Honda Motor on yesterday launched a hybrid version of its popular Fit subcompact car in Japan, making it the cheapest gasoline-electric car available in Japan.
The Fit Hybrid went on sale with a starting price of ￥1.59 million (US$19,000), cheaper than any other hybrid vehicle in Japan. The conventional Fit is priced at about ￥1.2 million.
Honda’s Insight hybrid is also priced below the ￥2 million mark, making it the second cheapest in Japan.
The Fit has been launched as a direct competitor to Toyota’s Prius, which has been Japan’s best selling vehicle since May last year. On Thursday, Toyota said total global sales of its Prius hybrid topped the 2 million mark by the end of last month.
Since its launch in 1997, the gasoline-electric car had shifted about 2,012,000 units, Toyota said. The Prius sells for a minimum ￥2.05 million.
Prius sales fell 14.2 percent year-on-year last month, according to the Automobile Dealers Association as government subsidies to encourage the purchase of environmentally friendly vehicles expired.
The Fit Hybrid model runs 30km per liter of gasoline. First launched in 2001, the car has proved to be a hit, with cumulative sales exceeding 1.5 million last month in Japan alone.
Sales of hybrids have been brisk in recent years because of rising gasoline prices and increasing public awareness of global warming.
The new Fit is expected to give a boost to Honda as carmakers face slowing auto sales as a result of the expired subsidy program.
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