Featured Beginning of the end for the Prius?

Because there are many different consumers with a wide variety of needs/wants.

I've owned 4 Prius models including the PIP. I had a leased Leaf until I replaced it with a Tesla M3.

No car is perfect for every usage that I've had. And they all have different strengths, weaknesses, comforts and costs.

Mike

 

Selfish consumers

 

I sincerely hope Toyota continues to produce the Prius and the Prime. I would love them to build a full out ev also in the Prius form.

 

The "Prius" was the name of the platform used to develop and sell the hybrid drive-train on. Considering where it started...it's more about the name as tech moves on.



FWIW...Consider where the Corvette started.

 

best looking vette ever! not so, for prius

 

Ya...but it doesn't perform like the new one's either.

Sorry...not meant as a side track about appearance. To many side roads here already.

 

Everyone should thank Prius owners who buy the gas guzzlers, they bring the corporate average up and they can just pretend the everything is OK in their little world.

 

I think there are some things about the corvette that is instructive here. THe real first year of the vette being a vette was 1955 when they put a v8, before that it was a poser. Kind of cool fast back then was 0-60 in 8.5 seconds. The 1963 vette with an independant rear suspension and optional fuel injected 360 hp V8, it was a true sports car. Think of it in terms of the 1953 vette was the 1997 prius sold only in Japan, while the 1955 is the one they improved and exported, the 1963 is like the gen II prius, a big step up. Corvette improved again in 1970 to be the curvy cool icon I remember, but the oil crisis hit and they power went away with sales. This is like the gen III prius. Corvette didn't produce another real iconic car until 1990 zr-1. It was 20 years but it corvette survived. Prius can survive, but I doubt it can be a flag ship or a leader unless it reinvents itself as a phev.

I never really liked corvettes. My girlfriends father really wanted one in high school and we rented him one for a couple of days on his birthday. He got a giant kick out it and said it was much better then the one he got to test drive a long time ago. ;-)

 

I don't understand this, think straightforward hybrid still has plenty of legs. Plug-in adds a level of complexity that turns some hybrid adopters off.

I kinda wish Toyota would back off on trying to reinvent it, bring back what got trimmed off in this latest styling exercise.

 

maybe just mush it into a cuv and see how it sells

 

Prius was introduced as new technology. Prius = "To go before". AKA, leading the way. Prius hasn't led anything in years. Most cars have keyless entry, HUDs, info-tainment screens, etc. now. Where is the Prius self-opening hatch? Where are the active reverse guide lines? What about some of the self-driving tech - lane keep assist (not warnings) etc? The only "new" stuff Prius is doing is ugly car designs. Really ugly.

It's not just about hybrid tech. it's about new tech. that is where Prius is losing ground. Tesla is the new Prius. Prius is following, not leading.

 

They're all the rage up up here. Regular height sedans or hatchbacks seem like a dying breed.

This is where you lose me: People need new cars periodically, because: their old cars wear out. That's the main reason. Or it could be.

I mean, you could get a car that looks more-or-less identical (remember the VW bug?), except everything's brand new, engine/transmission, wheel bearings, shocks, suspension. Maybe a few engineering tweaks, improved fuel efficiency. What's not to like?

But no, we've got this new tech and styling race, eating up the R&D dollars, keeping everyone in fresh car loans every 3~4 years.

 

that's why sheeple line up overnight for the new i phone every two months, can't get no satisfaction

 

Someone in the world need to produce a good dependable car that people can afford. My latest Prius has enough tech in it, that is why I don't want a new Tesla.

 

Did you get your new iPhone you were telling me about?

 

no, which one was it?

 

I don't know my iPhones, I am still using a Tracfone

 

huh, i don't recall. any who, i'm just using my sons old one on wifi only, not phone service.

unlikely that i will ever get phone service, since i never leave home without my wife and her phone.

 

The definition of leadership doesn't say or even infer anything about "new" being criteria:

1. the position or function of a leader, a person who guides or directs a group.
2. ability to lead.
3. an act or instance of leading; guidance; direction.

Knowing your audience is vital. Who are you trying to lead?

This is all about getting ordinary people to actually change. Tesla has done a wonderful job of fulfilling the desire of early-adopters, but their reach to mainstream buyers without the $7,500 tax-credit is far from certain. Toyota's ability to draw interest from the common consumer is well proven with Prius, but their history is loaded with disappointment from enthusiasts. Understand that difference?

We are embarking on a time when the market overwhelmingly prefers vehicles larger than Prius and have very little interest in new tech. That means delivering a well-rounded choice. An affordable offering with a wide-array of conveniences complimented by a modest EV drive has the potential to appeal to a large audience of everyday shoppers.

That's the type of leadership we need. Notice how that's the opposite of what GM did. Their attempt to deliver a choice with the "it's worth it" approach failed on a tragic level. Sales never reached beyond enthusiasts. It was an expensive niche without an mainstream successor... the very thing Toyota is striving to avoid with Prius evolving into Prime... an extremely difficult challenge of leadership.

In short, the belief that range or power equates to being a leader of mainstream change doesn't have merit. It is leadership, but not with the audience which changes the status quo.

 

I picture the car manufacturers not so much as leaders, more like sideshow hucksters...