OK, I admit the price of the original Prius is a little high in Australia, but on the other hand I think the "c" is great value for what it is. However, with rubbish media report about the "c", especially from a reputable source, really makes you mad... try digesting this... Like a few other cars conceived during the GFC, the Prius C's interior has been ravaged by accountants and is appallingly low-rent, with a mishmash of tacky, malodorous, misaligned plastics and a general air of desperate poverty. Toyota has never before put a new model into the market with such a low standard of materials, fit and finish. A Volkswagen feels like a Rolls-Royce in comparison. Source: Cookies must be enabled. | The Australian Why would anyone buy a Prius c after reading that? I'm amazed by the amount of bad press surrounding the Prius in this country... most of them are just misinformed lies!!
The article made it sounds like Toyota didn't care about the build quality either; all these misaligned plastics were slabbed together in record time! There must be something wrong with our eyes during my test drive, which we (my wife and I) did not have an issue with the interior and found it to be very well designed and put together!
I'm very OCD about car interiors and my C seems fine to me. Yes, the plastic on the dash and doors COULD be a little nicer, but if it meant a more expensive car, I'd pass. I'd rather the bulk of the material costs go into reliable automotive parts than interior trim.
Did they think they were going to get Lexus quality in a 20K Toyota?? Sounds like non objective reviewer to me... -M
I've always felt that Toyota's left a bit to be desired in terms of the interior materials and designs, but as j_benj above said, I'd rather have a reliable car over fancy interior materials. What's there does the job just fine. If it were the interior of a Lexus, then I'd have a problem with it. Then again, I also don't purchase a car for much other than the purpose of getting me from A to B reliable and efficiently, while fitting the utility I need on a regular basis.
We don't get the C here in the UK but the consensus of opinion here is that the European built Auris HSD is significantly better built we no rattle problems that have plagued the Prius. If the C is the same as the Prius then I fear Toyota will start to develop a poor reputation for quality which may mask their reliability.
Didn't Toyota Australia lower the price of the base Prius for 2012? (I think the i-Tech is still the same price). That paragraph makes Jeremy Clarkson sound like a saint! Again, if I'm buying a cheap car, I don't expect the same level of quality as I would find in a Camry or Avalon or even a Lexus. It's based on the Yaris, expect the same type of plastics.
"Prius sedan sales peaked in 2008 at a promising 3413 units" Sedan? For some reason I think the writer will care about anything factual.
