The Japanese factory to revise the Prius Hybrid car in the final stage of the Assembly of Toyota Motor, Toyota Tsutsumi is the factory, Aichi, Japan, 5. June 2009Toshifumi Kitamura/AFP photoCorrection to: Friday, 18 March 2011
It may soon become much more difficult to get the hands on the Prius wheel. The earthquake and tsunami that has caused the deaths of more than 10 000, the remaining restrictions on the size of the cities and plunged the Japanese in the field of nuclear energy, the impact of the crisis is much less dire, even though one of the cars in the United States: American buyers could soon be a hybrid of the Logan in the warehouse.
The Toyota Prius, unlike most other sold in the u.s., Japanese car manufacturers of the vehicles, for fruit NECTARS obtained exclusively from the country almost entirely in Japan, which is exactly the area that was hit worst by the earthquake on the outside of the section. The main assembly plants as well as a hybrid of two battery plants are located in Tokyo, Japan 164 coast. Another Prius plant, Toyota and Panasonic, and the main supplier of car batteries, is located near Sendai earthquake-hit city. This factory was damaged. But all the Prius ' factories may have an impact on the somewhat. Earthquake shut down 11 nuclear reactors — some of which never appear in the line again — and 21 thermal power generators, by almost 10% of the Japanese electrical power generation. And the Prius ' plants are affected by the outages in the territory of the country. "Unknown is the main source of electrical power [supply], and that is touch and go," says Toyota spokeswoman. (Read "Will Japan quake rock the global economy?")
But also to buy the gas guzzlers or American made cars this spring we could feel the design master distributor in Japan earthquake aftershocks. Nissan and Honda are plants that is damaged or the quake shut down. Toyota Yaris and several Scion models also built the quake area. In addition, the American automobile manufacturers say they are too concerned. Many Japanese companies rely on components and it is not clear when the production and delivery will continue. On Thursday, GM decided to plant that builds a small pickup truck, Shreveport, Louisiana, La parts shortage shuts down.,. "This is an incredibly dynamic situation," said GM North America President Mark Reuss. "Only the unknown If you get an accurate picture of what's going on Japan." Even if the vendor does not run out of cars, prices are likely to be the cause.
"The Japanese automobile manufacturers have incentives for less money and less cars," says the Chief Economist is Lacey Plache, Automotive research firm Edmunds.com. "That pressure minus the pricing practices of any other." Now the Japanese automakers in the United States, most of the vehicles they sell is made in Canada or Mexico, or exist. In addition, Nissan, Toyota and Honda are relatively few assembly plants in the quake zone. Toyota says it is too early to tell whether it is to face a shortage of Priuses. Kuninori Matsuda, the Japanese Consul General, Detroit, which keeps tabs on the car industry in the US and Japan trade, says, it is unclear which parts suppliers, if any, is brought to the attention of the Commission. He says that the Japanese Government is committed to getting the economy again, but the railway and the connections are completely disrupted.
Prius is the most buyers which constitutes the subject-matter of the collision. Even before the quake was the presentation of the situation of the hybrid. Rising gas prices and a better economy had driven up sales of the Prius. Toyota has sold 24,174 hybrids from January, more than 47% over the same period a year ago 16,452. At the beginning of March was 32 days supply of Toyota or approximately 18000, available in the United States, as well as the new Priuses, Car data. In the United States was more Priuses, before the earthquake hit, but it is not clear when Japan would send more. The biggest issue is the conclusion of the batteries. Sendai plant outside of the battery is capable of producing 200,000 batteries a year. The longer, when it is not already running, Toyota Prius, is more difficult to manufacture. (What the quake marks the Us gas prices?)
Louie Perez, a travelling salesman Ventura Ventura, Calif., Toyota, which says, the dealership inventory Priuses has fallen, as gasoline prices rose. "It is the same as three years ago," he says, and adds that he is waiting for the supplies to get closer because of the earthquake in Japan. "I have not heard of any," he says. "But it does not succeed."
One growing concern is the supply of automotive semiconductors. The auto analyst Rod Lache, car game characters% 22 has been produced in Japan. Hybrids are particularly dependent on semiconductors, which will be used, for example, to change the position of the vehicle electronic mechanical.
Japanese earthquake is also likely to be long predicted the widespread arrival of the Nissan Leaf in the United States. The all electric car was available in cities around the country over the next few months. The Nissan spokesman said, the brand new all electric supply 600 was set to sail to Leafs earthquake in the United States. But one to be used for exports was swamped the Nissan docks on the tsunami and more than one of the values of the vehicles were destroyed the giant bonfire was created by a ruptured fuel tanks.
Rashad Braddy, sales associate Trophy Nissan Mequite, Texas, near Dallas, says Nissan has said it soon intends to continue the sales desk, tells the Leafs in the fulfilment of orders. "We had one, but it is gone," he says.
In an earlier version of the story does not mention that the Prius battery plant, which is near Sendai, Toyota has two more battery plants such as the production facility is located in a country that was hit worst by the earthquake on the outside of the component.
Download time is the iPhone, BlackBerry and Android applications.
See time's pictures of the week.
