota Prius c, the new five-door, sub-compact hatchback and the smallest in the carmaker's lineup of hybrids, debuted impressively in its first week on the market.
In its first three days of sales since its March 12 debut, 1,021 Toyota Prius c models sold in the United States, According to Toyota, that number eclipses the sales totals for the Chevrolet Volt and the Nissan Leaf in February.
"A number of factors drive the auto market, and fuel prices is one of them,” said Bob Carter, group vice president and general manager of the Toyota Division. “With 53 miles-per-gallon in the city and priced under $19,000, the timing for Prius c couldn’t be better."
During the first half of March, the four-member Prius Family, including the new Prius c, (c is for city car) and v (v is for versatility), third-generation Prius liftback and the new plug-in bybrid, accounted for sales of 9,821.
In February 2011, Toyota Prius sales were 20,593 and 32,593 have sold to-date in 2012.
Article Last Updated: March 16, 2012.
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A sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James has written the new car review column The Weekly Driver since 2004.
In addition to founding this site in 2004, James writes a Sunday automotive column for The San Jose Mercury and East Bay Times in Walnut Creek, Calif., and monthly auto review and wellness columns for Gulfshore Business, a magazine in Southwest Florida.
An author and contributor to many newspapers, magazines and online publications, co-hosted The Weekly Driver Podcast from 2017 to 2024.
