4th generation coming 2015!

Plug-ins need the help of Ford sales this month to keep their record string of month over previous year's month sales to increase.
Volt sales plummeted. Was that due to the announcement? PiP sales have already plummeted, so they can't be hurt much worse by any future announcements.
Monthly Plug-In Sales Scorecard

 

I know that some will disagree, but the diesel automobile in the US has not been a resounding success. Some of which is due to government regulation on the fuel that are destructive (without additives, so I am told)

I owned and drove a diesel PU truck for a number of years, and did appreciate the power and hauling ability. But I was grateful when I sold it. On the highway, it was smooth and the cabin was quiet. Fill-up were always a trial. First, the oily nature of the fuel too often made the nozzle filthy, the hose a mess when it touched your trousers, and the pavement stained around the pump (sometimes because you bought the fuel at truck stops). Second was the cost..... consistently more than premium gasoline. Third, the heavier diesel engine took a toll on the front suspension. Not to mention the higher, first purchase cost.
GM tried the automobile diesel based on gasoline engines. They self destructed in time, I suppose from the higher compression, and the engines just pounding themselves apart.

I'd consider another diesel, but I would need to do a lot of research first to satisfy myself that the higher cost is right for me. I know diesels have made a lot f progress, but it will be hard to move me away from the gasoline-hybrid. As long as gasoline is lower priced and readily available as it is in the US, I do not see much change in the buying public's or their conversion to diesel.

 

There is a huge difference in fuel economy between 70 and 80 MPH. The air friction increases by ~ 30%. According to Wayne Brown, fuel consumption will increase 15%

 

I agree with most of what you say & I don't really want to start a long argument Diesels vs Hybrids with everyone else either. It is clear from recent findings that clean diesels are not so clean after all. Over the past five years I have really enjoyed driving a Prius Gen 3 and I don't see a compelling reason to go for a Diesel. However, as Toyota Hybrid Technology matures into the Fourth Generation, it needs to become less dependant on featherweight accelarator control to achieve decent mpg returns, it should also be more tolerant of higher speed - both characteristics of diesel engines. In many ways these improvents will already have made it into Toyota"s Hybrid roadmap - just compare Gen 1 vs Gen 3 to see what I mean. And this is also why I predict Gen 4 will be even better. This is not about driving at 80mph, its about appealing to normal buyers - those who are less likely to pay attention (than us here in the forum) to drive efficiently and yet this new group of buyers will expect a decent return in mpg.

 

cmth - Thank you for your comments. Over the past year or so we have agreed on most every exchange.

I have said, (and at the risk of being told I am repeating myself), the Prius G3 is precisely on the edge. It delivers remarkable efficiency if all of the external conditions are optimum. But any one, such as extreme cold or heat, head wind, extra payload, rolling resistance from standing water (during a heavy rain), and excess speed .... all take a toll. Even low resisting tires make a tremendous difference. I am a very conservative driver (not a hyper-miler) but 52 mpg overall average is easily achievable (and I think that is commendable). Once, at Yellowstone where the speed limit is 45 mph, I drove all day at 45 mph, and my calculated mileage was 69 mpg. At a steady 60, I easily achieve in the mid 50's, and at 70, I can get 50 mpg, provided the other conditions are met. The speed limit here is 80 mph on I-15, but I stay below that, because the mileage suffers tremendously.

OTOH, my Acura, is not as adversely impacted by the above conditions, and 28-30 mpg is achieved consistently on the highway regardless of modest adverse conditions. BTW, city mileage is terrible!!!

 

We're not being redundant, we're just speaking in technical echos...

 

PiP is great for all of those 5 minute trips to the store where the prius is still warming up and gives you "only" 25 mpg. You don't get penalized for those typically bad mpg runs. In Arizona, 115 F weather doesn't really hurt the mpg that much - can still achieve 55.

 

More info on the Volt - battery tech keeps improving: 2016 Volt To Have 12-Percent Greater Overall Range - HybridCars.com

Theories though, but for sure the extra battery range. And speculation is that 12% could carry over to its Hybrid range as well which leaves the current gen Prius untouched....

 

That might simply be tighter packaging, allowing them to stuff more capacity into the same old volume. Let's hope for the Volt owners that heat dissipation is not compromised.

 

Better highway performance means having a car that cruises effortlessly at 75 mph, instead of working like our current GEN III does. Almost every other modern car I have driven will cruise faster than 80 MPH with ease, Not that I drive that fast, I am just making a point about the performance difference. In my area, the expressway fast lane is typically 75-80mph. I usually cruise at at 74-75 MPH and often have to move over to get passed by faster traffic. These faster speeds make a significant difference when driving long trips.

It would be nice to have more passing power on two lane highways. It'd also be nice to be able to climb a hill on the highway at without the ICE droning at high RPM. This can be very irritating on long trips.

We drive a hybrid not to hyper mile. We drive a hybrid to reduce or fuel bill and to have a motor vehicle that gets excellent MPG's in the city as well as on the highway. I don't really car how Toyota improves the highway performance, but I am just requesting that they do that in the next generation.

 

Hybrids not necessarily better than diesels, says Emissions Analytics | Fleet News

Diesel cars more efficient than hybrids outside city centres - Telegraph

"... their engines were found to be far less efficient when accelerating at higher speeds or cruising on motorways."

I would say it's the other way around, the non-hybrid is terribly inefficient in city driving, but closes that gap on the highway

 

Sorry, 'effortlessly' means just as much to me as 'better.'
E.g., if you mean 'quieter' or 'lower RPM' then the obvious next question is: what are you willing to give up, or how much more money are you willing to pay ?

 

I was unable to find the test details, so the results do not mean anything. However, the lack of mention of different carbon and energy densities (or reporting in Co2/mile) between the two fuels suggests a pro diesel agenda.

 

Add two more cylinders that kick in when needed? MPG will go down, but so will rpm. Or just get a magic carpet and somehow block the wind/noise.

 

I'm willing to guess that the common approach to improving the fast driving experience is sound insulation. The owner pays more, and has a heavier car.

Always a trade-off.

 

Effortlessly means that the car doesn't require heavy throttle input to maintain that speed. It means when there is a change in grade, the ICE doesn't start screaming at high RPM to maintain the speed. It means, if I need to increase my speed by 10 MPH to shoot pass slower traffic, the car can do so without going full throttle. The Camry Hybrid is a good example of a car that has ample power in highway conditions while still having excellent low speed fuel economy. I am certain if they increased the power of the ICE and the electric motors for the next gen, it would come close to meeting my needs.

 

Can't recall the last time I needed to effortlessly shoot past slower traffic....

 

active grille shutters would lower the wind noise/increase MPG/make it easier to drive high speeds.

 

No doubt, but then it would be a Camry hybrid and not a Prius. It would get 40 MPG combined and not 50 MPG.

 

More power doesn't always translate to lower MPGs. In the lighter weight and superior CD of the Prius body compared to Camry would yield better MPGs at high speed even with more power. You said yourself that CD has more effect on high speed MPG's than anything else. If the ICE doesn't have to work as hard it's not going to burn as much fuel. With my car now, a decent hill will bring the car well into power mode, with the MPG's graph maxed out.

I don't know why you are so argumentative to what I would like to see in the new Prius. Maybe we don't drive our car like a typical Prius owner, it's driven like I would drive any other vehicle. The car is working for me, not the other way around. I don't think it's out of line to expect decent performance out of a car on the high speed expressways of today. I also know of several people who would consider a Prius if the performance were closer to that of the average sedan today. It does the job for us, but it would be nice to have better performance is all I was saying. A TDI VW will gets excellent high speed MPG's and has great performance compared to a Prius (yes I am aware of the inherit efficiency differences between gas and diesel). Reliability is also of great importance to me, so I wouldn't buy a VW.