No vehicle is more synonymous with hybrid power than the Toyota Prius. It's the car that put hybrid on the map. It's the car nobody really understood for years, other than it could back up without making any noise. Love it or hate it, there's no denying it's the car that changed the rules and spurred every automaker into the hybrid market.The Prius has had its ups and downs through the years, and the current model is arguably the best looking and definitely the best performing of them all. So with hybrids in demand amid waning EV sales, the Prius should be king of the world right now, but it's not. It's really not. In fact, Toyota seems to be working opposite the current trends. Its iconic hybrid is way down, while its primary EV is way up. Toyota bZ Is Out-Selling The Prius ToyotaLooking over Toyota's latest sales figures for 2026, we came upon a startling revelation. The Prius only found 2,301 buyers in April, a full 66% drop compared to April 2025. And it's not a one-month slump, either. Toyota has only sold 12,038 Prii so far this year. As of May 1, Prius sales are down almost 50% for 2026. This is supposed to be the hybrid's time to shine, but that's not happening.To rub even more salt into the wound, EVs are supposed to be stalling out but the Toyota bZ didn't get the memo. The awkwardly named SUV got a refresh in 2025 for a slightly better aesthetic and a big boost to range. Apparently, buyers are into it because bZ sales are a hilarious 174.9%. It's still low-volume at 2,925 units, but you know what? That's more than the Prius, which isn't supposed to be low-volume. And again, it's not a monthly stumble. The bZ is up 94% for the year so far, outselling Prius by almost 1,000 units. What's Happening In Prius Land? ToyotaToyota has a surprisingly rational explanation for the sales drop, but we can also read between the lines a little bit. The Camry, which shares some components and is also hybrid-powered, is in-demand. And Toyota isn't exaggerating on that one bit: Camry is up 17.9% in April and 13.2% for the year. That translates to 111,674 sales so far, which is enough to make the Camry Toyota's best-selling vehicle amid the RAV4's continued struggles.As for reading between the lines, we suspect tariffs could also be a factor. The Camry is made in the USA, but Prius comes from Japan. So while the current Prius might be the best Prius ever made, it could be a hard sell when buyers can step into a larger Camry that's still good on gas. And we suspect the profit margin for Toyota is a bit nicer on the Camry, too. Camry Outselling RAV4? Jared Rosenholtz/CarBuzz/ValnetIt's true. America's bestselling SUV is struggling as we move through 2026, but Toyota believes it will be temporary. April sales were down 32.8% with 28,212 sold, and the yearly total sits at 88,081. Last year at this time, RAV4 had already clocked 157,359 sales, so yeah, things are off. This time, it's not about demand, or tariffs, or problems. It's just the timing of the new model coming online to replace the previous generation."RAV4 volume was impacted by the model changeover to the all-new model," a Toyota spokesperson told CarBuzz. "As is typical during a transition like this, production and availability can be affected as manufacturing shifts from the outgoing model to the new one." The Rest Of The Story ToyotaAs with Subaru, Toyota's entry-level sports car, the GR86, is lagging badly. Its sales are down 50% with 496 units sold. That still beats Supra, which sold only 344 models as it prepares to exit stage left, but that's actually a 94% increase from last year. Toyota truck sales are fairly steady, but buyers can't get enough of the 4Runner – sales are up 30% in April and a whopping 156% for the year. That helps balance out the shortcoming at Lexus, where everything is down double-digits except the IS, which climbed 51% for the month. Overall, Toyota Motor North America finished April down 4.6%. Of that, Toyota proper was down just 1.8 percent while Lexus fell 19.9%. For the year so far, Toyota is just 0.3% down, while Lexus is off 7.7%. With vehicles like the new Highlander in the mix, it will be interesting to see how the rest of the year shakes out.
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