Toyota’s product development process has been honed so that the norm is two years from concept to launch, an industry leading achievement. Combined with similarly class-leading manufacturing capability and focused product definition, this has resulted in a portfolio of over 60 successful models in production. Another factor supporting Toyota’s ability to maintain its highly profitable growth is its wide network of privately owned dealers that is organised into four consumer-segmented groups that can compete with each other. This has, for example, helped to enable the Lexus brand to successfully take market share from the likes of BMW and Mercedes.

In 2005, Toyota continued to grow globally: It opened a major new vehicle plant in the Czech Republic with PSA Peugeot where it launched the line of Aygo small passenger cars. In Thailand and six other countries the company started up production of the Innovative International Multipurpose Vehicle series which, offering premium quality, comfort, and affordable prices, has sold briskly. In North America, Toyota has targeted young customers with the launch of the Scion marque of cars and is scheduled to open its 11th US plant in San Antonio, Texas in 2006. In China, the company moved operational expansion up a gear, initiating local production of the high-end Crown sedan and jointly establishing a vehicle production and sales company with Guangzhou Automobile Group Co., Ltd. As a result of these initiatives, overseas vehicle sales cleared the 5 million unit mark for the first time, complementing the 3 million of domestic production in Japan.

In addition, worldwide sales of the Prius hybrid vehicles soared as they won ever-greater numbers of fans. In fiscal 2005, Toyota shipped approximately 151,000 units - 2.5 times more than in the previous fiscal year. Moreover, following the vehicles' March 2005 debut in Japan, Toyota began overseas deployment of two SUVs equipped with the latest hybrid systems, one, the RX400h under the high-end Lexus brand. The company is committed to further enriching its hybrid lineup, as it see hybrid systems as a core technology that will underpin next-generation environmental measures.In the near term, Toyota aim to realize a target of 8.5 million vehicle sales in 2006, and in the longer term, having hit 10% ahead of schedule, would like to stake out that 15% of the global automotive market in the early 2010s.