The Green Optimistic

According to Asahi, a daily Japanese trade rag which we don’t know how to read, Toyota will officially be asking for permission from Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport “for the testing of a prototype plug-in Prius on public roads.” After completing the road tests, Toyota will then be able to begin the process of bringing them to market by leasing them to public municipalities and governmental offices. Asahi is also saying Toyota is testing a lithium-ion battery pack in the plug-in. No word on if the official intro will be the Tokyo Show, but the rumor is out there. Maybe it’ll even look something like the Hybrid X concept car we’ve already seen from ToMoCo back in Geneva. [Asahi.com via Green Car Congress]