For you TL;DR - Toyota missed the EV market and suddenly finds themselves unable to compete in this space, on the outside looking in.
Their North American lead, a guy named Jack Hollis who looks like any American stereotype named Jack from the 1960s, thinks it’s unfair to make 35% of sales EVs. So now that the Trump administration clearly wants to move back to oil wagons, “those plans are pending federal approval and risk getting axed under the new Trump administration.”
Hollis is publicly making an appeal to authority with the incoming administration to get them to overrule the California regulation so that he doesn’t get blamed for Toyota no longer being competitive.
Also, quick Google search reveals Hollis has a quote, “I work for Jesus, but get paid by Toyota” so you kinda get the idea of who’s steering the ship over there. Another quick search shows Hollis donated multiple times to the “Automotive Free International Trade PAC” which contributed 93% of it’s funds towards Republicans as of October.
Also, quick Google search reveals Hollis has a quote, “I work for Jesus, but get paid by Toyota” so you kinda get the idea of who’s steering the ship over there.
Ugh. A dumbass who didn’t understand the very clear message of “Render to Ceasar what is Ceasar’s”. You may “work” for Jesus in the abstract sense, but you absolutely work for Toyota in the job sense. And you seem to be doing a poor job on both fronts.
Ironically, Toyota already had some sketchy anti-EV reputation:
Toyota was famously one of the few automakers who sided with the Trump Administration in their legal fight against California trying to impose their own stricter emission regulations.
The Japanese didn’t stop there, and more recently, it warned the new US federal government against promoting all-electric vehicles.
From Electrek
Also, IIRC, it was Toyota and Honda that actively lobbied against CARB limits and indirectly led to EV1’s demise. (Can’t find the sources ATM)
