2012 Prius Plug-in Hybrid selling like hot cakes

Toyota's 2012 Prius Plug-In Hybrid was the third-fastest-selling car in the U.S. in April. In March, it was the second-fastest.

When Cars.com compiled the numbers for April for the fastest selling cars in the U.S., they found something that was very interesting. BMW took the top two spots with the X3 and X5, Hyundai took the fourth and fifth spots with the Sonata and Elantra, but who would have guessed that the 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid was the third fastest selling car in the U.S.? The Toyota plug-in Hybrid spends just five days on dealer lots before finding an owner.

Cars.com compiles sales figures on the average time it takes to sell a new 2012 or 2013 car from the time it arrives on the dealers lot until the paperwork is signed by the buyer. They reported last week that the 2012 Prius plug-in Hybrid had better overall sales than those of the Chevy Volt and Nissan Leaf. And as reported by John Goreman today on Torque News, sales volume of all Toyota hybrid models is up. The in-demand 2012 Toyota Prius c was the seventh fastest selling car for April.

The 2012 Toyota Prius plug-in Hybrid combines the best of both worlds

The 2012 Toyota Prius plug-in Hybrid has only been on sale for two months, and if it continues to sell at this pace, we could see even larger sales volume in the future. It is interesting that there weren’t any other EVs making the list. The 2012 Toyota Prius plug-in Hybrid took the honor of being the second-quickest selling vehicle in March, according to the report. What makes the report even more interesting is the fact that the Prius plug-in is only being sold in select states with nationwide availability beginning in 2013.

Because EV’s have been associated with “range anxiety” issues, and are struggling with gaining wide-spread acceptance among buyers, plug-in hybrids, like the 2012 Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid, avoid that issue altogether. They combine the best of the hybrid technology and add pure electric drive. It’s really the best of both worlds: full electric power to reduce gasoline consumption, and a small fuel-efficient internal combustion engine that kicks in when the electricity runs out. If the driver goes farther than his electric charge allows, he has the gasoline alternative to fall back on.

The Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid has limited electric range

The big advantage for the Prius Plug-In Hybrid is a fast recharge time: about 3 hours on a standard 120-volt home outlet, says Toyota, or half that time on a larger 240-volt outlet. A 24-foot cable charger is included, and there's also an optional third-party home charging solution. The biggest drawback is the Prius plug-in Hybrid’s limited electric range of 15 miles before the battery is depleted, where the Chevy Volt can travel 25-30 miles on a single charge.

But it still seems that Toyota’s EV entry is actually doing very well while the remainder of the segment seems to struggle. The report also listed which cars were struggling to sell. Surprisingly, topping the list was the 2012 Porsche Boxster taking over 8 month’s to move off the lot.

U.S. buyers are changing their perception of the electric vehicle, and the 2012 Toyota Prius plug-in Hybrid is proof of that.