Just another confirmation (this time directly from a Toyota public release) that there will be an electronic four wheel drive ("E-Four") option (see the paragraph just before the embedded videos at the bottom of the page) Under the Hood of the All-new Toyota Prius | TOYOTA Global Newsroom
See if you can find it in the US press release here: Toyota Unveils Advanced Technologies in All-New Prius | Toyota
Much if not all the info in the recent slideshow Danny referenced shows non US models though (it shows right hand drive, everything is in metric etc) so we can't just assume it'll be offered everywhere. Not saying it won't, I don't know, but something to keep in mind until we get specific US info.
It's not official but Green Car Congress seems to think E-Four won't be available in the U.S. Green Car Congress: Toyota details powertrain advances in Gen4 Prius; available E-Four system for all-wheel drive (not for US)
Subaru snickers, (and breathes more easily), every time the e-awd system is ignored here. Go figure, a market this large where so many live in snow zones
Hybridcars.com says: The E-Four electric-rear-motor system as used in other Toyota products touted to enable snow-belters in teh gen-four Prius is not coming to the U.S., said Toyota communications representative Sam Butto. “No AWD in the U.S. market for the 2016 Prius,” he said. Of course, they could introduce E-Four later in 2016 or for the 2017 model year. I bet that dealers here in Colorado and other snow states won't be happy. For me: one less reason to trade my 2010 Gen 3.
good info, thanks! They might introduce it later on, who knows... maybe they have low capacity for new motor or lion batteries right now, since Japanese Prius is very popular vehicle, it might take up significant production.
Maybe Toyota wants to see what the uptake on it is? Or perhaps they want to keep costs down? Or they want to focus on mpg and an E-Four might detract from the 55mpg and the higher Eco mpg number? Or they want a feature to be able to be added in the midlife update? Or maybe the way it's fitted in the Gen 4 isn't suitable for the U.S. market (i.e. may not work in deep snow since the Prius doesn't have the ground clearance to make E-Four a worthwhile option) Plenty of reasons why but we won't know which ones are the real reasons .
You can defeat traction control in gen. 4,so maybe there is no need for E-Four . It's probably not coming to Germany either. According to German sources only E-Four gets the Li-ion battery,. Didn't Ken say the NiMh battery would power E-Four ? However with E-Four you get a spare tire which means less cargo space ! The only thing what would annoy me is,if the Li-ion battery is really capable of giving a much greater EV-Range. I don't expect that of the NiMh .
I found one detail in the press images about the battery type in E-Four. It seems to be Ni-MH in the drawing of the E-Four. The top cover of the battery is different for Li-Ion and Ni-MH. It's flat for Li-Ion and arched for Ni-MH. On the other hand, the drawing for 2WD also shows Ni-MH.
There is no point in disabling ESP, in gen 3 it works good even on slippery surfaces, maybe some of you are expecting miracles from your all season tyres. Weight distribution is a problem, if there is more weight in the back, clearly FWD car will struggle more.
According to ken1784 2WD will have either Lion or NiMH depending on trim level (at least in Japan) Gen 4 Staff Manual (In Japanese) =/ Specs/Design/Other Info | Page 2 | PriusChat
I agree, if your car can read the minds of the idiots around you, why would you want to turn it off. In seriousness, I agree on leaving stability control on. Traction control is another matter. Turning that off let the Sonic spin its wheels through and forward on a couple inches some fresh snow with the OEM tires. The stability control on kept the car from sliding off the road. ESP was the first time I saw stability control referred as such. I'm use to ESC, and Toyota uses VSC. Toyota ESP search got this: Datastitch.com - Toyota ESP 9100NET Embroidery Machine It could be a factor in determining a vehicle's tow rating. Plenty of 4WD trucks have a lower one than their RWD sibling. But plenty of FWD cars of tow ratings in other countries, and they once did in the US, and the Toyota hybrids there still have zero or a rating lower than the ICE model. Toyota gives tow ratings to their AWD hybrid SUVs. SO they are worried of damage happening on the FWD version or concerned about operation of the always on traction control with a trailer. *sudden insight* Is that what you are thinking, Bob? The NiMH is also of the same total capacity of the current model's. If it retains the 40% to 80% SOC, that means that the pack will always have a decent buffer in the event of AWD activation. Li-ion can be safely drained further, but may not have enough juice if done so with the AWD. Or Toyota simply wants more experience with the chemistry out in the world before dropping it in AWD models. Or there are political/business reasons for them to keep using so much NiMH.
Perhaps Toyota had so much left over because the NiMH batteries didn't fail as often as expected (by the skeptics.) Bob Wilson
