1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

Featured Toyota is wasting an icon as Prius falls behind other brands

Discussion in 'Prius, Hybrid, EV and Alt-Fuel News' started by Tideland Prius, Dec 26, 2022.

  1. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
    Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 2, 2004
    44,768
    16,017
    41
    Location:
    Canada
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
  2. bwilson4web

    bwilson4web BMW i3 and Model 3

    Joined:
    Nov 25, 2005
    27,068
    15,372
    0
    Location:
    Huntsville AL
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Plus
    Pay wall blocked. Perhaps first three paragraphs?

    Bob Wilson
     
  3. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 8, 2015
    10,958
    8,836
    0
    Location:
    New England
    Vehicle:
    Other Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
  4. hill

    hill High Fiber Member

    Joined:
    Jun 23, 2005
    19,606
    8,036
    54
    Location:
    Montana & Nashville, TN
    Vehicle:
    2004 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    From the article;

    ouch
    .
     
  5. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
    Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 2, 2004
    44,768
    16,017
    41
    Location:
    Canada
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    bwilson4web and Salamander_King like this.
  6. bwilson4web

    bwilson4web BMW i3 and Model 3

    Joined:
    Nov 25, 2005
    27,068
    15,372
    0
    Location:
    Huntsville AL
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Plus
    Thanks, nice article.

    I've long wondered if Toyota ever considered replacing the ICE parts with a battery assembly. It might start with Leaf range but it would signal thinking 'continuous improvement.'

    Bob Wilson
     
  7. austingreen

    austingreen Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 3, 2009
    13,527
    4,057
    0
    Location:
    Austin, TX, USA
    Vehicle:
    2018 Tesla Model 3
    Model:
    N/A
    That would not be a prius that is their new platform - not sure if they will need to change it. We will see how the bz4x and variants do compared to their hyundai and tesla competitors. Ford didn't die when the model T did, they had the model A ;-) Toyota's bevs probably should not be prius.

    The obvious move was to make a prius sedan and cuv built as a phev from the ground up. They did drastically improve driving dynamics and looks IMHO and that of car and driver.

    Tested: 2023 Toyota Prius Drives Even Better Than It Now Looks

    The primes specs seem quite good also, but no car mag reviews yet. It just seems that they could make it a better vehicle designed as a phev from the beginning, let the corola hybrid and camry hybrid be the hybrid sellers. It would also be nice if they offered a higher seating position and more cargo room as an option - like the prius v - in phev form. That would not cost very much on such a platform, but might draw away rav4 prime customers.
     
  8. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

    Joined:
    May 12, 2018
    6,690
    6,380
    1
    Location:
    Pennsylvania
    Vehicle:
    2018 Prius c
    Model:
    Two
    Looks like a re-hash of the semantics: does 'Prius' mean the very latest technology, or does it mean hybrid cars?

    It's one of those things that everyone can waffle about forever without any real consequences.
     
  9. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,571
    48,862
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    how can you waste an icon, when the icon is only appreciated by a minuscule percentage of car buyers.
    for the majority, it is an object of derision.

    to me, the article is nonsense. written by another bev advocate who seems to think toyota could make a better one than anybody else for some unknown reason.
    and that bev purchases would somehow be thrust into the mainstream if toyota made one. just more silly nonsense.
    something easy to write while you're on Christmas vacation i suppose
     
  10. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,571
    48,862
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    "why doesn't toyota build the most efficient, longest range, most affordable electric vehicle in the world"?
    LOL nonsense :ROFLMAO:
     
    vvillovv likes this.
  11. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
    Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 2, 2004
    44,768
    16,017
    41
    Location:
    Canada
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    On the surface of things, I agree with the author about the Prius being the icon to push the hybrid technology and thus the perfect jump board for EV platforms.

    But it seems Toyota's approach is different. It was the Prius to be known for hybrids and has chosen the Mirai for fuel cell and bZ for EVs. It's delineating the products (for its own reasons) rather than continuing the Prius down the electrification path (which, for all we know, could've been fuel cell too).
     
  12. bwilson4web

    bwilson4web BMW i3 and Model 3

    Joined:
    Nov 25, 2005
    27,068
    15,372
    0
    Location:
    Huntsville AL
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Plus
    In 2016, I had occasion to use a Prius V taxi ... it was brilliant. Taxi is one service where a hybrid makes a lot of sense.

    Bob Wilson
     
  13. Rmay635703

    Rmay635703 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 16, 2016
    2,567
    1,595
    0
    Location:
    Somewhere in Wisconsin
    Vehicle:
    2013 Chevy Volt
    Model:
    N/A
    Then they would be Aptera
     
  14. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,571
    48,862
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    if they had called the bz a prius instead, that would have snuffed out the icon forever
     
    #14 bisco, Dec 27, 2022
    Last edited: Dec 27, 2022
  15. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 3, 2012
    10,775
    4,372
    0
    Location:
    Pacific Northwest, USA
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    I entirely disagree with the article's premise:

    "The Prius is to Toyota as the Model T and Mustang are to Ford, the Wrangler is to Jeep and the Beetle was to Volkswagen: Vehicles that define their makers and embody the values to which they aspire."

    The real truth is this:

    "Introduced in 1966, the Corolla was the best-selling car worldwide by 1974 and has been one of the best-selling cars in the world since then. In 1997, the Corolla became the best-selling nameplate in the world, surpassing the Volkswagen Beetle. Toyota reached the milestone of 50 million Corollas sold over twelve generations in 2021." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Corolla
     
    Prashanta and Pri3C like this.
  16. Pri3C

    Pri3C Active Member

    Joined:
    Apr 4, 2020
    171
    122
    0
    Location:
    Midwest
    Vehicle:
    2014 Prius c
    Model:
    Two
    Don’t forget the Camry!
     
  17. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 3, 2012
    10,775
    4,372
    0
    Location:
    Pacific Northwest, USA
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    yea, but there's only been 8 generations of Camry starting in 1979, whereas as Corolla has 12 generations that began in 1966.
     
  18. Pri3C

    Pri3C Active Member

    Joined:
    Apr 4, 2020
    171
    122
    0
    Location:
    Midwest
    Vehicle:
    2014 Prius c
    Model:
    Two
    But that’s still a 40+ year history, and the Camry has been the top selling sedan in America for many years (including 2022). I think the Camry, the Corolla, and the Prius are equally definitive of Toyota’s values, in the sense that they’re all reliable workhorses built to run and run and run.
     
  19. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

    Joined:
    Jan 6, 2004
    12,747
    5,243
    57
    Location:
    Minnesota
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Advanced
    Coming from a writer who has been writing anti-Prius articles for 20 years now...
    .
     
  20. dbstoo

    dbstoo Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 7, 2012
    1,213
    648
    0
    Location:
    Near Silicon Valley
    Vehicle:
    2024 Prius Prime
    Model:
    XLE
    I didn't see much in the article that would actually support the basic assertion of the article, which seemed to be this line: The Prius made Toyota the world's leading automaker in many ways.

    I'd like to know how that could be, since Toyota was a world leader long before the Prius first hit the market. There is, of course, a difference between a World Leader and a US leader.