Toyota taps Melville firm for car chargers
A Ford Focus is hooked up to a Leviton home charging station. Toyota has named the Melville-based manufacturer the first U.S. supplier of chargers for Prius and RAV4 EV vehicles. Credit: Handout
Melville-based electrical parts maker Leviton Manufacturing Corp. is the first company in the U.S. chosen by Toyota as a provider of electrical charging systems for two cars, the Prius Plug-in Hybrid and the RAV4 EV.
Both vehicles will be on the market by next year. Leviton is authorized to sell its chargers to dealers or directly to car buyers, the company has announced.
"Leviton is one of a number of suppliers we've been looking at, and they're the first one we've chosen," John Hanson, a Toyota spokesman in Los Angeles, said. The price of Leviton's Toyota charger hasn't yet been set and would depend in part on local labor costs and electrical codes in different regions of the country, he said.
It's far too soon to say how many Prius or RAV electric cars Toyota will make -- so it's not easy to predict how many chargers Leviton might sell, Hanson said. "Nobody knows the answer to that question. That's uncharted territory, how the market responds."
Leviton earlier this year announced a separate agreement, with Ford Motor Co., to produce portable home charging stations for the Focus electric car.
The new, custom Toyota electric vehicle charger is based on the design of Leviton's existing car chargers.
"Toyota and Leviton are two companies that share a core set of values that focus on safety, customer service and the vision to build a sustainable future by offering a portfolio of green solutions," Michael Mattei, a Leviton vice president, said.
Leviton did not immediately disclose the eventual cost of the Toyota chargers. In the case of the Ford Focus charging station, Leviton said the retail price would be around $1,500.
Privately held Leviton also makes electrical wiring devices, data connectivity solutions and lighting energy management systems.
