Toyota may make diesel and natural gas hybrids

From the Globe and Mail:

Toyota may release cars powered by an electric motor combined with a diesel or natural gas-fuelled piston engine to suit local market needs, senior managing director Hiroyuki Watanabe said.

Toyota is "developing hybrid systems that can be used for gasoline, diesel, natural gas and fuel cells, which will be the most fuel-efficient," Watanabe said in an interview in Tokyo.

Since you can raise gas mileage from about 30 to 50 mpg by making a small car like a Corolla into a hybrid like the Prius, and you get similar improvement by replacing a gas engine with a diesel one in a car like my VW Golf, I was wondering when someone would get going on diesel hybrids. Don't need to wonder any longer! The diesel models will of course be able to run on biodiesel, and the natural gas models will be extremely clean.