Toyota mulls whether to change Prius look to widen appeal

Please get rid of the ultra-dorky bulbous nose!

 

Shoe horn the Camry Hybrid drivetrain under the hood and call it a day

Mike

 

Note to Toyota - I'm far more worried about improved seat and ride comfort than how it looks, and I like having a hatchback or lift gate.

 

You are absolutely spot on with that observation! Having driven my wifes 2012 HyCam XLE, It is IMO the next step up in the Prius line, but it's a Camry.! Best of both worlds! I really love that car, and yes, if you hit the gas, you do get up and go! But of course so do your MPG's! The wifes last tank was 43 MPG. For her, that's great and getting better!

 

I'd like to see a Sporty Prius. I low and wide sporty car with a hard top convertable option. With some accleration and good top end speed. I'm willing to sacrafice some MPG for this trade off.

 

MT has a ton of more information (hype?). They sound too good to be true.

- 2015 launch date
- Significant change with the new generation of HSD
- 150 lbs lighter
- Double wishbone suspension
- e-4WD option (MGR rear motor)
- 60 MPG
- More cargo volume
- Same wheelbase (106 inches)
- PHV model to have 22 miles EV range

 

Like Tesla, Toyota needs to offer 2 battery sizes for the plug-in, for example a 22 EV mile range standard and an optional 35 or 40 EV mile range.

 

Good stuff if its true.

I would put the odds high that it is launched in 2015 with a new phv at the same time, along with nimh in the base and li in the phv. We have heard these rumors before.

Having a lower hood, higher angle windshield, awd option with lighter weight makes sense.

An low speed (bellow 37 mph) limit on driving the rear wheels seems strange, as does the double wishbone suspension. I also doubt 60mpg on an epa test.

One surprising thing from the interview is they expect the aqua (prius c) to be the low tco high volume car in japan. This implies they can put some higher cost components and tighter suspension parts in the liftback.

 

The Japanese, for all their engineering prowess, don't seem to have an eye for beauty. This is especially true for Toyota. Toyota would be way ahead to recognize this and hand all their body design to one or more of the Italian studios. Look at all the gorgeous Italian cars and motorcycles. Let them do your body design.

 

Like the lower hoodline, the flared fenders and 18" wheels?

Geneva Autoshow Concept: Toyota FT-Bh; Minimalist Toyota FT-Bh Concept boasts 112 miles per gallon

 

I only bought the Prius for the gas mileage. It is really a pretty ugly car. They can certainly make it more attractive than it is now.

 

The looks of the Prius doesn't bother me, I bought it more for the excellent fuel economy and versatility of the hatch. If I wanted a stylish hybrid, I'd buy a Sonata. The problem with going too stylish is it will date fast. What I'm saying is I'll likely continue to buy a Prius whatever it looks like.

 

So, a Prius c would look like this:

Form or function? Post some pictures of what you consider gorgeous!
This Ferrari struggles to get out of an underground garage!

 

They should have called it: BOB

Bob Wilson

 

Dang nab it, those pictures are exactly what I do not want: Side windows slanting to zero by the back of the car. Gimme Prius HV (high visbility)

 

whatever they do, i hope they improve the sightlines.

 

Prius's unique iconic design is part of its branding - some people are attracted to its unique design in the same way some are attracted to the VW Beetle design. However, far from being whimisical, the Prius liftback design breaks away from less aerodynamically and less functional traditional designs of the past. And yet ISTM the core appeal of the Prius has been a no-nonsense focus on fuel efficiency, affordability, reliability, and being environmentally friendly - with snarl or muscle not even part of its marketing segmentation focus. The Prius is designed to adhere to the enviromental objectives of the Kyoto Protocols. Chris Hostetter appears to be in the wrong marketing division(or he wants to grow/add yet another Prius into the family of Prii), some time ago Toyota spun-out/separated its snarl and muscle car market segment to Scion and Lexus. This is not to say that Scion should not have a hybrid sportcar, but currently the Prius branding is focused on being a practical and energy efficient rather than to mimick a fuel sucking pig yet beautiful but not very practical Italian sports/performance car. Doing otherwise would be inconsistent and create confusion within Toyota's branding at best and at worst may harm its market share. Given the Prius' primary market, ISTM the only reason to radically alter the Prius design is to lose weight - or more precisely altering the Prius design to accomodate the use of lightweight carbon fiber frame/body and to eliminate the use of heavier metal body parts. Trading off a less aerodynamic design for a significant drop in curb weight could give the next generation of Prii a significant advantage over traditional but much heavier metal unibody and frame designs.

 

IMHO the Toyota Prius c is much better looking than a Fiat 500.

 

Funny you post this Ferrari video, there is a local Dunkin' Donuts where I have this problem with the Prius. The black plastic cover underneath the engine bay scrapes the ground as I enter their parking lot, which isn't even on a steep incline.

I personally love the Prius design, very sharp looking, and it stands out.

 

I think they are going where the aerodynamics take them. It looks like it will be modeled after the boxfish. It will not be the first time. Mercedes-Benz Bionic concept car also did similar and got the Cd down to 0.19.