When talking about Toyota popularity, we don't need to make much of an argument here in the Richmond and Lexington areas, as many are already firm believers in the vehicles. Drivers locally aren't the only ones however, as we can see in the quarter one global sales report, which has very encouraging news Toyota South would like to share.

Two new Toyota vehicles finished first and third as the best -selling cars in the world over the quarter one time frame, which is generally three month intervals.

So, which models were they?

Taking home the top spot was none other than the Toyota Corolla, which sold over 300,000 units across the world. We love to hear that kind of news, but we're never shocked since the Corolla has been going strong for so many years, we'd almost expect nothing less. What did grab our attention was the car in the third-place spot, as the Toyota Prius has shot up the charts.

Having been popular from the get-go with the environmental crowd, the Prius sold 247,230 units in quarter one, which is an impressive jump showing that the vehicle has gone mainstream, as more and more drivers look to drive something stylish and economical.

Much of this meteoric rise to the top three has to do with the new options the Toyota Prius has to offer. Among those is the Prius c, which sports a very efficient EPA-estimated 53 miles per gallon city, and 46 mpg on the highway. There's also the 2012 Prius v, a wagon that offers more space while still churning our 44 mpg city and 40 mpg highway, which is nothing to sneeze at. On top of that, the Prius Plug-In gives drivers an EV option, and ultimate fuel economy with 95 miles per gallon-electric, and 50 mpg combined.

If either the Toyota Corolla or Prius interest you, contact us here at Toyota South, or visit our location at 961 Four Mile Rd Richmond, KY 40475 where we can discuss each model in detail and arrange a test drive.