The confirmation comes by way of Toyota's own Open Road blog, where editor John F. Thompson wrote, "We thought we’d take a moment to confirm that the car shown in these unauthorized photos – at least the ones we’ve seen so far - is indeed the new Prius." That settles the matter of their authenticity, then, though there are still some unanswered questions about the 2010 Prius.
What we do know is that the 2010 Prius will look as expected, retaining its iconic shape, while the interior shots reveal a much more complicated dash, with a new telematics screen located in the center console that will likely integrate the navigation, entertainment, and fuel-economy display functions. Other differences in the new photos, compared to the current Prius, include a slightly larger body and a distinct nose and tail design. The wheelbase and track of the next-gen car are also expected to be increased slightly over the current model, though without a scaled side-by-side comparison, it's impossible to tell from photos alone.
The Hybrid Synergy Drive system will carry over largely unchanged but the current 1.5L engine will be replaced with a more powerful 1.6L unit. Power will be increased but fuel-economy will better the current model’s EPA rating of 48mpg in the city (4.9L/100km) and 45mpg (5.22L/100km) on the highway.
Toyota has done this by installing a more efficient powertrain with improved batteries for longer electric-only driving, as well as designing a lighter body though the extensive use of advanced composites in its construction.
A new battery factory being constructed in Japan will ensure there are no delays in the supply of nickel-metal hydride batteries for the new Prius, and will suffice until a lithium-ion plug-in version is released in 2010. Other updates include the possible addition of solar roof panels to help power the car’s auxiliary items such as the air-conditioning and electronic steering system.
Pricing is expected to be slightly above the current car’s $22,160 base price in the U.S. but any increase will be modest.
With Toyota’s Mississippi plant now confirmed to start building the Prius in 2010, production numbers for the new model will reportedly be increased by as much as 70% - up to 480,000 units annually – to help meet soaring demand.
Reader Comments
Thu Jun 5 2008 11:52 PM
bambam says
yes about time you change that old look. I can't seem to fix it even with a face lift and a turbo.
This one is much more futuristic and I can move to that.
Fri Jun 6 2008 7:26 AM
Alan says
Hopefully the new Prius will be much better looking, and with a 1.8L engine, it might now match or even beat 1.8L Corolla and Civic in terms of performance. However, the price premium is still too great compared to similar sized Corolla and Civic
Fri Jun 6 2008 10:36 AM
Gus says
Alan hits it on the head.
Unless you take advantage of the single driver in the carpool lane law here in California (and maybe elsewhere, I don't know) then the Prius doesn't make a lot of sense from a overall money perspective.
And why in the world is it so difficult to include something so (seemingly) simple as an extension cord to plug it in at night? Am I just not getting it? It seems like this would make the car so much more sellable.
Fri Jul 4 2008 10:44 AM
bambam says
true indeed guys.
Maybe because they can and it would still sell.
LOL
Fri Jul 25 2008 10:15 AM
varan says
Well, they were not gonna sit idly by while Honda launches their hybrid onslaught ...
Fri Jul 25 2008 11:29 AM
jed says
True, with Honda jumping into hybrids big-time things should really start to get interesting!
Wed Jul 30 2008 2:04 PM
ROOLLY says
Toyota seems slightly out of touch and is thinking with it's 90's and early 2000's brain. The RAV 4 just got increased in size significantly as well.
Wed Jul 30 2008 7:33 PM
NoNameDenton says
Many people who own a Prius have said they never get above the 30's for fuel economy (opposite of VW's diesels where people in the real world did better then the EPA numbers). Also Toyota needs to drop investing in old battery tech and look into lithium ion batteries like everyone else, or maybe leapfrog to an even better source.
Mon Aug 4 2008 7:01 PM
CmonNoNameDenton says
Oh come on NoNameDenton, the prius gets above the 30's for mpg unless you always drive uphill and never down. And if you d your homework, Toyota is exploring new battery technology, they even built a new facility which will produce nothing but battery packs to power future vehicles. So drive your vw diesels and watch us prius drivers pass you by at the not too easy to find diesel stations.
Tue Aug 5 2008 11:28 PM
eddy says
NIC3 CAR I LIKE IT
COOOOOOL
Mon Sep 8 2008 9:19 AM
Laz says
I wanted to buy a 2nd gen Prius but my knees touch the dash while driving. I hope the 3rd gen gets bigger so that folks that are at least 6'4" would be able to drive one safely!
Mon Sep 8 2008 5:40 PM
absi says
looks like it finally gets bigger tyres! thanks toyota coz the current ones are tiny and make the whole car look like a bit of a shopping trolley...
Mon Sep 8 2008 7:08 PM
Roy says
Wow, it looks just like the production Chevy Volt!
Wed Sep 10 2008 10:04 AM
Laz says
I have the Toyota "Kool-aid" in one hand while I type this! The Green rendering above has me wanting to drop off a deposit at the dealership by my house on my way home from work. I really like the look and can say that the 1.8L engine should help out greatly. I currently own a Scion xB with the 1.5L engine that does ok but works a bit to hard for my taste at times...
Wed Sep 10 2008 10:33 AM
Mike says
To me it doesn't look different enough to be called a new generation. Aside from the headlights, it looks exactly the same. And the new Honda hybrid looks just like the Prius as well.
Wed Sep 10 2008 11:51 AM
Kamacurus says
I really hope that those Maxima type lights don't catch on.
Wed Sep 10 2008 1:14 PM
JSH says
I think it looks good. No it is not an Aston Martin but it looks good enough for it's purpose. No, it isn't much different than the second generation styling but that is a result of aerodynamics. The ideal aerodynamic shape is a teardrop. This gets cut in half for a vehicle into an airfoil with a flat bottom. The rules of physic and fashion do not often intermingle.
I do noticed that they have partially fixed one of the problems on the current car which is grill size. The current car has a huge grill opening for a 1.5L engine which increases aerodynamic drag. I have taped off about 60% of the grill which gets me a couple of % better fuel economy. On the 3rd generation the grill is smaller, but still larger than needed as the prototype has 20% - 30% of the lower grill covered by the mask
The Corolla is a poor comparison for the Prius as the Corolla is a compact sedan and the Prius is a mid-size hatchback. The Prius is 9% larger than a Corolla and only 4% smaller than a Camry. The best comparison in the Toyota line is the Matrix. The Prius is 3.5% smaller than the Matrix but gets 70% better fuel economy. Similarly equipped the Matrix is $19,915 while the Prius is $21,500
Denton,
I have both a 03 VW Jetta Wagon TDI and a 05 Prius. I get 42-44 mpg city and 48-50 mpg highway with the TDI vs. 50-52 mpg city and 44-46 mpg highway with the Prius. That is with lots of A/C use in Alabama and highway driving at 75 to 80 mph. Your report of "Many" Prius owners getting less than 30 mpg is not consistent with my personal experience or the experience of those on Prius related message boards. It also doesn't jive with the average of 47.7 mpg for the 176 05 Prius @ fueleconomy.gov or the average of 47.6 mpg for the 1720 2nd generation prius at greenhybrid.com. I suspect that the "many" Prius owner's you are quoting all live in your imagination.
Fri Sep 12 2008 11:39 PM
NoNameDenton says
I do not care about your personal experiences, there are other people in the world. Oh and
CmonNoNameDenton your an idiot for a number of reasons.
Thu Oct 16 2008 9:46 AM
Alfunk says
Good God!!! what does Toyota have against good looking cars? the last Prius was Ugly, but this.... were they like "man, I don't think it's quite horrendous enough" WTF!?!
Thu Oct 16 2008 10:07 AM
Alfunk says
BTW any kind of alternative fuel tech that isn't HHO cell, is redundant, and plain dangerous. do you think after they make provisions for even the first electrical service station, the other kinds of fuel tech will have a prayer? and multi-thousand dollar batteries are just as big a threat as gas guzzlers in so much as cost and potential to royally screw up the exhisting infrastructure( what do you pay for electricity now?, how bout after all the gas stations have been replaced with electrical recharging stations?)
BIO fuels were a good start, but due to the meddling of government, and the inevitable greed by producers, it's proving to be more of a hinderance than a help. you know the first Diesel engine ever invented, and debuted at the worlds fair more than 100 years ago ran on pure Peanut oil. simple fact is HHO cells utelize exhisting internal combustion engine technology(gas and diesel) the only emission output is WATER, and the costs are so little that a mass produced HHO cell could cost as little as a couple hundred dollars. Folks if you want to truly understand why a simple, efficent, environmentaly responsible, and cheap fuel that we've known about for decades will never be used, you only have to look at corporate greed. Do some research on your own, and make your own HHO cell. If enough people start fixing the problem on their own, then maybe the rest of the world will be forced to stop for a second, and realize the error of their ways. I drive a '78 Ford F-250 with an HHO powered 460, it's huge, load and obnoxious, and it does'nt pollute, and can go for weeks at a time without being refilled(with water). I'm proud to say the only dependance I ahve on fossil fuels is for engine oil, and believe me, I'm working on that. There are also Companies trying to do the same for energy on a much larger scale(see HydroGen Corp.) I'm sure I've made no friends here, but honestly I could care less, I'm just sick of the way things are, and I wish more people felt the same.
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