2026 Gen. 5 Prius Wish-List

Debadging is pretty quick and easy. Less than 15 minutes with a hair dryer and some dental floss.

 

These giant rear emblems have unfortunately become a thing. h o n d a is doing the same among others. These OEMs have no common sense. The benefits of advertising are being negated through the aesthetics of the product.

It reminds me early 1980 cars when giant emblems were placed on the sides.

 

I recently helped a family member score a ‘25 XLE for $29.5K with 3K miles, and I debadged it for them in 10 minutes with a hairdryer and some rubbing alcohol. Fishing line would have been helpful, but everything pulled off pretty easy. I was going to try and save the letters but a couple broke off (very light and cheap plastic).

I actually like the spaced out badging of the Prius and many other vehicles following this trend, but, like @Gokhan, I was thinking of the potential negative attention on the road + now it’s a little easier to wipe, polish, wax, etc.. and the more minimalist look suits its sleek and sporty design as well:



They wanted to keep the PHEV badge.

 

Looks nice. Sounds like a really good price for an XLE, 3k miles 'barely' used, you did well.

I'm new to Prius, end-user (my daughter) is in Socal, so thinking not a lot of 'Prius hate' there (was in Socal a couple months ago for a wedding, seemed like every 3rd vehicle in LA area was either a Tesla or Prius). Will have to peruse that thread on 'why the Prius hate', I don't get it, not aware of it here in SE Louisiana, but I haven't driven my LE much either, hope I remain blissfully ignorant.

My wish list has pretty much been covered (spare tire, tach, etc). On the active grill shutters - for '26 models (both HEV and PHEV) they seem to be present. Hidden at the end of the EPA/CARB compliance docs Toyota sent to EPA/CARD for 2026MY Prii - Engine Control System Schematic (page 64 for Prius HEV Microsoft Word - FOI_TTYXV02.0H3B_APP_INI_R00(残りバッテリーラベルのみ), page 93 for PHEV Microsoft Word - FOI_TTYXV02.0H3W_APP_INI_R00) - both show active shutters.

Also, the compliance docs and CARB Executive Order approvals (and the VECI labels under the hood) don’t mention a gasoline particulate filter (GPF) anywhere either for US vehicles (not yet at least, they'll probably happen eventually), have seen people mention somewhere they thought USA Prii had GPF's - am I wrong?. Same for the US ’26 Corolla Cross Hybrid with the M20A-FXS.

 

Yes, it was a really good deal and close to home. Hybrid sedans are hard to come by around here. I love the silver color! It was classified as a corporate/ fleet vehicle, so maybe that had something to do with the lower price. It was 31K even out the door. They also listed and sold it as an LE trim even though they knew it was an XLE. Not sure what that was all about but whatever works! It’s basically a new XLE at an LE price (ToyotaCare intact), and it was a very quick and easy low-pressure sales situation.

As for “Prius hate” I don’t think it’s that big of an issue. I’ve not experienced or noticed any aggression myself, but I drive the little Prius and it blends in well. But whether it’s Prius, Tesla, Jeep, Mustang, Big Trucks, etc.. I’ve discovered there’s quite a few seemingly prevalent negative stereotypes to contend with regarding what you choose to drive (online at least).

 

It used to be that fleet vehicles had more varied options available. My son's 2015 Prius V was ordered as a fleet of one. It had factory remote start which many dealers did not even know was an option. Factory installed was cheaper than port installed. Of course, he got a premium when he traded it in on his RAV4 Prime.

 

I wish my 2026 PHEV had tighter steering response. The steering is too loose and vague for my liking.

 

Yes, I noticed that when I test drove a Gen 5 HEV. The problem is at the center, which reminded me of my 2009 Corolla XLE, which had incredibly loose steering at the center. I even complained to NHTSA about it, and Toyota engineers came and test-drove my car for 600 miles. All they did afterwards was to reduce the electric assist and make the steering heavier, which made the center feel even worse.

Other than the looseness in the center, the steering is somewhat faster than in my Gen 4 PHEV though. The 2009 Corolla was similar in that regard. But the looseness in the center is irritating. It seems to be a design defect by Toyota, surprisingly repeating after fifteen years, since when electric steering was first introduced.

 

Loose or numb?

In older systems (a half century ago, not a decade ago) there was often slop in the gear so steering on a highway meant moving the wheel against each side of that play.

Electric assist doesn't have to make a steering system numb and light, but the wheel in my car is both. The sport mode makes the steering effort higher, but it's just as feedback free as the lighter setting. Yet, it does seem precise and free of that on center play.

 

I was hoping "sport" tightened the steering even ever so slightly but nope.

 

Center play Is a good way to describe it. Too much play too loose and too numb. Overall too vague, too light all of this making the steering feel unresponsive.

 

If you have significant center play so that you are constantly pingponging off each side of that play as you drive down a straight road, you might want to have your new car looked at for a problem.

If it's just very light and numb, this will confirm that you've purchased a genuine Toyota.

 

I think the Gen 5 Prius HEV/PHEV come with loose center steering from the factory, which was confirmed by my test drive and some reviews. There is no fix.

 

Yep, the sport mode only reduces the electric assist and will not make it tighter at the center. In fact, it will make the problem worse as there is more friction in addition to the looseness.

 

Mine has no appreciable center play. It's light and numb.

If you move the wheel a few degrees and the car changes direction and stays on that path, it can be horrid and light, yet precise.

Tight/loose can also refer to the steering ratio.

 

I would describe it more as a nonlinear steering response at the center. The car doesn’t steer if you turn the wheel very slightly and then it starts steering fast at one point when you turn it further. Perhaps “vague on-center feel” is a better term to describe it than “loose at center.” Most people will get used to it, especially when coming from a car with a similar vague on-center feel.

 

Yeah I highly doubt there is any fix it's something owners who expect a sportier driving experience will have to live with.