Introducing Toyota, the Electric Vehicle Giant that Keeps Climbing Higher

You probably don't think of Toyota Motor (TM -3.92%) as a maker of electric vehicles (EVs). The Japanese automaker has been a dominant force in traditional gas cars for nearly a century. Toyota was a pioneer in hybrid vehicles, and the Prius is still a big seller after 27 years on the global market.

Toyota's impressive surge in electric vehicle sales

Times are definitely shifting. In 2024, electrified vehicles made up 45% of Toyota's overall sales. While car sales experienced a 4.2% increase last year, EV sales skyrocketed with a remarkable 56% surge. In summary, Toyota continues to be a powerful force in the automotive industry, but it is rapidly transitioning its offerings to electric vehicles.

It's not solely focused on hybrids, whether they come with plug-in charging capabilities or not. Among Toyota's rapidly expanding luxury offerings in 2024 is the Lexus RZ, an all-electric SUV priced from $44,000. Sales for this model surged from 5,386 units in 2023 to 9,697 units in 2024, marking a remarkable 79% increase. On the more accessible market front, the Toyota bZ4X, starting at $37,000, saw its sales nearly double, climbing from 9,329 to 18,570 units.

Although these figures lag significantly behind the highly popular models such as the Toyota RAV4, which saw an 8.5% increase to 475,193 units, and the Camry, which grew by 5.9% to 309,876 units, all-electric vehicles are rapidly closing the gap.

RAV4 and Camry, take note: All-electric Toyotas are gaining ground.

The car market is going electric, and Toyota is embracing the new market with great success. Smaller rival Honda Motor (HMC -3.74%) is planning to merge with Nissan Motor (OTC: NSAN.Y), perhaps including Mitsubishi in a three-part combination of Japanese car marques, largely because they want to catch up with Toyota's hybrid-based leadership.

At the same time, the whole EV market relies on rapid expansion of charging networks. I recently found out first-hand that there's work to do on that front. A recently updated Fool research report shows that my home state of Florida has 3,605 public charging stations and 11,098 ports -- the third-largest port count in the country.

Yet, a short stint with a