Toyota Aurid Hybrid First Photo Released

As you know, another Japanese-built hybrid is getting ready to enter the automotive scene, in the form of the Toyota Auris. The first photo showing the car have been released today, prior to the official unveiling at the 2010 Geneva Auto Show and they depict an Auris like any other, but featuring a totally different mechanics than the regular version.

Although not confirmed yet, Toyota's Hybrid Synergy Drive is featured on the Auris in the form of a 1.8-liter Atkinson gasoline engine developing 98 bhp connected to an electric unit that also generates 80 bhp. Further details will be revealed by Toyota at the aforementioned show in March.

The car, dubbed by Toyota a milestone in its quest to introduce its full hybrid powertrain technology across its entire model range by the early 2020s, will be built in the UK, at the Burnaston factory and will go on sale as soon as this summer.

"Toyota has taken a significant step forward in ensuring that full hybrids become more accessible to a wider range of customers," Tadashi Arashima, Toyota Europe CEO said last year, when the Auris hybrid was confirmed as heading for Europe. "Such efforts are crucial if we are to see more low-carbon vehicles on European roads."

autoevolution will be attending the 2010 Geneva Auto Show, so stay tuned for some real up close and personal shots of the vehicles, as well as for first-hand details of the motorized contraptions presented at the event.