4th generation coming 2015!

Say it ain't so. You have been one of the contributors that I have enjoyed reading, and felt a certain similar views with.
BTW, I agree with your first sentence. It's the second sentence that I'm struggling with. I'm thinking seriously about making a move on a 2015 Avalon hybrid. I like what I have seen and read. Apparently, there will be no significant changes in the drive-train in 2016, so why wait?

 

Avalon a little too big for my taste, and expensive as well. There's another reason I would have said no go, but I'd rather not say: Matter of personal taste.

 

If that really is the new Prius I think its ugly. It looks like someone took the previous design and patched a new portion of the front end. It doesn't look well integrated with the overall design. Perhaps some other views would help.

In the end I don't really care. It could look even worse and I wouldn't care because I drive from the inside so don't pay much attention to how my cars look. It's more about price and practicality. The mpg increase and a few inside tweaks will bring me to the showroom, not looks.

 

jdonalds - I agree with your first statement.

Re your second comment, I am not as forgiving as y'all seem to be. Everytime I approach my car, I look at the exterior.
I also own a BMW Z3, and I admire it on a daily basis. I take pictures of it, and they appear on my computer screen. I admire a beautiful car, always have.

 

In a way, I am in a similar position as you Felt. Having owned a G3 for nearly 6 years, I am looking for a slight shift towards more comfort & refinement. Here is how I look at it.

* Will G4 give me all these for free plus better mpg and that feeling of a top tech car
* If not, I might be able to get a better deal on a Auris when the world starts to focus on Prius G4
* Other option - I might even be able to negotiate on an ex-dem NX300h at the price of a G4
* Is there a slightly more upmarket version of Prius G4 coming? Certainly would want to know before I make a move.

I keep reminding myself these points to control the urge to splash on a new car.

 

not likely, i think us hyper milers will always have to take what we can get, or move on to slightly less fuel efficient cars.

 

cmth - I like your points.

One reason we are moving in the direction we are (Avaoln) is we now have 2 cars. A Prius and a SUV. We never go anywhere alone, so we are going to dispose of both vehicles and buy one, larger, more comfortable car that gets good mileage.

I'd wait for the 2016 Avalon, but I now believe the new hybrid technology will not appear in the 2016. Which makes absolutely no sense to me. If Corporate Toyota has new technology that they can apply across the board from the Prius to the Lexus, you'd think they would do so.

 

i don't think they do. they usually develop it for one vehicle, than begin adapting it to others. it isn't that easy. and we still don't know if there is any major tech, or just incremental.

the other thing is that car manufacturers tend to make a lot of parts all at once, and they have to be used up before starting with something new.

 

But all of you are lucky? Can't you hold off buying your new car until you see the Gen IV in September? Maybe put in a preorder?

I was in the same boat about 8 months ago, but alas, no Gen IV and that stupid "Delay" rumor/fact? Ended up with the PiP but enjoying every mpg/mile on it!

 

Even if the improvement was a drop in part, there is the inertia to overcome in setting up the supply and getting it to the assembly plant. It could be done quickly. GM did a complete redesign for the next Malibu 3 years after the last one, and Honda had a turn around in refreshing or redesigning the Civic after CR trounced it.

It just has a cost to do so. Which is why changes beyond standard equipment changes, and maybe tiny cosmetic ones, aren't applied until a midcycle refresh or redesign.

 

I think the Synergy drive is brilliant. So few moving parts. No gears to engage or disengage. I hope Toyota puts the same technology in the Rav4 Hybrid. We used to have a Honda CR-V which we always look back on as our favorite car. We would seriously look at a Rav4 and the Prius IV for our next car.

 

Look to the Highlander Hybrid for clues on the RAV4 Hybrid. It uses the standard Synergy drive with a third MG, mounted at a rear diff. No rear drive shaft, though limited power to the rear wheels.
This setup -might- actually be better in 4WD situations, but that debate will rage on for years.
Of course, both the Highlander Hybrid and probably the RAV4 Hybrid are labeled clearly "not intended for off-road use". Though use on gravel/dirt roads is probably fine. I think they mean -stay off the Rubicon trail-.

 

That looks like the refreshed Prius v to me.

 

Ashlem - I think most of us on PriusChat are fearful of what you speak. I looked at the Prius v closely at the dealer today, and the front end is no better looking in real life than in pictures. Perhaps, grille shutters would just conceal the entire front end. LOL

 

New Prius v has an 'angry fish' front end .... a very angry fish.

Dayam Toyota is taking a long time to get this new model out. Sad to see the alt vehicle sales stats for all of this year, except for Tesla, they are swingin' up.
Told ya, make a hot car and buyers will line up. Make a nerdy eco box and discount it, buyers still shy away. Driving my Prius is mostly a joyless experience unfortunately.

 

A report of what is presented as a sneak peek of a 2016 Prius Liftback (pictured top) and double-electric-range Prius Plug-in Hybrid are shown on a Taiwanese website.

If the images are real, they may be the only ones known of the much-anticipated next-generation hybrid cars.


The drawings look fairly convincing, having resemblance to the silhouette of black covering-draped photos of 2016 preproduction cars floating out there, although the report leaves open room for suspicion.

It definitely is not the result of an official Toyota disclosure, and the company has taken pains to conceal the new cars’ identities. To date it’s been unclear whether the plug-in hybrid was ready to show, or would follow the Liftback.

We urge caution at this juncture, but in the event these are images bootlegged from Toyota, we’re posting this for consideration until we learn more. The website, mobile.autonet.com.tw, appears to have straight reporting on many new cars and this is being treated as one more report of an “exposure,” as translated from Chinese.


According to the report, the aquamarine hybrid is said to have earned 40 km/L on the very liberal Japanese JC08 cycle, or close to 94 mpg. This is high but not impossible, as the JC08 has rated the present version at 37 km/L.

If correct, this is an 8-percent increase on the Japanese cycle. The U.S. rates the 2015 at 50 mpg, and an 8-percent increase would be 54 mpg, although testing is different in the U.S. so an actual number might not be proportional to Japan.

The increase in efficiency, says the report, comes from tweaks to the powertrain architecture for the Hybrid Synergy Drive. A roughly 105-horsepower 1.8-liter DOHC VVT-i inline four-cylinder gasoline engine, presumably Atkinson cycle like the present, is said to be retuned with an electric water pump, Cool EGR exhaust gas recirculation system and exhaust heat recovery system to increase fuel efficiency and reduce engine warm-up time.

The electric motor is said to be 90 horsepower, a lithium-ion battery is mentioned, but specs are not given. and total system horsepower is said to be a bit more than the current mode, or by the report’s reckoning, “145-150.” A 2015 Prius is rated 134 horsepower.

Power is reportedly routed as with the present Prius, through a CVT transmission with four modes – Normal, Power, Eco and EV.

As for the plug-in version, the report says it travels 31 miles electrically (50 km) on the Japan cycle and is rated 70 km/L under a gas-plus-electric operation cycle.

The present PHEV’s electric range under JC08 was rated 26.4 miles (16.4 miles). The U.S. EPA rates the present model’s range at 11 miles gas plus electric. It does not post on the window sticker its 58 mpg gas-combined-with-electric operation mpg rating as the JC08 publishes – 70 km/L instead of 40 km/L – but “bookends” the 2015 PHEV’s gas-plus-electric operation at a low of 50 mpg, same as the Liftback, 95 MPGe in pure electric drive mode.

Styling-wise, the vehicle has cues similar to the Mirai FCV, and Prius Liftback and comes with two different headlight and grille treatments.

The 2016 has been said by Toyota North America CEO Jim Lentz as a better driving car, more dynamic than present, and it’s been reported more sporting appeal is a design goal.


The report says the new Prius has dimensions slightly larger than the present model’s 4480 × 1745 × 1490mm (176.4 x 68.9 x 59.7 inches).

Curb weight is pared from the 2015 model’s 3,042 pounds to 2,843 pounds (1,290 kg) and the plug-in hybrid weighs 1,350 kg (2,976 pounds), lighter than the current 3,165-pound base Prius PHEV.

The translated text says the new car will be globally revealed at the Tokyo Motor Show as previously speculated.

It will then go to Los Angeles, Detroit, Geneva and China, says the report and go on sale at the end of the year.

Is This The 2016 Prius? - HybridCars.com

 

Well, if all this "you will be blown away" talk from Toyota is for what is pictured above then.

I will def. not be buying another Prius.

A gain of 4 mpg and a civic / insight rear end and side profile and a chopped top, My sentiment is "disgusted" not "blown away"... Sorry, and this is coming for a guy that currently owns 2 Prii..

 

if the blue one is the new pip, i'm in!

 

As the old adage goes: "...Rumors, rumors, and damn rumors..."

 

This was posted earlier and is clearly fake since the side view mirrors are in different positions in the different shots.