News on 2005 Prius models?

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I have some definitive information on the 2005 Prius:






1) It will be produced by Toyota

2) It will be called the Prius

3) The model year will be "2005"

 

Yeah, well, it's the least I can do. I mean, I have little to add since I don't have my car yet and my wait seems to be getting longer rather than the other way around. :cussing:

I'm really afraid, at this point, that when I do get my Prius, the date of manufacture on the door is going to say October, 2004. :crazyeyes:

 

I even heard that it might be a hybrid.

Atoyot

 

Obviously there won't be any major changes between the '04 and the '05 since the model just came out. Also, there's no real incentive for Toyota to change a car with such a high demand. However, there are a few features from the foreign market Prius that Toyota could decide to offer, like four wheel disk brakes and the EV switch. Hopefully they will also update the NAV CD, and have an audio CD player that will read MP3s and maybe even WMAs.

However, unless they are adding a hover option, I'm still hoping to get an '04.

 

coastal dave (www.coastaletech.com) lists an auxiliary audio input among their 'coming soon' items. i want that too, if i do ever get my prius. 40 gig of mp3's on my nomad is too cool to be without.

 

Off the top of my head here's a quick list of features that are available somewhere in the world on a Prius in some market, and thus could be Options anytime Toyota wants to add them to spiff up the product.

Of course there is NO guarantee they will, but it would be basically a no-cost way for them to distinguish and add value to the next model year.

Of course this list is just for things that aren't in the US model. There are some things in the US model that could be added to some other markets if needed - Take My Bladder - Please.

'Possible' options

EV Mode
4-Wheel Disk Brakes
Daytime Running Lights
Rear Fog Lights
More Adjustable Drivers Seat
Rear Park Assist (Proximity beeper)
Backup Camera
Automated Park Assist
Integrated Side Mirror/Turn Signals
Front Fender Reflectors
Extended Spoiler
Larger Wheels
Different Lower Front Fascia
3-D Navigation
Larger Color Selection


I'm sure I've forgotten something.

 

when initially looking at the prius i was surprised to find that it did not have 4 wheel disc brakes. i remembered something i read in motor trend once where it said that the ONLY reason a manufacturer doesn't put discs at all 4 wheels is to save money...

 

If your ultimate goal is fuel economy, drum brakes are the way to go. Disk brakes tend to have a little more drag then a drum brake has. The pads ride in contact with the disk causing a small amount of drag. On the drum brake, springs return the shoes away from the brake drum, therefore zero drag. I suppose most people aren't going to autocross their Prius and with the regenerative brakes doing most of the work, Toyota may have thought that (in this country anyway) the drum would be a better choice. From a cost standpoint, I would think it would be more expensive to design and tool two different brake systems for the car when sold in various countries.

 

possible but i know disc brakes cost more on the car than drum... the point about drag is interesting and if that's the reason, it's a valid explanation. but as for the cost issue, with so many other cars in production, i don't think they would have had to re-tool much to make discs for the back... these days for stuff like that they just reach into the 'parts bin' though i'm sure mods were needed for whichever they chose because of the nature of the prius

 

rrr... clicked the wrong button

 

Unless you do spirited driving, in which case you bought the wrong car, rear disks and 16 inch tires are no improvement over rear drums and 15 inch tires.

Almost al the options listed by Tempus will increase the price of the car in the US, even if that feature is offered by Toyota elsewhere.

 

you're correct, i am not buying the prius for 'spirited driving'... i still have my weekend toy for that (see my avatar)

 

Of all those, the only one I want is the EV button.

And curb feelers, just 'because I think they're cool.

 

Actually, this is not necessarily true. Modern disc brakes have piston seals which retract the pistons and allow slight pad to rotor clearance. More often than not, the drum brakes drag more than discs, since the larger shoe must retract over a larger radius. Listen carefully after you apply the parking brake when moving slowly. I'll bet you hear a slight drag once per revolution. Regardless, the issue here is dollars. The disc brake is more expensive and usually has more mass. The caliper must have an integral or drum-in-hat parking brake configuration, also adding cost. Drum brakes, especially on low mass vehicles, supply more than enough brake torque and allow for adequate heat dissipation while saving cost and mass. The point about more cost to tool two different systems is correct, which should give you some idea how much is saved using the drum configuration. There is no real loss to us here, just less rotor corrosion and resulting noise and pulsation. Unless you are racing your Prius, that is.

 

One may legitimately want both good fuel economy and a "driver's" car. They are not inconsistent. I fall in that category. A Prius with the handling of (say) a Jetta with sport package would be about right for me. The main thing I'd want to add is more anti-roll.

And - why do Europe and Japan get disk brakes and larger wheels? Are they a litmus test in those places? Or are the driving styles so different that brake fade is an issue (in Europe - hard to believe in Japan ...)?

 

Since drum brakes can lock and disk brakes can't , the parking brake has to be a drum brake. For that reason, the rear disk brakes on 4-wheel disk brakes also have a drum brake inside. For that reason, 4-wheel disk brakes are more expensive and complicated even though disk brakes are simpler mechanically.