4th generation coming 2015!

The other manufacturers have made up a lot of ground in the Hybrid game.
I expect the GenIV Prius to take a big leap ahead with MPG and overall efficiency.
I expect the shape to stay "familiarly Prius" but to change is some noticeable ways.
I expect driving dynamics to improve.
I HOPE they use some nicer materials in the interior and do away with the flying bridge which, imo, transmits way to many squeaks and rattles fore and aft.
I like the PriusV interior. I like the c200 interior. Some similarities to either would be an improvement.

We expect to keep our Prius a long, long time but my wife is adamant that she's a Prii driver for life so I'll look forward to a future-gen in the driveway someday.

 

Mazda 3 hatchback is rated 28 MPG city and 39 MPG highway with 32 MPG combined. It is great but it is nowhere near 50 MPG that hybrid technology can unlock.

Even the 200+hp midsize hybrids like Camry hybrid and Fusion hybrids already beat that compact Mazda 3 in term of fuel efficiency. Come to think of it, even the full size sedan like Avalon hybrid and the luxury ES300h are more efficient.

 

If this is the new dash I'm gonna have to say NO THANK YOU! I like my digital readout!

I think this is a Lexus model IMHO.

 

How THIS this is what I would like to see in the next Prius! I'd trade in pretty soon after release!

 

That was my sentiment back when the gen 3 came around, I was disappointed, now I fear gen 4 will still be progression at a snails pace.

I keep looking for new innovation, rather than five tuning the same.

Alan.. Sent with GS4

 

It's great to read all of your thoughts. I agree with some and not others. It will be interesting to see what the final offering looks like, and the efficiency achieved. Personally, I like the digital readout. I will be greatly disappointed if Toyota backs-up to the round, wheel centered speedometer. The digital HSI is wonderfully informative, and would seemingly be difficult to convey the information in another format. (I don't know how other Hybrid's convey the information).

There is so much about the hybrid technology that I truly like. Naturally I appreciate the fuel efficiency, and the knowledge that I am not going to run out of power in another few miles. I haven't read the article yet, but CR tested the Tesla, and from the cover, rated it very high. But it still has it's range limits. My life-style does not permit a vehicle that can only go 2-300 miles without charging.

Yesterday it was hot, I left my wife in the car for about 5 minutes. The a/c was on, but the engine never ran. Great idea. Every car should have an electric compressor.

 

For Gen4, please move the HV battery under the rear seat like Prius C. The center of gravity will be lower and toward the center.

This should also free up more space for the PHV version and allow a spare tire.

It appears, the peak of the roof is pushed back further -- above the rear passenger ceiling. Perhaps, the rear seats were raised a bit to fit the battery and gas tank?

 

GreenCarReports: All-New 2015 Toyota Prius: What We Know So Far

 

Good article. It reveals why they didn't go lithium even though the battery case on the gen 3 is designed for it.

" in January 2010, Koie Saga, a senior managing director for drivetrain research, told journalists that Toyota had bet on the wrong lithium chemistry--so it fell back on tried-and-true nickel-metal hydride cells."

When we got the first view of the gen 3 in Detroit I fully expected lithium, instead got nimh with a case for lithium. They illuded that it could easily be converted when the lithium became available.
No one mentioned at the time the real story.
I'm sure they feared if it got out the public would want to wait.





Alan.. Sent with GS4

 

GenII to GenIII seemed to be all about getting a bit bigger, a bit more mainstream, and more powerful without losing mpg.

Everything we've read about GenIV seems to indicate a very new hybrid system for more MPG while retaining the current size/useability/power.

I'm cautiously optimistic, but this is Toyota after all and incremental is their general m.o.

 

I doubt the same Lithium casing would fit in NiMh. The charger, sensors, cell count and dimensions must be totally different.

I think Toyota (through PEVE) did bet on the "wrong" lithium chemistry. The information was out there. The chemistry that PEVE developed was engineered and proven suitable. However, they just couldn't mass manufacture it at the price needed. When it was announced, every part in Gen3 was redesigned, except the battery. The battery pack was smaller and better packaged with the fan side mounted but the cells were basically the same. Better cooling translated into more power from the same cells, that's about it.

Therefore, they end up buying Sanyo that bet on the "right" chemistry. Sanyo cells made it into Prius Alpha/+ 5 seaters and the plugin Prius.

 

I concur. Gen3 Prius had basically the same HSD as Gen2. They improved/optimized it further to be lighter and more efficient, etc.

NS4 concept was shown/hinted at Gen4 in term of styling and it had a new generation of hybrid system. Perhaps, they would name it HSD-II.

 

Want to be a little bit more specific, what kind of innovation were you expecting or are now looking forward to see other than hybrids <Plug-Ins<EVs.

 

The case that holds here battery is designed to hold a bigger battery "lithium" than here nimh that's currently in it.
That means something more akin to what the pip currently has.

I was expecting more miles on battery alone, a bigger reserve so the car could actually use the battery for storage as well as power, and a faster top end speed.... All of which a bigger battery is required.

I'm looking forward to a whole different engine, or at least an innovative revamp.... along with a tiny blend of what tesla is doing to produce something no one else currently has.... A car with great gas mileage but lots of power should you require it "from reserve battery torque" and won't strand you on road because it utilizes gas too.

Volt has a good idea... But it's not toyota workmanship and it's still small thinking.

Alan.. Sent with GS4

 

Ok, but let's not forget how expensive all these good stuffs can be. Toyota can think big but will end up producing something expensive like the Model S or the Volt for that matter. I think they are thinking big with the NS4 and probably not going to be cheap. The car has to meet a certain price point.
If infos in OP's article is to be believed, here is a summary of key points;

 

These are the NS4 pics I attached here. I believe the next gen Prius is going to resemble this car, frankly. I have no working knowledge of the new gen4's actual design, but I think what you're seeing in the above spy shots is an all-electric car. or, perhaps the next gen plugin with longer possible range. To the best of my working, honest knowledge, that cloaked car is NOT what to expect for a 2015 Prius.

It should be obvious that they are trying to get a plug-in car out there on the market with a longer range. After all, isn't that the goal? I'm not divulging any secret info because this sort of thing really goes w/o saying.

With gas still $4 a gallon in CA, pretty much everywhere, and it being an obvious shape there under the black covers, I wonder if that's not a PlugIn being tested with longer range. I'm only surmising and sharing my own thoughts.

 

Agreed everything cost money but when the prius first came out it cost money too.. They broke the mold and did something daring and different and put them on the map from all over car makers.
Sheer volume of sales and service makes the profit.
The prius is world wide now.
I'm not saying kill the bread and butter and get so elite that it narrows the market... But we the public have no problem spending ungodly amounts on cars, especially if it's giving us something back the others don't offer.

Tesla cost 50 - 90k for limited continously distance. What would we spend for a car that gives it all?

1. Room
2. Luxury
3. Quality
4. Power
5. Status
6. Great gas mileage
7. Service and a name you trust.
8. Security
9. Fancy toys and cutting edge technology.

A lambrogini doesn't even offer that.

I'm not asking all that from a prius.. But it's a thought provoker!

But I am asking for a much bigger and better gap between "genetations" in all of the above.

Let's not call it a new generation when it's more of the same.

The difference between my gen2 and 3 is barely noticeable to the average driver.



Alan.. Sent with GS4

 

As is the case with virtually every other model of vehicle on the road. Only the enthusiasts and those paying attention will notice.

They won't change anything too dramatic. They would start a new model or spin something else off like the pip or c if they want to do anything dramatic.

 

Right, this is where this bad boy comes in!

 

Check the photo from the rear - I see a center LOCATION of the exhaust pipe which would indicate INDEPENDENT REAR SUSPENSION.