Here's why the Prime has 4 seats

Will a baby carrier fit between the two rear seats in the Prime? Are there built-in carrier hard points on the back of the rear seat in the middle? That certainly would not be a weight issue.

I'd hate to think that adding 1 person exceeded the structural design limits. The best answer I have heard is a 5th passenger would exceed the weight limits for 15 inch tires.

I owned a 2010 Prius, and I can't recall ever having 3 in the rear seat. But it was nice to have space between the 2 rear seats to put the myriad of articles people carry in the car, like women's purses, cameras, computer, gifts and so many other things.

 

I've asked if there were the LATCH anchor points there, but the armrest is higher than the seat bottoms.

There is storage in the armrest for some of that.

 

HA ! ! !



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Are those real taxis, or just the taxi company owner writing off the cost of his car?

 

You still want more fleets of real taxis? See:

BYD Auto, Build Your Dreams!

They have BYD e6 fleets in Brussels (Belgium), London (UK), Rotterdam (Netherlands), and maybe already in more cities in Europe.

 

No, I wanted to keep the dealer sticker/license plate frame on my car, and write off all the miles I drive for advertising for them.

 

uh-huh ... & plenty of storage in the cup holders & change slots

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What about a Rear Seat Conversion kit to 5 seats? Whats the practicality of that? I'm utterly in love with the Prius Prime but the 4 seats is a deal breaker. I've seen the conversion done on a Passat.

 

until someone can remove the center console to see the charger underneath, we really won't know.

 

Look around. Notice how many sales occur that have nothing to do with being practical?

The rear seat favors comfort instead. It's a tradeoff.

Some will prefer that. Some won't. A lesson of the past is that "one size does not fit all".

 

The "5th seat" will also need belts, and registration papers of the modification specs. At least in Europe this would be required...

 

It will have been 19 years for Prius since introduction. Prime will provide a means of the trying something new, finding out what this new "battery centric" market will buy.

You want practical? You want a 5th seat? You want a plug-in hybrid? Purchase a Prime version of Camry. Think about the full-size market. What will other automakers offer?

The business must expand. Sales will come from a variety of buyers. The configuration of Prime is an effort to explore options.

 

Is there a Prime Camry or Camry plug-in coming??

 

Ford, GM, and Honda are working to deliver plug-in hybrids for their full-size sedans. Why wouldn't Toyota also?

 

that's what we've all been wondering for years. same with bev.

 

I assume Fullerton is CA so I don't know if green HOV stickers matters to you. We are waiting to see if the green HOV stickers are extended to Prime, PiP1 etc. Should hear soon. You might want to consider the original PiP (Prius Plug-In) which maybe you can get a nice used one. You will never match the cargo and rear seat passenger space of the orig PiP in a Plug-in except maybe Chrysler minivan plug-in coming soon. If you are stuck to Prime for various reasons (such as possible HOV stickers, better EV range) then we gotta wait and see if the next year model has 5 seats or if other variants such as Prius v and/or Camry come out next year.

 

Product cycle had been disregarded. Camry isn't due yet.

Lithium cost is still too high as well. Toyota doesn't want to squander tax-credits like GM has either.

There is still ground work to layout for plugging in. The industry has many steps to take still.

 

meanwhile, i'm not getting any younger.

 

Automakers aren't fully to blame. There's been a massive effort to retain the status quo from other sources.