Car Reviews > Toyota > Prius > Toyota Prius + Car Review
A New Prius to Save the World
The Toyota Prius + hatch is a new hybrid vehicle capable of seating up to six passengers and the driver, and looks set to only continue the huge success of these big hatchback Toyota cars. It has been 14 years since the very first Toyota hatchback was unleashed on the unsuspecting market and with more than two billion sales from all over the world, it is not surprising that the company, the largest manufacturer of motor vehicles in the whole of Japan, is keen to continue to expand on the popular range.
The designers of the new Toyota Prius + appear to have taken on board some of the criticisms of the previous models in the range, with the new car being bigger and offering both more leg and head room, while also offering more room for luggage and just simply being an all round better drive in general. Aesthetically speaking too, the new Toyota Prius + is likewise an improvement on its predecessors, with a more elevated roofline and an MPV tailgate that gives the car something of a more up to date and ultra modern look.
The expansion of size is all the more noticeable on the inside of the vehicle. With this Prius + being 30 millimetres wider, 155 millimetres longer and 110 millimetres taller than previous models in the range, plus 80 millimetres more on the wheelbase, the difference in size is notable. The expansion in size of the wheelbase also makes the steering much more precise than on previous models, something which Toyota are expecting will significantly increase the appeal of the Prius + to drivers. Of course, a bigger car also means a heavier car, with the Prius + weighing around 110 kilograms more than the hatchback, extra weight also coming from the addition of a new lithium ion battery pack.
That extra weight also means that the new Prius + will be slightly less fuel efficient, with fuel economy expected to be around 42 miles per gallon rather than the 50 miles per gallon of the previous version. On the plus side, however, CO2 emissions will be lower than on the hatchback, expected to be less than 100g per kilometre, so the new car will also be exempt from road tax as a result of this.
The Prius + is no slouch when it comes to power either. It features the same setup as the hatchback, having a 98 bhp 1.8-litre petrol engine and battery/electric engine that, combined with some extra changes to the final drive ratio, means that the car is capable of going from zero to 60 miles per hour in just 10.4 seconds. The Prius + has a little something to make it extra special in the form of the Pitch and Bounce Control, a neat little gizmo which enables the electric motor to counterbalance any road imperfections by either increasing or reducing its torque output, thus meaning that the car will be more stable and stay flat while rounding corners, making it a very comfortable drive.
All in all the Prius + looks like a winner, the only possible issue for consumers being that Toyota is apparently expecting them to pay £3000 more than the hatchback for it, for a total of £24,000.
by Autoweb
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