2023 Toyota Prius Amazes with a Sizzling New Physique and 220 Horsepower

• Toyota has revealed the U.S. model of the 2023 Prius hybrid and the Prius Prime plug-in hybrid.
• The usual mannequin produces both 194 hp or 196 hp, and the Prime has 220 hp.
• The brand new Prius will go on sale within the U.S. someday subsequent 12 months.

Each new automotive goals to be faster and better-looking than its predecessor, however it wouldn’t have taken a lot for Toyota to make such claims in regards to the new 2023 Prius. Being sluggish and ugly has all the time been the Prius’s factor—and that’s not even meant as a knock towards it. Sluggish and ugly labored for the Prius, which was a gross sales hit for a few years and even received one among our 10Best awards in 2004. However the quintessential mass-market hybrid has fallen out of favor lately, amongst patrons and C/D staffers alike.

The completely reworked fifth-generation Prius seems to be simply the precise antidote. Considerably extra highly effective than earlier than, it additionally gives barely higher gasoline economic system and provides many new options together with photo voltaic panels and a hands-free driving function. And wait, it seems to be like that?!

The identical teardrop form stays, however the brand new mannequin’s easy facet surfacing, elegant detailing, and way more athletic proportions make us look again on the earlier mannequin and marvel—what occurred? If the Prius might have seemed like this all the time, why didn’t it? The entrance finish options scooped-out headlights with a C-shaped LED accent gentle, whereas the rear has a full-width LED taillight strip that appears like the brand new Crown sedan’s. Two inches decrease than earlier than and one inch wider, the Prius has a complete new stance—and seemingly a brand new outlook on life.

This extends to the brand new powertrain that bumps output as much as between 194 and 220 horsepower, relying on the configuration. That’s an enormous uptick from the earlier mannequin’s wheezy 121 hp. Toyota claims the brand new Prius will speed up to 60 mph in between 6.6 and seven.2 seconds, which might make it really feel like an NHRA dragster in contrast with the 10-plus-second runs of the earlier mannequin.

Though Toyota hasn’t launched detailed powertrain specs fairly but, one contributor to the newfound muscle is the two.0-liter inline-four gasoline engine that replaces the earlier 1.8-liter unit. All Prii now use a lithium-ion battery pack that’s mounted below the rear seat; the previous nickel-metal-hydride pack that was nonetheless present in sure variations of the outgoing automotive is gone. The all-wheel-drive Prius additionally swaps its induction-style rear-axle-mounted motor to a brand new permanent-magnet synchronous unit.

A 194-hp front-wheel-drive setup is commonplace, and the all-wheel-drive mannequin provides 2 hp to that complete. The FWD-only Prius Prime, in the meantime, tops the vary with its 220-hp plug-in setup that features a bigger lithium-ion battery that guarantees round 38 miles of electrical driving vary, in contrast with the earlier Prime’s 25-miles score.

Regardless of the additional grunt, Toyota additionally guarantees an EPA mixed score of 57 mpg for the bottom front-wheel-drive LE mannequin with its 17-inch wheels. That’s one higher than the outgoing 2022 Prius Eco’s 56 mpg score, though including AWD and choosing the XLE and Restricted fashions’ bigger 19-inch wheels will doubtless drop that quantity considerably.

In contrast to earlier than, the Prime plug-in doesn’t provide a lot visible differentiation from the usual automotive (thankfully, they each look good now). However now that it’s essentially the most highly effective Prius, Toyota is pitching it because the sporty one, because it’ll be provided solely in SE, XSE, and XSE Premium trim ranges. The usual automotive may have LE, XLE, and Restricted fashions, similar to earlier than.

Whereas the decrease trims aren’t something fancy—they lack energy seats, function a comparatively small 8.0-inch touchscreen, and can doubtless look dumpier on their 17-inch wheels—the Restricted and XSE Premium fashions introduce some novel tech goodies and comfort options. An enormous 12.3-inch touchscreen comes on board within the higher trims, together with an influence liftgate, and a digital rearview mirror is elective. The Prime will provide photo voltaic panels for its glass roof that juice up the battery whereas the automotive is stationary to assist energy accent capabilities and the air-con. Additionally completely elective on the Prime is a Visitors Jam Help perform that enables the motive force to go hands-free below sure circumstances below 25 mph.

We’re anticipating Toyota to boost the worth considerably on the Prius, however the base mannequin ought to nonetheless are available below $30,000. High variations will doubtless exceed $40,000—however perhaps that’s not such a stretch because of the Prius’s newfound swiftness, high-end options, and, most of all, its simple curb enchantment.

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