Toyota recently announced that it would be focusing its attention and funding on a new kind of engine, “an engine reborn,” as they called it. It’s not electric, but it’s not powered by gasoline or diesel either.

Essentially, it is a lean combustion engine that can run on hydrogen or bioethanol that will be used in the company’s many hybrid models. The idea was to create an engine that would help protect the planet from climate change without forcing everyone to switch to electric cars.

But the bottom line is that the engine is made from fuel cells, which turn hydrogen or bioethanol into energy through a chemical reaction. The idea is to implement new engines in hybrid cars so that they need no gasoline, very little hydrogen or bioethanol, and don’t need to be charged.

Hybrid vehicles are powered by an internal combustion engine that uses gasoline, but it’s paired with an electric battery engine. Therefore, the batteries can store energy created by the standard engine, meaning it doesn’t need to be charged, and it uses far less gas.

Toyota sells millions of hybrids every year, including its wildly popular model, the Prius. In fact, over the past seven years, Toyota has sold 6.1 million Priuses, making up 61% of the 10 million hybrids the company sold around the world. In other words, if Toyota can switch its Priuses to the new engine this year, they could literally change the world.

Both Subaru and Mazda also have ecological designs in the works, though neither company has announced any tangible results. While Mazda is focusing on improving the existing rotary engine that will require less fuel, Subaru has plans for a “horizontally opposed engine,” which ensures the electric batteries function more efficiently.

The trust is that even though many people believe electric cars are the future, they do have several disadvantages. One of the main issues is the infrastructure needed to transition the world to EVs, a problem that President Biden is currently struggling with.

However, many people are quite concerned with the plan. They argue that the president won’t be able to complete his mission of building a sufficient number of charging stations before the 10 years are up.

Last year alone, Chinese consumers purchased more than 8 million EVs, which is 35% more than in 2022. In fact, experts believe that by just 2030, 50% of all cars sold in China will be fully electric.

According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, 28% of all greenhouse gas emissions in the US come from transportation, 57% of which comes from passenger vehicles. That means that by simply replacing passenger cars with electric or even hybrid models, the United States could decrease its greenhouse emissions by millions of metric tons in just one year.

Therefore, Toyota’s new lean combustion engine powered by hydrogen and bioethanol and paired with an electric battery could be the compromise the world has been searching for.

But as Toyota chief executive Koji Sato explained, “Each company wants to win, but we can be faster if we work together.” Hopefully, and maybe with the help of other car companies, Toyota will soon be able to release its new engine and even share it with the world.