Leader of Toyota Motor Corp. Akio Toyoda criticized what he called hype around electric vehicles, stating that advocates ignored the carbon footprint of electricity generation and the cost of switching to electric vehicles.

A complete shift to electric vehicles could cost hundreds of billions of dollars and make cars inaccessible to ordinary people.

Japan would run out of electricity in the summer if all cars were running on electricity, and the infrastructure needed to support an all-electric fleet would cost Japan ¥ 37T ​​(~ $ 358 billion), Toeda told a news conference as Chairman of the Japanese Automobile Manufacturers Association.

If Japan will be to fast to ban gasoline cars, "the current business model of the auto industry will collapse," resulting in the loss of millions of jobs, he said. Toyeda said he fears government regulations will make cars a "flower on a high summit" beyond the reach of the average person.