2023 Prius & Prius Prime - Japanese Reveal Photos & Recap

The current Prime design was moving away from family car.

The only Toyota hybird that competes with the Prius in the US is the Corolla sedan. The other major markets not only get a Corolla wagon, but also can get it and hatchback as a hybrid. In order for Toyota to keep the Prius viable in sales, they need to differentiate it from the Corolla. Thus the new design, and focus on sportiness.

Photos of the Euro spec model have 230V buttons. CleanMPG reported it is getting a room mode to keep power on indefinitely when the car is shut down. So maybe we'll get it.

Most likely means overall height. Car specs list ground clearance as just ground clearance, and most reports will specify when they are talking about it.

I think the limit is lower. That is for the model's price point. We likely won't see the @10% improvement as with past generations. Toyota probably could have delivered it, but likely not at a price most would be willing to pay.

That could be why we haven't seen official photos of the rear seat.

 

herein lies a conundrum. those with back/age/skeletal/size/extra tall issues may have trouble dipping so low just to get in there ride. younger people will be fine, but statistics show fewer younger people are buying cars now, opting to use rideshare type transportations. maybe Asian countries which typically are shorterthan European / N. American countries will be fine - we'll see.
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Looking through the comments, apparently PriusChat has turned into the "land of old farts complaining" ( including me...usually ) .

Seriously though...good lord people, this is a huge step up for Toyota, and the Prius announcement is getting almost universal praise in the media thus far. That in and of itself is a major win for Toyota. Personally, this is what I have been waiting on for a long time ( I skipped the 4th gen ). Should be interesting to see how they price this. I'm not sure they have too much wiggle room given the Corolla hybrid, the Crown, etc...

 

Indeed, lower entry/car-height is not great. As I recall, I kept my seat raised when driving the car though that did not always feel right ego wise. Plus the lower the car height the more you feel like an ant or mx5 miata. Otherwise, very nice looking though figure will cost lots of $$$ and Prime maybe more then current year pricing.

Only ding I had on the Prime was the raised back store area platform due to the battery layout. Wonder if both models will have reduced storage space. I was always amazed at that amount of stuff I could pack into that back hatch

Really liked the green/blue (or whatever color it was called on the IV touring model I got back in the day, always seemed to change shades of color depending on how much light hit it.

Am supposed to get a Ford Maverick Hybrid XLT build in December...not holding my breath on set date they gave and for certain it won't hold a candle to Toyota quality but was taken in by the mpg it will offer while still being a truck to toss things into the back of.

My 2020 Highlander hybrid is still doing 36mpg and has been an enjoyable ride. Granted I wish it was a six banger like before instead of a four. Though only time I wish for me, well 'need/want' is if towing a 3k travel trailer. On the Prius I owed heading up the baby hills in NC was also a time more power would have been nice.

I think Toyota realizes the needs of the masses vs the needs of plant earth so far as what is in place to support (prime plug-in) as it all relates to cost to consumer. Others may disagree on that point.

 

They should've done a flushed door handle that pops out when you walk up to the car like LC500. here what the door handle should look like.

 

I am still super interested in the Maverick. However, the magic has worn off a bit. I'm just not sold on the long term quality of the product at this point ( when compared to Toyota ). Time will tell though!

 

People who cared about "dipping so low" for the most part in the US and Europe aren't buying cars either, they're buying crossovers - so the Corolla Cross Hybrid effectively serves as the Prius replacement for that customer (and the C-HR Hybrid before that, although that wasn't sold in the US).

Toyota's general strategy seems to be, sell crossovers to the people who want appliances, and make the remaining cars sportier to go for an enthusiast market.

 

Toyota is a Japanese company, and they sell more Prii there. They also have a car subscription service there, which was mention in the Japan reveal.

 

It’s beautiful. What an improvement!! It reminds me of a mash up of gen 2 Prius combined with a Tesla. My only concern is interior space/headroom.

 

i hope this isn’t true. i’m 6’ 3” and don’t have any issues in my gen 2. I was hoping to switch to gen 5 next!

 

I will have to see the real product before determining entry and exit ease. Most people with mobility issues are going go for a taller hybrid like RAV4 or the other available SUVs. New Prius interior cabin space and ergonomics should be up to Toyota standards for adjustable individual fit. Toyota packaging is generally excellent, just look at how much cargo space is found on a Gen3 Prius. We’ve wowed more than a few folks with the cargo capacity, back seats up and especially back seats down.

I’m still stunned by this redesign, and can’t really find anything I don’t like about it. I love our Gen3. It’s been a great efficient travel car. Not perfect. As an example, it could use a little sound deadening for sure. Lots of owners wanted more power, but I never felt that need.

I’m plenty old and not complaining about the changes I’m seeing. Thinking seriously about visiting our local dealership and getting on a list, just in case Toyota actually starts producing and delivering this new design.

 

Agreed. I have seen large cars with awful ingress/egress. I have also seen very small cars with great ingress/egress.
I like everything about the 5th gen except that it isn’t available as a BEV (which I didn’t expect).

 

At the new G5 Prius unavailing, Toyota stated that Prius continues as a hybrid to make a lower emissions vehicle available at a more affordable price to the public. BEV pricing remains much higher due to larger capacity battery costs. Transitional hybrid technology does remain a viable choice for the majority of consumers while hopefully BEV technology advances and pricing eventually settle to more attainable levels.

 

Except Yellow cars have a higher resale value, so the boring color concept being what people want is flawed.

The 2023, Finally a US Prius that comes with nice looking wheels though. If you take a Gen 3 or 4 and add FRS wheels, they too look pretty sharp. And the worst thing is the Prius comes with nice wheels in other countries. I think Toyota dumbs down the Prius for the US market. No good interiors either. Look at the Japan brochure and you will be amazed how much better the cars look. We get stupid hubcaps, small wheels and black vinyl interiors. Sad.

 

I’m not aware of a car in this class offering a pop out handle.

 

Toyota has the BZ lineup for BEV’s.

 

Absolutely, and I am happy they are offering it.
Too big for me, I’d love to see more BEVs smaller than crossovers.
We loved our Prius cars, I’d love to see an electric one.

 

bestcarweb.jp has scooped the Japanese specs for the Prius and Prius Prime. Ground clearance is a little more than I thought. Here's the direct translation of specs:
"Body specs (figures for 50-series Prius in parentheses
) Overall length: 4,600mm (4,575mm) +15mm
Overall width: 1,780mm (1,760mm) +20mm
Overall height: 1420mm *Z and PHEV are 1,430mm (1,470mm) -50mm
wheelbase: 2,750mm (2,700mm ) +50mm
tread: Front 1,560mm Rear 1,570mm (1530mm/1540mm)
Minimum ground clearance: 145mm *Z and PHEV are 150mm (130mm) +15mm
Vehicle weight: U 1,360kg G 1,400kg Z 1,430kg PHEV 1,570kg (Predecessor HEV 1,360kg)
Minimum turning radius: U 5.3m G・Z 5.4m (5.1m) +0.3m
Tire size: U 195/60R17 G・Z・PHEV 195/50R19 (195/65R15)"

"[2.0L model]
Engine model: M20A-FXS
Total displacement: 1.986L
Maximum output: 112kW/152PS
Maximum torque 188Nm/19.2kgfm

Front motor
model: 1VM (1NM)
Maximum output: 83kW/113PS
Maximum torque: 206Nm/21.0kgfm

Rear motor
type: 1WM (previous 1.8L is 1NM)
maximum output 30kW/41PS (previous 1.8L is 5.3kW/7.2PS)
maximum torque 84Nm/8.6kgfm (previous 1.8L is 55Nm/5.6kgfm)
Power generating battery: Lithium ion Battery (lithium ion battery and nickel metal hydride battery)
WLTC mode fuel efficiency: G 31.5km/L [E-four29.2km/L] Z 28.6km/L [E-four26.7km/L] PHEV 23.0km/L *Each model Displays hybrid fuel consumption rate"

According to these measurements, Ground Clearance for the PHEV (Prime) is 5.9". Ground Clearance for the Prius HEV is 5.7".
Rear motor for the new AWD Prius is the same as the Corolla Cross Hybrid - 30 kW (40 hp), slightly higher than the 5.3 kW (7 hp) found in the current AWD Prius. Front motor has been increased from the 53 kW (71 hp) to 83 kW (111 hp) on the Prius. From Europe the new 2023 Prius PHEV or Prius Prime has a front motor of 120 kW (161 hp). No wonder the 0 to 60 times are close to the Crown Platinum and not much off of the RAV4 Prime. It'll be interesting to see if the Prius Prime electric 0 to 60 is faster than the RAV4 Prime which is 9.9 seconds. No info yet on Solar Roof option output.
Original article:
新型プリウス「激推しグレード」判明!! オプションもわかったぞ!!　価格も魅力的……だよね!? - 自動車情報誌「ベストカー」

 

what is the (195/65R15)?