Enlarge / Toyota has shown us plenty of electric vehicle concepts and renderings but last year built just 24,000 battery EVs. (credit: Toyota)

It's all change at the top of the world's largest car maker. Akio Toyoda, grandson of the company's founder and CEO since 2009, is being replaced by former Lexus boss Koji Sato as Toyota's new president and CEO. Toyoda will assume the role of company chairman.

The management changes are seen in large part as the company responding to a need to embrace battery-electric vehicles, a huge growth area in the industry but one that Toyota has seemingly neglected in favor of hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles.

At a press conference, Sato and his new management team faced many questions about the company's BEV strategy—or lack thereof. BEVs are important to the company, but "this is by no means a rapid change of direction toward BEVs," Sato said.

Enlarge / Toyota has shown us plenty of electric vehicle concepts and renderings but last year built just 24,000 battery EVs. (credit: Toyota)

It's all change at the top of the world's largest car maker. Akio Toyoda, grandson of the company's founder and CEO since 2009, is being replaced by former Lexus boss Koji Sato as Toyota's new president and CEO. Toyoda will assume the role of company chairman.

The management changes are seen in large part as the company responding to a need to embrace battery-electric vehicles, a huge growth area in the industry but one that Toyota has seemingly neglected in favor of hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles.

At a press conference, Sato and his new management team faced many questions about the company's BEV strategy—or lack thereof. BEVs are important to the company, but "this is by no means a rapid change of direction toward BEVs," Sato said.

Enlarge / Toyota has shown us plenty of electric vehicle concepts and renderings but last year built just 24,000 battery EVs. (credit: Toyota)

It's all change at the top of the world's largest car maker. Akio Toyoda, grandson of the company's founder and CEO since 2009, is being replaced by former Lexus boss Koji Sato as Toyota's new president and CEO. Toyoda will assume the role of company chairman.

The management changes are seen in large part as the company responding to a need to embrace battery-electric vehicles, a huge growth area in the industry but one that Toyota has seemingly neglected in favor of hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles.

At a press conference, Sato and his new management team faced many questions about the company's BEV strategy—or lack thereof. BEVs are important to the company, but "this is by no means a rapid change of direction toward BEVs," Sato said.