4th generation coming 2015!

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Gen III 2010+ Prius Main Forum | Page 423 | PriusChat

 

Worked out kinks in first year, eh?

I'm pretty darn sure 'advanced voice recognition', HD radio and more was not available until the 2012 mid-cycle refreshed Prius, the 3rd model year of the generation. ....

So, I have to yell up into my voice recognition speaker sometimes.

 

Reading back several pages, there was a hope, and perhaps even an expectation, that Toyota would reveal the G4 at the NY Auto Show. That did not occur. So, what is now our best guess? The G4 will indeed be a model year 2016 released in late calendar year 2015?

 

Don't worry, I seriously doubt it would be released late 2015. The 2nd gen became available something like August of 2003, the 3rd gen hit shores May of 2009. Keeping with that pace, would be about Nov 2014. There might be a teaser before an official reveal.

 

It was October.

 

Looking at past pages and if there is ever a pattern here's what we know

• 3rd Gen Prius, speculation began 2007, spy shots also occured - 2 years before release
  • 4th gen prius, spyshots almost occured 2012, it's now 2 years later...so maybe?
• 3rd Gen Prius, it was announced 2008 in May that 2009 was a carry over year, but a short one
  • May will most likely tell us if there will be a short carry over year (sorry 1 more month to find out!) If it is a carry over year for a 2015 3rd gen prius then it should be short which have been speculated as well
• It was announced that Toyota would use NiMh because they didn't trust Li-ions, sony's electronics were bursting into fire and the cost...
  • No real announcement here yet, but speculate the the Price point is just right and the 4th gen indeed will have a bit more space
• 3rd Gen early on was supposed to be high 50s mpg, but probably before EPA revamped their figures
  • 4th gen should hit 54 or 55 mpg...
• Plugin was announced to be developed for the 2010 - which it did, just only for testing
  • Now Toyota confirmed the 4th gen plugin and regular were being done in parallel, so they have an idea where to put the batteries...question is will it be released the same year or not?
• Edmunds had a good article on the 3rd gen 2008 in May
  • I believe Edmunds article on the 2015 Prius was indeed last year

So...all things point...to 4th gen coming. Now, May we should know more if there is a short carry over year. Interestingly enough, Toyota announced the Carry over (albeit short) for the 2009 Prius. Anyone know if it hurt sales?

 

I hope the Gen4 is horrible 'cause I don't want to be influenced out of my PiP.

 

I hope the new Prius won't have the ugly looking grill like they seem to be going with the Camry and their other vehicles.

 

My guess is that the gen. 4 Prius will be released in January 2015 at the Detroit Motor Show just as gen. 3 was 2009 .
I really hope it will look similar to the NS4, because no image of the supposed gen. 4 Prius has knocked my socks off so far !

 

Reflective Musings about the Gen 3 Prius.

I just coincidentally became interested in Prius and Hybrids, the year before the release of Gen 3 Prius. If I have the time and the luxury, I really like to research and evaluate my auto purchases.
I was going through a stressful time, so spent many long hours unwinding on the internet, here and elsewhere researching several different vehicles.

I think if I had started about 2 years earlier, I would of bought a Gen 2 Prius and simply been happy. Gen 3's release kind of messed me up. My curiosity about what it would be froze me.

That coupled with the HUGE hype that built up, not only about Gen 3 Prius, but about The "New Prius Killer" Honda Insight.

I don't know if new people realize what a dynamic and exciting release the Gen 3 was, partly because of it's near simultaneous release with the Honda Insight.

As we get closer and closer to the Gen 4 Prius, I'm sure there will be build up. But I wonder if it can possibly match the build up that came with Gen 3 Prius? Especially in Prius Chat, the excitement was palatable. People getting pre-orders in, tracking their vehicles arrival, and vying to be among the first in their respective regions to be a Gen 3 owner.

I probably won't be looking to make a change right when the Gen 4 is released, so for me it will be a more observant, and less participatory experience. But I'm looking forward to it, regardless of what happens.

 

I would have probably been in the same boat as you. But I was an early adopter and my first car was a Gen 3. Been paying attention to the Prius since 2001 and saw this site every now and again later.

Now being from Gen 3 (even though it's about 4 years old)...I don't think I would actually buy a Gen 4 Liftback. Honestly...the next evolution in the auto industry is these plugin hybrids. Hybrid is what took off with the Prius and now we do have a flood of choices which is great.

It's a good thing Toyota didn't totally ignore the plugin because there were offmarket mods as well...but I think this is where the industry is heading. I like that they're releasing fuel cells but it's too soon.

Unlike the first Prius the fuel cell needs Hydrogen Fuel Cells to power it whereas the original hybrid took in gas. So it's going to take a while to catch on.

What do people have now? Electric...What do they use to produce it, almost anything and everything...renewable is coming down in price. What do we have an infrastructure of? Gas/Oil, and it isn't going away anytime soon, especially with what kind of drivers are out there.

To me it's a no brainer. The Hybrid train is no longer the 'cool' one to be on. The ultimate would be a very efficient solar panel trickle charging so you can extend your range anywhere. Funny, in 2008 people were talking about trickle charging and the solar panels on the Gen 3, but it was immediately acknowledged they would power the fans and what not.

I guess after solar trickling if we could power our cars by organic trash ala BTTF....

 

Toyota has referred to their commitment to Hybrids as being a bridge, and a bridge they primarily built. A long bridge.

I don't know where evolution is going to take us. But in the near future, I still think there is a huge market just for the standard regular Gas/Electric Hybrid. And if I can be egocentric, I think I'm the reason why, or at least people like me.

As much as I'd like a plug in, and I would, my situation is apartment dweller. I have no easy access to overnight charging. A plug in, is really not an option I can embrace just due to circumstance.

So wherever evolution takes us, in 10 years, 15 years....I'll be dead soon years, I hope there is a alternative option to a pure ICE that everyone can use, and potentially afford.

I think it's interesting if you go back and look at some of the earliest ads for Prius in North America, Toyota heralds and stresses the point that The Prius had no plug, that you did NOT have to plug it in. We've come full circle now.

 

Today's post are fascinating. I really enjoy reading all of your opinions.

I personally have no interest in the PIP as long as it's electric range is so limited. (But that does not discredit those of you that the range works well for you). I've said before, here in the west, distances are far too great to attract many buyers. That said, however, I am interested in the wireless charging system.

Going back to the large grilles that Toyota seems fascinated with ... I suspect the G4 will have one. That seems to be the trend. Today I was thinking about how many PC writers promote "grille blocking" during the winter. If that enormous maw is functional, it will take a lot of blocking to impact the cold weather fuel efficiency. I just wonder if it will be functional? I was horrified when I realized that the side grilles on the Acura are fake! I've been looking at other cars on the road, and many appear to be just applied, fake plastic grilles. Obviously, it requires very little frontal area to keep the radiator cool. I'm suspicious it's nothing more than a fad, like fake air scoops were, or tail fins, or port holes on the old Buicks. Personally, I'm a "form follows function" type of guy.

 

It seems to me that a large grill will only serve to increase drag and lower the ability for the ICE to reach its warm stage. If Toyota decides to make an ugly wide grill to mesh with its new design philosophy, it seems like it will come at the cost of FE for our Prius unless they do some sort of active grill blocking.

 

As a former apt. dweller but now a homeowner, I really like the prospect of plug-ins, but successive generations of the vehicles absolutely need to increase the range (something Nissan doesn't care about with their "Leaves"). I really hope a 20-mile range is the minimum the Prius Gen 4 attains to achieve.

 

And if they ever invent that solar trickle charge...then even apartment owners can enjoy! Imagine if the Gen III solar was just a bit more efficient and the battery size quadruple (instead of 1 mile it's 4 miles range). It would be cheap and probably be a hit. Just cruise around within 4 miles and it's constantly trickle charging anyway

 

Since the 2015 Camry was introduced at the New York Auto Show, Im hoping the Gen4 Prius debuts at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November. Seems appropriate considering how popular the Prius is in California.

 

You think it'll debut at a show versus online first?

Anyone know how many shows are left for the year? November is a really long time......

 

inferno - I know very little about photovoltaic solar cells, but I suspect it will be a very long time before sufficient energy can be created from the limited area of a vehicle roof to charge the HV battery. Colleges hold competitions to design and build sun powered vehicles, and the solar array is an enormous rectangular collector atop the vehicle. Remember the sun powered airplane? The solar collectors covered the entire top of very long wings.

In Nevada, there are solar farms that cover acres, and they track the sun as it journeys from the east to the west with parabolic collectors that concentrate the energy. I have no idea how many KW of energy are created.

And lastly, there was a piece in the news just this week that continuing tax break for solar companies appears in doubt. If there are no tax breaks, research will be retarded. Regrettably, I don't expect sun powered vehicles in my lifetime.

 

I ordered mine the day after it became available (October 21st) and got it April 20th. It wasn't very available at first.