Toyota, Tesla Agree to Develop Electric Version of RAV4 by 2012

Lock
This article is for subscribers only.

Toyota Motor Corp. and Tesla Motors Inc., the electric-car maker, agreed to develop a battery-powered version of the RAV4 compact sport-utility vehicle that may go on sale in 2012.

Tesla built a prototype that’s undergoing testing and plans to deliver more this year, the companies said in a statement yesterday. Chief Executive Officers Akio Toyoda of Toyota and Elon Musk of Tesla announced a partnership in May that included Toyota buying a $50 million stake in the Palo Alto, California-based company and Tesla purchasing Toyota’s former joint-venture assembly plant in Fremont, California.