Only the Euro-spec All-New Toyota Prius gets a PHEV system while North America and JDM only get strong hybrid powertrains
Toyota has been at the forefront of pushing hybrid vehicles. Matter of fact, a Prius still pops up in my mind when someone mentions the word ‘hybrid’. This is true, especially in global markets like North America, Europe and more. Due to its high economy, Prius has been popular with regular households and most teenagers’ first car.
While Toyota India is teasing upcoming Innova HyCross, Toyota Global took the wraps off the 5th gen Prius and released the first set of images. This All-New Toyota Prius builds on its predecessor’s strengths and on top of it, doesn’t look bad at all. In fact, it looks very sharp and is likely to be a driving factor too.
All-New Toyota Prius Breaks Cover
One look at All-New Toyota Prius is enough to say that the company has taken a lot of design inspiration from its BZ series electric car lineup. Closer inspection reveals traits of Toyota Crown as well which was recently unveiled in China. When taken as a whole, 5th gen Prius comes off as a clean and uncluttered design.
In contrast with 4th gen Prius, it gets a longer wheelbase. Newer model is longer and wider too. That said, it is slightly smaller in length than outgoing 4th-gen Prius. It gets stylish C-shaped LED DRLs, LED headlights below them and a silver element in its lower air dam which also houses its fog lamps. Front parking sensors are present too.
Side profile still has an overall recognisable ‘Prius’ look, but is a lot more stylish. Especially the line that originates from its running board below its front seats and sharply rises up towards its rear wheel. Wheels are stylish and get a dual-tone effect. Interiors borrows a lot of cues from BZ4X EV SUV.
It gets two floating displays for infotainment and instrumentation. All-New Toyota Prius gets latest-gen TSS (Toyota Safety Sense) that consists of cameras at the front and rear, a Digital Inner Mirror, and in-vehicle drive recorder as well. Along with that, Advanced Park with remote function is also offered. Ambient lighting doubles up as warning lights for close objects detected.
Specs & Launch
For European market, Toyota is only selling the plug-in hybrid variant that incorporates a 13.6 kWh battery. It is mounted underneath rear seats, which might offer up to 90 km of range from a single charge. Mated with this PHEV system, is a 2.0L engine and power figure is 220 bhp. This model gets an optional solar panel which can add to the battery by a small margin.
North America and JDM are not getting the above-mentioned PHEV system. Instead, they get a choice between two strong-hybrid options. One is mated to a 1.8L engine and the other is mated to a 2.0L engine. Both of these strong hybrid powertrains will feature Toyota’s E-Four AWD system.
4th-gen Prius was launched in India. Although it sold in few numbers due to its pricing strategies. That said, it is yet to be seen if Toyota intends to bring this to our shores. What we will get for sure, is Innova HyCross which is set to unveil on November 25th.
