4th generation coming 2015!

Maybe Toyota is resurrecting the old VW 'design cycle' where IMPROVEMENTS/CHANGES are incrementally introduced "as needed" rather than by some marketing calendar? Sorta, like "...not before its time..."?

 

No holes barred. As an aside, would you say those are the best tires one can acquire for maximizing MPG? The Energy Savers apparently don't come in the right size for the C (175/65-15).

However, I see the Bridgestone Ecopias also come highly recommended and will fit my vehicle...the reason I ask is because I'm almost at 21k miles on my stock tires. Upgrade time may be soon.

 

Good question and I do not know the answer. I bought the Energy Saver 1 1/2-2 years ago because it was recommended by Tire Rack. They now have about 40,000 miles, and seem to have many miles remaining.

In addition to mileage, I especially like the quietness of the tire. They are not especially good in snow, however, but I have an AWD vehicle that I use on the snow.

Good luck. BTW, check with Tire Rack.

 

vinnie97,

There are many examples on Priuschat of high MPGs w/o Hypermiling. FYI, this is my 2nd 3rd Gen Prius(2014, L3). Couldn't wait for the 4th Gen this year, so I just got another 3rd gen.

FYI, CR just slammed the Honda Accord Hybrid for a 40 MPG combined.

 

^That may be, but they are typically short trips where you achieve the kind of numbers you quoted, and I say this from experience. I haven't seen "many" myself, and Fuelly gives a pretty good break down of the average achieved. This "C" is also my second 3rd Gen Prius. I'm sticking with it until Gen IV or Tesla.

Felt, yes, I found the Bridgestones in my size at TireRack. One of our forum regulars has compared several brands fairly extensively, with the Michelin getting the nod. They also seem to have more longevity than the Bridgestones (with many getting no more than 50k miles out of them versus 70k for the Michelins).

 

vinnie97,

I've done many round trips from LA to SD with an average of 360 miles/ 55 MPG @ 75 MPH. The best one I got was 80 MPG for 97 Miles @ 80 MPH going downhill from Mountain High to LA. In my experience 0-5 miles it is very hard to get over 40 MPG as the ICE needs to warm up and topography of the terrain your route takes you is just as important.

 

CR has quoted Gen 3 Prius average as 44 for years. They're smoking the pipe. I'm always over 50 and lately finish the commute with 60 MPG on the gage.

 

FYI I am about to replace tyres on my Gen 3, I went for Bridgestone Ecopia EP001S - not sure whether you get these over there.

 

Well I came real close to buying a new gen 3 yesterday. Numbers were right, trade was good - but ultimately decided to hold off as there nothing wrong with my Accord at 156K. I am hoping to use my Christmas bonus on a Gen 4!

 

115 pages, and we still have not resolved if the 4th generation Prius is coming in 2015. (Title of this thread).

But, it has been a good 'journey.' Many great, thought provoking comments and discussion. I am however, a bit concerned about a comment by inferno, just several post back. It reads: "I hope **this** is not the case that Toytoa isn't bringing it together as they hoped. That would stink, but the spy shots have been out for over a year now. No other spy shots, nothing... They are (I heard) doing a ton of testing of all this new technology in Japan, nothing for sure Gen IV though."

 

...sorta like a congregation of French chefs trying to decide what to cook?

 

We just got an 05 Accord 4 cyl sedan with 116k miles. Refilled after 260 miles with 10 gal, so 26 MPG. That's about half the Prius. Still, a very good car though. Sure feels like it has a lower center of gravity and I like the way Accord turns and steers the most. Prius drivetrain and brakes are far superior though.

 

It sounds like Toyota is shooting for a major change in the 4th gen Prius. Hopefully they are not close to satisfied seeing Prius selling about 18th place here in the states and being outsold by the likes of Kia Soul recently.

I think the more they can make the Prius liftback appeal to average car buyers, the better off we'll be. They've got the MPGs down pat in my experience. I commute 13.5 miles one way near sea level and always get over 50 and 54 lately.

I personally want to see a lower center of gravity in Prius and feel like it's holding the road better in turns. It feels a little high, wallowy and a bit disconnected from the road at times. It's still a good car and I'm sure this next one will be a big improvement.

 

Oh, I do well with downhills also...I oftentimes get disappointed when I have to return in the direction from whence I came, though. :[

 

Thanks, not seeing that model # at tirerack (they have the Ecopia EP422), so I'm wondering if it's only an EU model.

 

I just finished taking the factory tour at Toyota headquarters in Toyota City, and I inspected everything they have on display in the headquarters museum. I've also been keeping a sharp eye on what I'm seeing on the roads here in Japan. Hybrids and EVs are everywhere with all different brands and models. As for what's on display in the museum, non-hybids are the exception. (In Japan, the hybrid drivetrain does not seem to carry the baggage of political stigma that it does in America.)

Overall the introduction of the Prius and the hybrid drivetrain has been pretty disruptive. But Toyota has done it cautiously. I think there is good cause for this. A few years back, while Toyota was dominating the American automobile marketplace GM was circling the drain. I think this and the perceived threat to American petroleum industry is what motivated the Toyota smear campaigns based on dubious claims about the safety of gas pedals and drive-by-wire technology. Today that leaves Toyota treading lightly, so as to avoid rocking the boat for their American competitors and the energy distribution industry.

In addition to treading lightly, Toyota is outwardly touting Hydrogen Fuel Cells as the key technology of the future. This leaves the energy distribution industry feeling safe about the future and it leaves the competing automobile manufacturers feeling at ease because FCVs are not going to happen.

Given this mix of fact & opinion, here's how I see Toyota making their next move:
1. don't intimidate the American competition
2. don't rock the boat for the energy distribution industry
3. continue to use the existing awesome hybrid drivetrain system which is used heavily throughout the Japanese market.

I predict the Gen IV will feature improvements with cosmetics, creature comforts, tech packages, and price points. I also predict the Gen IV will NOT attempt to leap frog any American made product such as the Volt or the Tesla. I predict Toyota will continue to publicly claim that EVs are irrelevant (leaving Nissan and Mitsubishi feeling unchallenged).

The Gen IV will be the coolest Prius ever, and available over a wide spectrum of price points. But it will not be a mind bending game changer.

 

I expected to be driving a gen IV by now. I hope it comes soon.

 

Inspection or consumer tour? Wouldn't you sign something to not post here?

So are you saying that Fuel Cell is almost like a cautious ploy to throw other manufacturers off? Like "We like it, we'll do it" but deep down they know it might be hard and maybe not?

What sort of EVs did you see around?

Yeah I don't know why the US isn't driving all the hybrid options that are available in Japan or Europe, don't get what's that about. Many of us would like a Yaris Hybrid, Sienna or Prius + etc...

Now the worrisome quote is that Toyota may be a bit too cautious and "leapfrog" the competition. Not sure what you mean and if you mean higher EV range for the PiP version (which we all don't expect) - but it makes me think that overall the Gen IV won't be that much of improvement (10% mpg improvement is huge!)

There's one thing that's different now from when gen ii came out and gen iii

People wooed over 30 mpg vehicles while the Prius already had 50 mpg from the epa (and supposedly a stricter test) - and some people even got 55 mpg - I for one got 60 mpg+ on several occasions.

Now the competition has easily cracked 40 mpg, and 42-45 is the norm. Suddenly the Prius went from a 20+ mpg premium and if they hit 55 mpg, to a 10 mpg+. Of course if they don't hit that, it's going to be even tighter competition.

Toyota should be aggressive, their patents are about to expire. If they stick to a 6 year schedule Gen IV might be the last Hybrid dominance, but I predict plugin hybrids are where it's going to go...

 

Dylan Doxey, you make a good point, and may well be correct. I just hope that an overly conservative business and engineering disposition will not cost them the lofty position of being the world leader in hybrid technology.

There can be no argument that the 'also rans' have closed the separation, and are 'nipping the heals' of Toyota. I understand that many of Toyota's patents will soon expire. What that means for the competition is anyones guess, but I am confident that Toyota will not rest on past reputations, and is readying the next generation Prius as quickly as possible. We had all hoped it would be a model year 2016, introduced at the end of calendar year 2015 .... and that may still occur as unlikely as it appears right now. We have learned that Toyota does not talk much about future models and developments.

If the design rumors materialize, and if Toyota can maintain the excellence in reliability they have earned, I am sure that the next generation Prius will propel them into a commanding lead once again. Many of us are eagerly waiting to have a G4 parked in our garage.

 

Another thing we're waiting for is the announcement of the 2015 model roll-over if there is one. June sales are about to expire for the 2014 models so we should expect an announcement soon either way.

If there is no announcement on the 2015 model for another month or so, maybe the unveiling will be in November at the LA show with a spring release (why else wouldn't they just say 2015 is a roll-over). They in fact already had announced last year previously in May that the 2014 model is a roll-over.