Akio Toyoda, Toyota Motor’s chairman, has never been a huge fan of battery electric vehicles. Last October, as global sales of EVs started to slow down amid macroeconomic uncertainty, Toyoda crowed that people are “finally seeing reality” on EVs. Now, the auto executive is doubling down on his bearish forecast, boldly predicting that just three in 10 cars on the road will be powered by a battery.

“The enemy is CO2,” Toyoda said, proposing a “multi-pathway approach” that doesn’t rely on any one type of vehicle. “Customers, not regulations or politics” should make the decision on what path to rely on, he said.

The auto executive estimated that around a billion people still live in areas without electricity, which limits the appeal of a battery electric vehicle. Toyoda estimated that fully electric cars will only capture 30% of the market, with the remainder taken up by hybrids or vehicles that use hydrogen technology.

  • Hypx
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    010 months ago

    We’ve been doing it for over a decade now. It is shown to be safe.

    • @RubberElectrons
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      10 months ago

      No thanks. I’d much prefer electrified mass transit. I’m saying this as a former manufacturing engineer, there’s quite a bit that can go wrong with cyclically pressurized vessels in subtle ways that are difficult to non-destructively evaluate.

      This is not the path forward for anyone but heavy industry.

      • Hypx
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        010 months ago

        Then you are just being old and outdated. It is totally safe.

        • @RubberElectrons
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          110 months ago

          I understand your point, and disagree. Are you qualified to really understand this issue, or an opinionated enthusiast?