So, do you like gen 4 Prius?

Three years ago I knew I was going to be driving 30K+ miles a year for a handful of years. My then daily driver was a Chevy 2500 Duramax. I decided I needed to do my part best I could on burning the least amount of gasoline. I wanted to spend as close to zero minutes possible on the side of the road and in the shop. I picked a Gen 4 and at close to 110K I've spent zero minutes on the side of the road and only routine maintenance time in a shop. Do I like it? You bet! I find I don't dislike it but I wouldn't bother entering it in a beauty contest. I've reached a point in my life where the looks of a car just doesn't matter.

 

I've always liked the back end and not the front. But it doesn't matter all that much since I spend most of my time on the inside which I really like. I have the moonstone interior and I've been very happy with it. I live in a very warm climate and it is much cooler when the care has been parked in the sun.

 

White dash highlights are the best part - they don't show dust like the piano black - within nano-seconds of cleaning.

I really like Gen 4 - it's purposeful in the design (unlike say the C-HR which looks like 7 designers were involved who were fighting with each other). The Gen 2 particularly looks FRUMPY, Gen 3 almost as much compared with the sleeker Gen 4.

 

I like it. It's more responsive than my Gen 3 and for the price there isn't a better car with better MPG, reliability and built quality.

 

"Frumpy" is exactly the term that comes to my mind when I see a Gen 2. "A little long in the tooth" would be how I see Gen 3.

I think the Gen 4 is by far the best looking Prius. My wife and I have had three Gen 2, one PiP, and now a Gen 4 & a Prime. None have gotten appearance compliments from friends, except the Prime which had received quite a few. And Gen 4 is hands down superior in handling, comfort, and fuel economy. The only big mistakes are abandoning all those convenient storage places that the Gen 2 had and using that horrible, blinding, piano black trim. It'll put your eye out, kid! And, like @alanclarkeau said, the dust and lint come back within nano seconds of cleaning.

 

Anyone for a white wrap? I don't think I'll keep mine long enough to bother - but it'd get rid of the awful black.

 

Ditto the above. I love the white interior and the original Gen 4 front and rear lights are so distinctive.

I own't be selling 'Percy' any time soon... 3 years and still loving getting behind the wheel!

 

Piano-black, porcelain-white, neither interests me. Medium-grey, resilient textured surfaces are easy on the eye, don't show every fingerprint and dust speck.

 

Looks: meh

Performance: A+

 

With so many modern windshields being sloped to the extreme, a black dash, when it's flat black - seems to stop a lot of glare that normally reflects up onto the windshield & into your eyes. It seems like if it were white, or even a lighter color, that reflection coming off an extremely sloped windshield would be tremendous.

 

Exterior gets the highest marks (in the Prius / small hybrid world... it's no McLaren though) from me. It's the engineering and thought processes of the interior that I don't like.

 

I tried very hard to own gen 2 and 3 Prii. Nope. Dead, non-linear throttle response, unattractive exterior...IMHO.

When I first drove the gen 4 in 2016 (rental...200 miles) I loved it. Waited to buy used. Love it, especially the exterior.

 

Strange, I've found our 2010's throttle response very linear. At least in low through mid-range. Way better than the touchy pedal on our previous Civic. I did have multiple occasions to drive that previous car post Prius purchase, and the difference was night and day.

 

All GEN Prii looks are acquired tastes...though some require more fortitude than others. Most however, don't buy these cars for their looks.

 

Me personally I really like the aesthetics of the original Gen4, except for the Z taillights at night.
They are too bright and especially too long compared to the amount of horizontal space between them, and it makes for a weird christmas-tree vertical 'sandwichy' look. If I will ever own one, first thing I'll do is mod them by disconnecting their lower parts to keep only the upper ones visible.
Apart from that, I see the aesthetics of the black Gen4 in my household as neat, sporty, elegant at the same time, and very Japanese. For me is a

 

So, are YOU strange, or am I??? HAHA! To clarify my perception: the first 1/2 of throttle movement didn't give me the response I like, and I found myself having to always press the pedal farther than I thought I should. All 4 of us in this family prefer the throttle response of the Gen 4 to any of the previous gens.
I guess we're all strange!!!

 

The reflection of light on glass occurs at 45 degrees, so if its sloped back more than 45 degrees to your line of sight then you won't see the reflection off the dash.

 

But you can't see them from the drivers seat, why bother ?
If it ain't broke, don't fix it.