The wraps came of the new edition of the Prius today at the Detroit Motor Show. Having held back to day two of the press preview, the third edition of Toyota’s most famous hybrid car features major performance, economy and aerodynamic enhancements over the old model.
Toyota has pledged to add hybrid powertrains to every one of its model lines by the 2020s, but it looks like the “eco-icon” Prius will be around for some time to come.
Slighty larger than the current Prius model, the new edition aims to please the American audience who are accustomed to sizeable vehicles.
With a heritage of more than one million sales worldwide since the original model was launched in 1997, new Prius takes the benefits of hybrid to a new level.
Bob Carter, Toyota group vice-president and general manager said;
“Our global sales objective is 400,000 units per year by 2010, which will put Prius near the top of our best-selling vehicles around the world along with Camry and Corolla,”
“Almost half of that total – 180,000 – will come from the US, where Prius-loyalty is extremely high. More than 90 per cent of current Prius owners say they intend to buy another Prius,” he added.
It adopts a larger, 1.8-litre VVT-i petrol engine, while a comprehensive re-engineering of the Hybrid Synergy Drive system brings significant reductions in weight and size, contributing to the overall improvements in fuel economy and emissions. Fuel economy has been boosted from 46mpg to 50mpg.
Further weight saving gain is achieved through more extensive use of lightweight aluminium and ultra high-tensile steel in new Prius’s construction.
Prius is built on an all-new platform for better handling, stability and safety and it benefits from new styling that is sharper and sportier, while achieving even better aerodynamic performance. With the benefit of more wind tunnel testing than any other Toyota before, it achieves a coefficient of drag (Cd) figure of 0.25, the lowest of any mass produced car in the world. With particular attention paid to the flow of air beneath the car, this supports quieter running, improved stability and greater fuel efficiency.
Prius retains its distinctive wedge shape and is only marginally longer than the current model, but changes to the roof profile improve rear seat headroom and revisions to packaging of the Hybrid Synergy Drive system allow for more space in the boot.
The interior has also undergone a comprehensive redesign, with improved ergonomics and styling that reflects Prius’s user-friendly application of advanced technologies.
Other improvements include solar panels in the roof that can power a ventilation system to cool the interior when the car is parked on a hot day; and LED headlamps that use less battery power.
The powertrain is “90 per cent new”, Carter said, incorporating a beltless 98bhp 1.8-litre petrol engine that cruises at lower revs, coupled with smaller, lighter electric powertrain parts. And Carter confirmed that a plug-in hybrid Prius was likely. “Plug-in capability is possible without engineering a whole new system.”
The model is due to go on sale in the UK this summer.
