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After revealing a slew of new fully electric vehicles aimed at reconnecting with its customer base in China, Toyota’s recently appointed CEO, Koji Sato, says more needs to be done to keep up with the competition.

Anyone following the rise of electric vehicles over the past several years knows Toyota has arguably been the biggest laggard.

After the 66-year-old grandson to the company’s founder, Akio Toyoda, stepped down as CEO in January – one of the most prominent critics of going all in on EVs – many believed the company would change its mindset.

Toyoda has been replaced by former Lexus chief branding officer Koji Sato, who took over the reins of the world’s largest car seller this month.

Sato explained in February under his leadership, Toyota would increase fully electric vehicle efforts with a new business structure and strategy. He added:

Now that the time is right, we will accelerate BEV development with a new approach.

The new strategy includes introducing ten new battery-electric models by 2026, allowing for 1.5 million EV sales annually.

With this in mind, Toyota has struggled with its electric vehicle rollout thus far as it continues to lose market share in key regions. In China, the fastest-growing EV market, Toyota only sold 3,844 units through January, representing a dismal 0.25% of overall sales.

Toyota-China-EV-market
2023 Toyota bZ4X (Source: Toyota)

Toyota aims to keep up in China’s expanding EV market

Toyota slashed prices on its first EV introduced in China (and globally), the bZ4X, by up to 15% earlier this year to remain competitive.

The move came after market leaders like Tesla and BYD cut prices in the region, leading to several EV manufacturers following suit in order to keep up.

More recently, Toyota has seen some traction in China. The automaker unveiled its first electric sedan, the bZ3, co-developed with BYD, in October, which generated over 5,000 orders on its first sales day.

Toyota introduced plans to bolster its lineup with two new fully electric models earlier this week.

The first is an electric sport crossover, deemed the bZ Sport Crossover, designed to attract younger and Gen Z buyers in China. It’s second, the bZ FlexSpace concept is designed with families in mind with a focus on utility and ease of use.

During an interview with the media in Tokyo Friday, Sato admitted the automaker must act urgently if it wants to keep up in China’s rapidly evolving EV market, according to Reuters. He said:

We need to increase our speed and efforts to firmly meet the customer expectations in the Chinese market.

Sato added after seeing the impact at the Shanghai Auto Show, he sees China becoming “an advanced market for EVs.”

Although Sato acknowledged the company was producing a small number of EVs compared to other automakers in China, he said it would take a phased approach.

The first step includes improving battery electric vehicle tech and then ramping up production.

Electrek’s Take

Toyota’s urgency to remain competitive in China’s EV market comes after the automaker saw its first sales decline in the country last year in over a decade.

Although Japanese automakers, led by Toyota, account for nearly 20% of the overall Chinese auto market, they represent less than 0.35% of EVs.

China is moving quickly toward fully electric vehicles. Meanwhile, Toyota has been behind the ball. And it’s not only in China. Toyota only sold 24,466 EVs total globally last year, accounting for just 0.25% of its 9.5 million vehicle overall sales.

While Sato insists on taking a phased approach, EV startups and legacy automakers in the region like BYD, Tesla, NIO, XPeng, Geely, and others continue taking market share.

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Wheel-E Podcast: 65 MPH ONYX moped, lightweight Dahon e-bikes, more

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Wheel-E Podcast: 65 MPH ONYX moped, lightweight Dahon e-bikes, more

This week on Electrek’s Wheel-E podcast, we discuss the most popular news stories from the world of electric bikes and other nontraditional electric vehicles. This time, that includes a new ONYX RCR 80V electric moped, new lightweight e-bike motors, Aventon’s powerful update, California cops catching illegal e-bike riders with drones, a super lightweight new e-bike from Dahon, and more.

Today’s episode is sponsored by CYCROWN, an e-Bike company born from a passion for cycling. Its lineup now includes the new CYCROWN Dremax – a high-performance urban commuter e-bike now on sale in the US and Canada. Use Electrek50 to save $50 off your new eBike when you order.

The Wheel-E podcast returns every two weeks on Electrek’s YouTube channel, Facebook, Linkedin, and Twitter.

As a reminder, we’ll have an accompanying post, like this one, on the site with an embedded link to the live stream. Head to the YouTube channel to get your questions and comments in.

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After the show ends, the video will be archived on YouTube and the audio on all your favorite podcast apps:

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We also have a Patreon if you want to help us to avoid more ads and invest more in our content. We have some awesome gifts for our Patreons and more coming.

Here are a few of the articles that we will discuss during the Wheel-E podcast today:

Here’s the live stream for today’s episode starting at 9:00 a.m. ET (or the video after 10:00 a.m. ET):

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China’s nationwide ‘cash for clunkers’ trade-in program causing huge e-bike boom

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China's nationwide 'cash for clunkers' trade-in program causing huge e-bike boom

While much of the Western world is still figuring out how to get more people on electric bikes, China just flipped a switch, and the results are staggering. Thanks to a generous nationwide trade-in program rolled out around six months ago, China has seen an explosive surge in electric bicycle sales, with over 8.47 million new e-bikes hitting the road in the first half of 2025 alone.

The program, which offers subsidies to riders who trade in their old, often outdated electric bikes for newer, safer, and more efficient models, has sparked a new e-bike sale boom in a country already dominated by e-bike travel. In major provinces like Jiangsu, Hebei, and Zhejiang, over one million new e-bikes were sold in each region in just six months. That’s a tidal wave of e-bike sales.

The incentives vary depending on location and the model being traded in, but for many consumers, the subsidies cover a substantial portion of a new e-bike’s price – enough to turn a “maybe next year” purchase into a “right now” upgrade. And these aren’t just budget bikes either. The program has driven demand for higher-quality models with better batteries, safer braking systems, and more reliable electronics, accelerating both adoption and innovation across the industry.

The move has proven successful in replacing the millions of older models with lower-quality lithium-ion batteries that had posed safety risks around the country. Instead, China has pushed for higher-quality lithium-ion batteries, a return to a newer generation of higher-performance AGM batteries, and even interesting new sodium-ion battery options.

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Most e-bikes in China look more like what we’d consider seated scooters

According to China’s Ministry of Commerce, more than 8.4 million consumers have participated in the e-bike trade-in program so far, contributing to a sales increase of 643.5% year-over-year and more than doubling sales month-over-month. Meanwhile, production of new electric bicycles rose by nearly 28%, as manufacturers scrambled to meet demand. The sales boosts have already been seen in the financial reports of major industry players like NIU.

And it’s not just the big players benefiting – over 82,000 small independent e-bike dealers reported average sales increases of ¥302,000 (around US $42,000), giving a serious boost to local economies.

What’s particularly striking here is how fast this happened. The program was officially launched late last year as part of a broader effort to stimulate domestic consumption and phase out outdated vehicles and appliances. But while most analysts expected gradual growth, the e-bike sector responded much more quickly. In less than a year, the trade-in subsidies have reshaped the electric bicycle market, creating a consumer-driven boom that shows no signs of slowing.

For those of us watching from outside China, it’s hard not to wonder what might happen if other countries tried something similar. While most families in Chinese cities already own an electric bike and thus see this as an opportunity to trade it in for a newer model, Western countries like the US are still figuring out how to stimulate commuters into buying their first e-bike.

It’s too soon to know exactly how long the boom will last or whether the momentum will carry into 2026 and beyond. We’ve seen bicycle industry bubbles grow and burst before. But one thing’s clear: with the right incentives, even modest ones, it’s possible to ignite real, large-scale change. China just proved it with nearly 8.5 million new e-bikes to show for it.

And if you’re wondering what it looks like when a country takes electric micromobility seriously, this is it.

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Day 1 of the Electrek Formula Sun Grand Prix 2025 [Gallery]

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Day 1 of the Electrek Formula Sun Grand Prix 2025 [Gallery]

Today was the official start of racing at the Electrek Formula Sun Grand Prix 2025! There was a tremendous energy (and heat) on the ground at NCM Motorsports Park as nearly a dozen teams took to the track. Currently, as of writing, Stanford is ranked #1 in the SOV (Single-Occupant Vehicle) class with 68 registered laps. However, the fastest lap so far belongs to UC Berkeley, which clocked a 4:45 on the 3.15-mile track. That’s an average speed of just under 40 mph on nothing but solar energy. Not bad!

In the MOV (Multi-Occupant Vehicle) class, Polytechnique Montréal is narrowly ahead of Appalachian State by just 4 laps. At last year’s formula sun race, Polytechnique Montréal took first place overall in this class, and the team hopes to repeat that success. It’s still too early for prediction though, and anything can happen between now and the final day of racing on Saturday.

Congrats to the teams that made it on track today. We look forward to seeing even more out there tomorrow. In the meantime, here are some shots from today via the event’s wonderful photographer Cora Kennedy.

Stay tuned for more!

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