2023 Toyota Prius Overview: Newly Horny, Nonetheless Not Good | Knowledgeable assessment

The decision: Toyota goes after a brand new, youthful purchaser with its faster, extra fashionable, sexier Prius, which is redesigned for 2023, however some curiously lacking options, a cramped inside and low cost supplies would possibly make that difficult.

Versus the competitors: The brand new Prius’ gasoline financial system is close to the highest of the category, however others have surpassed it in inside high quality, know-how, consolation, cargo room and worth, that means the Prius might need to depend on its newfound beauty and model loyalty to seize some consideration.

Time marches relentlessly on within the automotive world as a lot as wherever else, and the Toyota Prius’ once-vaunted place as absolutely the must-have experience for anybody wanting to look eco-conscious and environmentally pleasant has been worn out by the arrival of competitor hybrids and particularly all-electric automobiles.

Associated: Redesigned 2023 Toyota Prius Ramps Up Effectivity, Security Tech

Keep in mind in 2003 when a bunch of celebrities eschewed arriving to the Academy Awards in limousines and confirmed up in Toyota Priuses as a substitute? From that second on, the Prius’ place within the American zeitgeist because the factor you drove once you needed to point out simply how inexperienced you have been was sealed — that’s, till Tesla confirmed up with a totally electrical automobile in contrast to any earlier than it. All of a sudden, utilizing any gasoline in any respect grew to become a bit much less interesting.

That didn’t cease Toyota from promoting greater than 20 million Priuses globally since its introduction, however at the moment it’s a distinct story, with different automakers providing hybrids that get gasoline mileage pretty much as good as a Prius. Lots of them characteristic a lot nicer interiors, extra room, higher know-how and, till now, a great deal extra model. There are additionally a bunch of electrical automobiles that problem the Prius’ standing because the best choice for the eco-friendly set; individuals who would possibly in any other case have purchased one are actually selecting EVs just like the Tesla Mannequin 3 or Mannequin Y, the Hyundai Ioniq 5 or Kona EV, or any variety of different new EVs that make the frumpy prior-generation Prius look dated and outdated hat. Toyota even has EVs of its personal, the primary being the bZ4X that’s now on the showroom flooring, and extra fashions are on the best way. It has different hybrids, too, that characteristic extra room, consolation and elegance than the Prius, like the brand new 2023 Corolla Cross Hybrid SUV.

So what’s Toyota to do with the Prius? Properly, judging by the completely stunning-looking automobile earlier than you, Toyota’s technique is now going to be to purpose the Prius at somebody new: a youthful, extra fashionable purchaser who could be within the Prius as a lot for its newfound swagger as its spectacular gasoline mileage numbers. It’s Toyota’s means of reminding us that hybrids are nonetheless round, nonetheless vital and nonetheless play a giant position within the firm’s plans. However will this attractive new Prius (a phrase that till now was an unthinkable oxymoron) be sufficient to recapture its vaunted eco-leader standing? Or is that not even the objective anymore?

To search out out, I drove the brand new 2023 Prius at a media occasion in southern California (Vehicles.com pays for its personal airfare and lodging when attending such manufacturer-sponsored occasions).

It’s a Horny Prius … Loopy, Proper?

No, your eyes are usually not deceiving you. That is, proper right here, the world’s first-ever attractive Toyota Prius. The 2023 mannequin ditches the weird science mission aesthetic of each single previous Prius since its introduction to the world in 1997 and replaces it with a decidedly swoopy, dramatically rakish, completely knockout look that turns heads in ways in which no Prius has performed earlier than. And it turns them in a good means, in a “Wow, that appears improbable” means and never an “Oh God, why did they try this?” type of means.

How’d Toyota do that? Essentially the most notable change is the place the roof peaks: That apex level has been moved rearward a number of inches. There’s now an extended wedge form from the nostril up the steeply raked windshield to a summit aft of the entrance row. Mix that with a a lot cleaner, far more futuristic-looking rear finish that’s instantly recognizable as influenced by the model’s flagship 2023 Crown sedan, and out of the blue the Prius goes from being an unlovable lump to probably the most fashionable automobiles Toyota has ever produced. It virtually seems to be prefer it’s from a distinct firm totally.

Excessive Model All the time Has a Value

Alas, you knew that one thing needed to give so as to obtain a glance this radically new, and the issues which were sacrificed are inside room and outward visibility. Headroom, particularly, has been minimize; it’s tough to truly get out and in of the Prius as a consequence of that super-low windshield and the automobile’s decrease roofline, and the backseat is unattainable for anybody over 5-foot-10. My overstuffed 5-foot-11 body noticed my neck bent sideways and head laborious up into the headliner. You’ll be able to’t actually even fault the non-obligatory panoramic glass roof on my check car, as there’s no opening mechanism that eats into headroom; there simply isn’t practically as a lot headroom as there was earlier than — and there wasn’t all that a lot earlier than.

Cargo room can be significantly down from the prior-generation Prius — round 7 cubic toes by Toyota’s personal measurements, with 20.3 cubic toes of area behind the backseat. Individuals who drive Priuses for ride-hailing or use them as taxis are going to seek out some mighty cranky prospects with this new model; it could be time for a Corolla Cross Hybrid as a substitute.

Entrance-seat headroom is appropriate; apart from whacking your head everytime you get into the automobile, when you’re seated, it’s decently comfy. Nonetheless, visibility out the super-sloped windshield is a little bit of a problem because of the lengthy sprint high and thick roof pillars. The rear hatch has additionally been modified — no extra split-window design to interrupt up the view behind you, however the ensuing single-glass opening is small and doesn’t afford plenty of visibility. On the top-spec Restricted trim degree, an non-obligatory rearview digicam mirror makes {that a} moot level, to good impact.

The Inside Doesn’t Ship What the Sheet Steel Guarantees

As wonderful as the surface seems to be, that magnificence really stops on the sheet steel. The inside is far more typical than prior Priuses, with a gauge cluster now situated in entrance of the motive force slightly than the middle of the sprint, but it surely’s performed within the model of the all-electric bZ4X; it’s mounted excessive on the sprint whereas the steering wheel is mounted low. You’re purported to look over the steering wheel to see the gauges, and for most individuals, it really works simply superb. The gauges additionally stand in for a real head-up show.

The dashboard will get a alternative of two shows: an 8-inch touchscreen for LE and XLE trims, or a 12.3-inch touchscreen for the highest Restricted trim (non-obligatory on the XLE). Each of them run the brand new Toyota Audio Multimedia system, which works nicely sufficient however nonetheless has extra display screen actual property than it appears to know what to do with. It’s an excessively easy system that doesn’t permit a number of objects on the display screen on the identical time or have any type of “dwelling” display screen, but it surely’s nonetheless respectable and comparatively straightforward to make use of.

The difficulty with the inside is the supplies high quality. It isn’t precisely unhealthy, but it surely now not feels aggressive with fashions like the most recent Kia Niro hybrid. There are little or no soft-touch supplies inside (none within the second row), and all of it has a grain and texture that appears bargain-basement. It’s no worse than the final Prius, but it surely’s no higher than the final Prius, both, and that’s a problem when the competitors is clearly spending cash on richer environments with higher tech, shows and controls. The steering wheel, for instance, is just ugly to take a look at and an odd form in addition. The seats are both fabric-covered on the bottom mannequin or SofTex imitation leather-based on greater trims.

There’s additionally an odd mixture of options. As an illustration, the highest Restricted trim degree has heated and ventilated entrance seats — however the passenger seat doesn’t provide any energy changes. There was solely single-zone automated local weather management on my check automobiles, identical to the 2022 mannequin, in an age when virtually something with automated local weather management now provides at the least two zones for occupant consolation. There’s an out there panoramic glass roof, but it surely doesn’t open.