Toyota Prius Making its European Debut in Geneva

Toyota Prius

The third-generation Toyota Prius will finally hit the European stage next week in Geneva. Rated at 50 mpg in the U.S. (about 60 miles per Imperial gallons), the car should be quite a hit.

Do not let the "official" fuel economy figures fool you. Some publications have tested this car under real world scenarios, and gotten up to an astounding 65 mpg, or 78 mpg in the U.K. This car is not simply a revision of the second Prius. Over 90% of the car's parts are new, with improvements coming from a new engine, revised powertrain, and modifications to the car's shape. Rear passengers get more headroom from the peak of the car being pulled backwards. In the end, the car's drag coefficient was improved to .25 from .26.

On top of being more lightweight, it also gets more power. The new beltless 1.8-liter four cylinder gets 98 hp and 105 ft-lb of torque, a nice step up from the 70 hp and 82 ft-lb produced by the old 1.5-liter four cylinder engine. Despite the better power, the overhauled powertrain has helped to reduce CO2 emissions to 89 grams/kilometer. The driver will also enjoy a new heads-up display, solar-powered airco, and parking assist.

In the U.K., the new Toyota Prius will hit showrooms this July.

Source: Toyota

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European Premiere of New Toyota Prius

The world's most advanced mainstream passenger car, Prius stands as a motor industry milestone in vehicle powertrain development. Successive generations of the model have showcased Toyota's commitment to environmentally conscientious forward-thinking and have led the company's advance towards the creation of the ultimate eco-car.

The new, third-generation Prius remains the undisputed reference point for mass-mobility hybrid technology, setting new standards in innovation, design and driving enjoyment. Ninety per cent of the components in the award-winning Hybrid Synergy Drive system have been redesigned, making it lighter and more compact, increasing power and reducing real-world fuel consumption. Operation in cold weather has also been improved.

Overall system power has been increased by 22 per cent, while fuel economy improved by 10 per cent and CO2 emissions reduced to just 89g/km.

Prius's striking new design is inspired by Toyota's ECO-ICON concept with an aerodynamically efficient exterior that has an exceptionally low drag coefficient, Cd 0.25. The interior has an innovative dual-dashboard design, housing a series of driver assistance features that are unique in Prius's class. These include a head-up display, a steering-wheel mounted Touch Tracer control to monitor and operate a range of equipment functions, a solar-powered ventilation system to keep the car cool when parked, and a new version of Toyota's Intelligent Parking System.

New Prius will go on sale in the UK in July 2009

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Comments (14)

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sub39h

just because it generates 78mpg doesn't mean it's green!! this car does a MASSIVE amount of environmental damage in it's inception and in it's transport to overseas markets. if you want to save the planet, buy a frugal locally produced car. (And for all you Yanks out there, get over your hatred of diesel. A lot of the new diesel engines from European manufacturers are better than their petrol counterparts.)

February 27, 2009 2:17 am

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1 reply

motorjedi

Yeah, it's one of the biggest screw-overs in automotive - and environmental - history, and guess who fell for it the hardest...

February 27, 2009 3:59 am

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mantena

the most green car is the mercedes s cless.

February 27, 2009 5:47 am

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1 reply

alessandro

No, no, it is Ferrari. Few thousands of them never makes any harm but 5 000 000 Kias or Toyotas does.

February 27, 2009 3:41 pm

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adz612

what an unfortunate looking car

February 27, 2009 6:36 am

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stelvio

you're contradicting yourself, ur asking yanks to buy locally produced cars and then endorse european made diesels

February 27, 2009 7:52 am

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sub39h

my point was more that diesel technology has advanced no end in recent years. although i suppose American manufacturers haven't really invested in the technology. ok i'll give you that one. fair point well made.

February 27, 2009 11:34 am

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bjoy

yeah, blame the americans for buying cars transported from japan, and recommend cars tranported from europe? brilliant... oh yeah, and they are going to build the prius in the US for the "yanks"...

February 27, 2009 9:46 am

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sub39h

i'm not "blaming" anyone. i'm a Brit and i have an Audi and a Merc on the driveway so i'm just as guilty of buying foreign cars as anyone. the point is that i'm not pretending to be green in the first place, and personally i think the whole "green" argument is biased toward car-bashing because that way the governments can tax us more. you don't see the same sort of regulation on any other market, and in Europe cars, vans, buses, trucks etc. only account for 16% of CO2 emissions. and the damage that building the Prius does to the environment won't be alleviated by building the car in the USA. the process of making Li-ion batteries etc for the drivetrain is incredibly toxic to the environment no matter where you do it, and the materials have to be shipped all over the world to do it, which ofc generates CO2 in the first place

February 27, 2009 11:42 am

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hata0101

buy locally? no way...American cars suck, BIG TIME.

February 27, 2009 11:56 am

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joelynn

i think it more muscular and thus more attractive than the last one

February 27, 2009 9:42 pm

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jonzofon

Although I still dislike it, they managed 89 grams/km from a more powerful engine, compared to 104 grams/km in a weaker engine in the second generation Prius so hats-off to the Toyota Engineers but geez fire the desgin department,this thing is still hideous.

February 28, 2009 8:37 am

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9TNine

Not bad... an improvement on the current design. But how did the current design get approved in the first place - it was so damn ugly

March 1, 2009 8:04 pm

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surdzosurdzo

Instead spending money on wars or some stupid space technologies, they (G-7,8... i don't care how many), can invest in petrol/diesel fuel free vehicles!!! Every single crises starts with or because it. why should 6 billion people suffer because of cca 100 families + their Arab allies.

March 7, 2009 10:04 pm

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