Is Gen 5 Prius really better-looking than Gen 4 Prius Prime?

Upper trim Prius have that double laminated glass on the front side windows. Does the car unlock the doors and roll down the window in the event of a crash? If not, the traditional handle isn't going to be anymore help that a flush one.

 

Even tinted windows is enough to slowdown first responders.

 

No doubt it will run hotter, to match those looks . But in all seriousness, it can be mitigated with ceramic tint. So not really an issue for cabin comfort IMO. Does that heat have a significant impact on thermal/engine efficiency? Unsure, but probably unlikely?

 

Interesting, thanks for sharing! Albeit, I wouldn’t call it “considerably more efficient”.

Just to be clear, this is a direct quote from the cited study:

“Selecting a typical white or silver shell (ρ = 0.60) instead of a black shell would lower fuel consumption by 0.21 L per 100 km (1.9%), raising fuel economy by 0.19 km L−1 [0.44 mpg] (2.0%).”

And again, ceramic tint can help migrate this other finding from the study:

“Soak air temperature in cool (solar-reflective) silver compact sedan is 5–6 °C lower than in otherwise identical black car. ► Silver (or white) car requires 13% less air conditioning (AC) capacity to cool cabin air to 25 °C.”

 

I’ve always like the look of the 17-22 Prime. I had planned to get one - in the blue magnetism color, as that is the best one - but it just never happened, due to family and budget constraints at the time. Then, when the redesign was on the horizon I decided to hold out until then, and I don’t regret it.

I still wouldn’t mind picking up a used Gen 4 Prime for my wife when her ‘16 Leaf is due for replacement, but she wants another inexpensive EV… too bad the choice is very limited in that regard now.

 

The glossy black trim is one of a few things I don’t like but I prefer it to the matte plastic that will fade over time. I will have this car for a long time unless my circumstances change. : }

It’s interesting how the metallic blue doesn’t show dirt. I almost convinced myself to switch to the pearl white but kept seeing brand new white Gen 5s on the dealer lot with dirt streaks on them. Oh well…

I still like the rear of my Gen 2. The front not so much.

 

Unusual to see the smaller screen on the Prime XSE. I wish I could afford the 360 view upgrade but I’ll be okay without it.

 

Yeah, I do miss the split rear glass design of the prior Gen’s (I had a Gen 2 & 3) for the visibility it brings, but it’s a concession I am willing to make for all the other improvements… That lower glass was a great place for a 2-channel rear dashcam.

 

That's pretty close to what mine looks like now. I've got the LTD, so larger screen, vented seats, JBL A-pillar speakers, and no eye cameras, but I've swapped to the interior red dash and shifter accents. Plus I've got the buttons to fold in my side mirrors. lol

Still waiting on a totaled XSE+ to hit a salvage yard so I can trade for the red stitched steering wheel and red accented seats. Those parts are insanely expensive even with the Black Friday sale that makes them effectively 50% off.

 

Since Tesla's Mothership Gathers so much data including odometer they can graph out even the amount of accidents per million miles.



https://www.tesla.com/VehicleSafetyReport

How suspect is it - that with such a difference - in even accidents compared to the 'other-guys' (much less, the % of these accidents that'd lead to fatalities) that the OP's dredged up study could come to such conclusions.

.

 

I was looking for a precut PPF film for the piano black accents in my prime, since I was worried it would get miserably scratched up and foggy. Never did find it and didn't want to pay the cost of custom work to cover the centre console pieces at a shop, so I left it.

While it's not *perfect* 10 months into ownership, with about 9k km on the car, its far from being obviously badly scratched. I'm not hyper careful but I'm also not a bull in a china shop, so I think it actually holds up reasonably well. Maybe a couple mini scratches if I were to look at it carefully and in the right light, but its doesn't look noticeably scuffed or anything like that. No deep scratches, etc.

The part that will get scuffed up soonest is going to be the bottom of the door panel. The car is kinda low to the ground and if you drive with boots in winter, they're clunky and you'll inevitably scuff up the door. Especially in tighter parking situations where you can't open the door fully. But that's not too out of the ordinary for most cars, just going to happen a bit sooner with the profile of the prius as opposed to something larger.

And I've also noticed that the gen5 road clearance is actually a bit higher than previous gens. Which is very welcome. I've scraped the bottom of my bumper cover on a curb or two in parking lots before, but in a previous model - or even a corolla/civic, I'd have hit the bumper cover on the curb itself, and not (barely) cleared it.

((Also, side note, why are we discussing Tesla Autopilot in this thread again? It's off topic))

 

I was referring to the shiny black painted fenders. Not as noticeable on the darker colors. I can live with the piano black accents. My Gen 2 only has a few tiny scratches on the plastic. I will miss the Gen 2 dashboard. Simple, classic design with the integrated media screen. I won’t be using the phone charger slot so I’ll have to figure something out for that. : }

I remember reading back in 2023 around this time that some people were told their allocation was a 2023 but when it arrived it was a 2024. I guess time will tell. I’m probably repeating myself.