How many more yrs of Gen 5 do you think there will be? Will Gen 6 introduce Toyota's new much longer lasting electric bat.?
This website is so cooked. Does anybody know if there's a plan in place for administrator succession?
Nobody knows. Anyone that gives you a firm answer is just guessing. There's even a real chance there never will be a gen6, or that North America won't get it if there is. If I had to guess, I'd say the best chance is the early 2030s; maybe 2031 or 2032. We're barely at 3.5 years of full gen5 production right now, and we lost about a half year of that between the two rear door switch stop-sales. And then we factor in that the Prius is a fairly low production car these days. I just don't see Toyota dumping a bunch more money into Prius development anytime soon. Not with all the other models that need to be refreshed or introduced in the next few years; many of them much higher production models or high profile models like the new Celica or MR2. That being said, I wouldn't be shocked if the gen5 Prius got the new battery tech at some point. From my understanding, the new battery is basically compatible with the current ones. So it's not like the whole powertrain needs to be changed to use it. It'll be like the transition was from NiMH to Li-Ion: some models/trims get it first, others later. And I suspect it will be less about the Prius and more about new battery production levels and the needs of other models in the Toyota/Lexus fleet. If the new battery tech is needed for the new Corolla or Sienna or some Lexus SUV or the upcoming sports cars, and production of the new batteries is limited while they scale up manufacturing, then I'd expect the Prius to be pretty low on the list for the upgrade. At the end of the day, closely watch what Toyota does with the new Corolla in the US. Especially if they go hybrid-only in North America like the Camry, Sienna & RAV4. If they do that, the Prius's days might be numbered. The main reason North America doesn't get the hybrid Corolla hatchback(or the wagon) is because they're afraid of cannibalizing sales with the Prius(both being lower cost, car-based, 4-door hatchbacks). If Toyota finally brings the hybrid Corolla hatch to North America, it probably means the Prius is on the chopping block.
