With a new lineup of electrified vehicles, including plug-in hybrid (PHEV), hybrid, and EV models, Toyota is swinging for the fences. By offering every powertrain option, Toyota believes it has a better chance of hitting a home run. Will it hit it out of the park, or is Toyota setting itself up for a swing and a miss?

Toyota bets on new PHEV, hybrid, and EVs for growth

Toyota is the king of hybrids. When you see a Prius, you immediately recognize the brand. That’s because the compact hybrid has been around for over 25 years now.

As the industry shifts toward cleaner, more efficient options, Toyota is banking on PHEVs to drive growth. Plug-in hybrids are not a new thing for Toyota. The first Prius PHEV was introduced in the US in 2016.

Between Toyota and Lexus brand vehicles, the Japanese automaker offers 32 “electrified” cars in the US, which it claims to be the most of any automaker. In the first quarter, Toyota sold 112,608 electrified vehicles, accounting for nearly 50% of sales.

Advertisement – scroll for more content

Over the next few years, the company anticipates a substantial increase in demand for plug-in hybrid vehicles in the US.

In a recent interview with CNBC, David Christ, Vice President of Toyota Motor North America, said the company will “grow our PHEV volume through the lineup over the next few years.”

Sources claim that Toyota plans for PHEV sales to account for around 20% of US sales by 2030, up from the current 2.4%.

To boost the appeal, Toyota is “working to increase, perpetually increase, the amount of miles you can drive on EV-only range,” Christ explained.

The updated PHEV version of its best-selling RAV4, introduced last week, has 50 miles EV range. Although that’s up from 42 miles in the outgoing model, will it be enough?

Christ compared Toyota’s upcoming “electrified” lineup to having bases loaded in a baseball game. “We’ve got ICE. We’ve got hybrid. We got plug-in hybrid. We got EV,” he told CNBC, adding “So, our chances of being successful in scoring runs is just a lot better than if you’re really overly committed to any one of those power trains.”

Like a handful of other automakers, Toyota believes PHEVs will act as a “bridge” to 100% electric vehicles, but they also have some major drawbacks.

Since PHEVs are essentially a combination of an EV and a gas-powered vehicle, they require both technologies, which is significantly more costly. Toyota’s plug-in models cost thousands more than its hybrid or gas-powered vehicles.

The 2025 Toyota RAV4 PHEV ($44,265 MSRP) costs nearly $15,000 more than the base gas model and $12,000 more than the hybrid.

While it ramps up PHEV volume, Toyota has a handful of new EVs set to launch in the US. The updated bZ electric SUV (formerly known as the bZ4X) will arrive at US dealerships later this year, featuring increased range, new styling, and an NACS port to access Tesla Superchargers. In 2026, Toyota will launch the smaller C-HR and rugged bZ Woodland electric SUVs.

Electrek’s Take

Will Toyota’s big bet on hybrids and PHEVs pay off? With so many EVs hitting the market, which are much more advanced and efficient, it could be a big swing and a miss for Toyota.

Several Japanese automakers, including Nissan and Honda, are also banking on hybrids and PHEVs over the next few years.

Nissan believes its third-gen e-Power hybrid system will be its saviour, but it will likely be too little, too late, with BYD and other Chinese EV leaders rapidly launching more affordable, efficient tech and vehicles.

Since Toyota is already ahead of the game with several PHEV models on the market, it won’t be as costly, but it’s still delaying the inevitable.

Eight days after publicly unveiling a new Max variant of its already popular MONA M03 sedan, XPeng Motors has officially launched it in China at an insanely low price of RMB 139,800 ($19,400). For those prices, MONA M03 Max drivers will gain access to some of XPeng’s most advanced AI-centric technologies.

Less than a year ago, XPeng Motors gave the public its first hint at a new model that would become the MONA M03. After teasing us with brief images all summer, XPeng officially unveiled the MONA M03 in July 2024 before launching it in China at ultra-affordable prices.

For example, the M03 initially launched in three separate trims, priced at RMB 119,800 ($16,815), RMB 129,800 ($18,220), and RMB 155,800 ($21,870), respectively. The three variants – 515, 620, and 580 Max – refer to each MONA M03’s CLTC range (km), and the “Max” signifies the addition of XPeng’s smart driving ADAS capability.

The two lower-end trims of the MONA M03 began deliveries in August 2024 and have since propelled the model to the top-selling A-segment BEV sedan in China for eight consecutive months. By the end of March 2025, XPeng announced it had built 100,000 MONA EVs in seven months, hailing the milestone as a new record for passenger BEVs.

Advertisement – scroll for more content

During a public event in China on May 20, XPeng unveiled the new MONA M03 Max ahead of its formal launch, which began today.

Per XPeng, the MONA M03 will now come in four varying range options with the following pricing:

These M03 variants are all officially on the market in China. Per XPeng, there are no plans to sell this model outside of China at this time.

Tesla’s insurance products are currently unsustainable, according to a new report that shows the company is losing money insuring its own cars.

Tesla vehicles have long had a reputation for being expensive to insure.

The automaker tried to address the situation on multiple fronts. It launched its own “collision centers” to try to control repair costs, and it also introduced its own insurance products.

Tesla claims that no other insurer knows more about its technology and its owners than Tesla does, so the automaker should be able to offer more precise products.

Advertisement – scroll for more content

For the last few years, Tesla has been offering its own car insurance in some US states. The automaker utilizes its capacity to collect real-time driving data from its vehicles to create what it calls a “Safety Score. ” This score is based on how and when drivers drive, and the company increases or decreases their monthly premium accordingly.

The use of Tesla’s ADAS systems, Autopilot and Supervised Full Self-Driving, can also affect premiums.

Tesla owners have been reporting mixed results when trying to obtain lower quotes from Tesla compared to other insurers.

Now, data from S&P Global points to Tesla Insurance having significant problems:

An insurance company’s loss ratio is a key metric, as it represents the percentage of premiums paid out to customers. The higher it is, the more likely an insurer is likely to lose money.

Based on S&P Global’s latest data, Tesla’s was at 92.5% in 2023. This means that Tesla Insurance paid out 92.5 cents in claims for every dollar it collected in premiums. 

After accounting for overhead costs, it means that Tesla was likely losing money on its insurance products.

In recent months, data suggests that insurance is becoming more expensive for Tesla vehicles in 2025.

Electrek’s Take

This is quite interesting, as it directly contradicts Tesla’s claim that its vehicles are involved in crashes at a significantly lower rate than other vehicles and are relatively inexpensive to repair.

Neither of those claims can be true if insurance premiums are expensive.

If it were the case, insurance costs on Tesla vehicles would be going down, and Tesla would be making money with its insurance products.

Now, S&P claims that even the latter is not valid.