2010 Toyota RAV4. (Courtesy of Toyota Newsroom)
Toyota Motor Corporation and Tesla Motors will begin developing an electric version of the RAV4, Toyota’s popular mid-size sport utility vehicle. The two companies signed an agreement on Friday after Elon Musk and Akio Toyoda – the CEOs of Tesla and Toyota, respectively – announced the partnership in May.
The new electric car will be the product of a Tesla generator engineered inside a Toyota RAV4 body, according to a press release issued by Telsa. The vehicle is expected to enter the market in 2012, and will be distributed and sold by Toyota.
The two companies intend to learn and benefit from each other through their cooperation, according to the release.
"Through this partnership, by working together with a venture business such as Tesla, Toyota would like to learn from the challenging spirit, quick decision-making, and flexibility that Tesla has,” Toyoda said in May press release from Toyota. “By partnering with Tesla, my hope is that all Toyota employees will recall that ‘venture business spirit,’ and take on the challenges of the future."
Over the next year, Tesla will produce several models of the new car to be approved by Toyota, according to the most recent release. Toyota’s engineers are currently testing the first model.
Toyota and Tesla are not the only motor companies that look forward to producing electric vehicles.
Honda plans to introduce an electric car, as well as a new plug-in hybrid system for its larger vehicles, Takanobu Ito, CEO of Honda Motor Company, announced in his mid-year CEO speech on Tuesday.
The new electric car will be the product of a Tesla generator engineered inside a Toyota RAV4 body, according to a press release issued by Telsa. The vehicle is expected to enter the market in 2012, and will be distributed and sold by Toyota.
The two companies intend to learn and benefit from each other through their cooperation, according to the release.
"Through this partnership, by working together with a venture business such as Tesla, Toyota would like to learn from the challenging spirit, quick decision-making, and flexibility that Tesla has,” Toyoda said in May press release from Toyota. “By partnering with Tesla, my hope is that all Toyota employees will recall that ‘venture business spirit,’ and take on the challenges of the future."
Over the next year, Tesla will produce several models of the new car to be approved by Toyota, according to the most recent release. Toyota’s engineers are currently testing the first model.
Toyota and Tesla are not the only motor companies that look forward to producing electric vehicles.
Honda plans to introduce an electric car, as well as a new plug-in hybrid system for its larger vehicles, Takanobu Ito, CEO of Honda Motor Company, announced in his mid-year CEO speech on Tuesday.
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