Toyota Prius hits one million sales in the U.S.

The news comes after Toyota recently announced last month that it has sold three million hybrid vehicles worldwide since 1997, and barely six months after the Japanese carmaker had hit the two million sales mark globally for the Prius.

"Since the Prius went on sale eleven years ago not a year has gone by when it hasn't been the number one selling hybrid vehicle in the U.S," said Bob Carter, Toyota Division group vice president and general manager, crediting the Prius as the car that brought automotive hybrid-electric technology to the masses.

"Prius has become synonymous with the word hybrid and as we see fuel prices starting to rise again, it has accounted for more than 60 percent of hybrid passenger car sales so far this year. [The] Prius paved the way for hybrids and while it is still the hybrid leader in sales and fuel economy, I'm proud to say that since its introduction, 13 other auto brands have seen the benefits of hybrid technology and joined the hybrid market," Carter added.

The first Prius went on sale in Japan in 1997, before seeing exports to other selected countries shortly after. The second generation Prius was launched in 2003, and was sold until 2009, when the current third generation Prius was released. Toyota claims that since its launch in the U.S. in 2000, the Prius has "saved American consumers more than an estimated 881 million gallons of gas, $2.19 billion in fuel costs, and 12.4 million tons of CO2 emissions" when compared to the average car.

Source: Toyota