Again, Japanese auto-makers seem to be light years ahead of the American auto-makers. Japan is now leading the automotive industry not only with Hybrid technology (Toyota), but also with electric cars.

This is not surprising, especially if you consider how heavily dependent Japan is on fossil fuels. Their very existence relies on a constant flow of oil, as Japan does not have the large reserves of coal that the US and China have (that could be used as an alternative to oil in a worst-case-scenario - pollution issues notwithstanding).