2010 Toyota Prius
by Rebecca Antioco

It’s difficult to believe that it’s been over a decade since the now-ubiquitous Toyota Prius hit North American shores. In its first year here, sales numbered a mere 5800 units. But word caught on quickly and sales steadily increased, reaching nearly 25,000 units sold in 2003.

That’s the year the second-generation Prius was launched, with improved performance and power. Sales shot up 125 percent from 2003 to 2004, and as it became hip to be green, consumers lined up at Toyota dealerships with visions of 50-mile-per-gallon fuel economy dancing in their heads.

By 2005, even with Priuses seemingly scarce and selling well above sticker price, it was Toyota’s third-best selling vehicle in North America, behind Camry and Corolla. Total cumulative worldwide sales topped the million mark in early 2008, when high gas prices had everyone flocking to hybrids and other fuel-efficient vehicles.

But, sales fell along with gas prices and the economy, leading Toyota dealers to offer incentives on the Prius for the first time ever. Given those circumstances, combined with Honda’s re-launch of the Insight, timing seems just right for a brand-new third-generation model.

So, what’s new for 2010? Well, 90 percent of the components in the Prius are completely new, the exterior has been redesigned to be more aerodynamic while still maintaining its distinctive wedge shape. The overall vehicle height remains the same, but because the top of the roof has been moved back nearly four inches, rear headroom is increased, as are the aerodynamics. Overall size is largely the same, with the length increasing by .6 inches. There are subtle styling changes, including more defined lines along the sides.

While the overall dimensions of the Prius haven’t changed, new positioning of the battery-cooling unit has resulted in a cargo-area gain of .4 inches in length, and 2.2 inches in width. We’ve always found the Prius to be surprisingly roomy, and the headroom and cargo increases only make it that much more so.

The interior design remains quirky, with a floating center console angled down at an ergonomic and convenient angle for the driver to operate the climate and audio controls. The speedometer, fuel-consumption monitoring and other information is housed in a center digital display, rather than in front of the driver. The shifter has moved to a more conventional placement in the center, but oddly and inconveniently, the seat warmer buttons in our tester were located below the console near the floor.

Overall, the interior layout is an improvement, but the materials used are a decided step down. Textured hard plastic abounds, with silver accents doing little to upgrade the look. In the spirit of being “green,” Toyota used plant-derived, carbon-neutral plastics in the seat cushion foam, and certain trim areas. In our view, eco shouldn’t mean cheap looking.

From a comparison standpoint, Prius still outdoes the Insight in terms of interior space and versatility. Insight, while larger than the previous, doomed iteration, is a compact car while Prius is classified as a mid-sized. Pricing between the Insight and Prius base models is competitive, with $2200 separating the two, Insight being the less expensive at $19,800.

Prius comes in one model with four different trim levels: II, III, IV and V. Three option packages are available, one of which includes several new safety technologies including intelligent park assist, Safety Connect, and pre-collision systems.

Standard equipment on Prius II includes full power accessories, keyless entry and ignition, cruise control, tilt/telescoping steering, and a six-speaker CD audio system with an auxiliary audio input jack. The III adds Bluetooth and an upgraded audio system; IV gets heated leather seats, auto-dimming mirror, lumbar adjustment for the driver, front water-repellant windows and upgraded trim. The top-level V gets 17-inch alloy wheels, LED headlamps with auto-leveling and washers, and foglamps.

Moving up in trim level also gets you access to more option packages. The Navigation Package ($1800) is available in the III, IV, and V and includes XM satellite radio and a backup camera. The III and IV can get a Solar Roof Package ($3600), which, in addition to the Navigation Package features, gets a power tilt/slide moon roof with solar-powered ventilation system and remote air-conditioning. The V model can get the Advanced Technology Package ($4500), including all the Navigation Package items, plus a pre-collision system, dynamic radar cruise control, lane-keep assist and intelligent park assist (previously seen on Lexus).

The hybrid system, which combines a 1.8-liter Atkinson-cycle four-cylinder engine with an electric motor, produces net horsepower of 134, 24 more than the previous generation. Fuel efficiency increases to a combined 50 miles per gallon, and three drive modes let the driver adapt the Prius to his or her desired power and efficiency needs. You’ll get the best fuel economy in Eco mode, but the drive quality suffers slightly. Power mode will drive you up hills and help you get up to speed or pass more easily on the freeway. EV mode operates only at 25 mph or less, with at least a half-charged battery pack, and runs solely on electric power.

The new Prius drives better than the previous generation, due to a more rigid chassis and a revised steering system. The steering is tighter and the drive couldn’t be quieter. It outshines the Insight in every respect, including drive quality, road feel and quietness. Handling has been improved and the drive dynamics are excellent. On a 65-mile roundtrip up Tucson’s Mt. Lemmon, I averaged 63.6 miles per gallon at 35 miles per hour, in power mode, the least efficient choice. Not too shabby.

Toyota has been at the forefront of the hybrid revolution. While the first-generation Prius buyers were techies and environmentalists, the second generation brought it mainstream. Going forward, the company’s goal is to have 10 hybrids worldwide by 2012, and a hybrid option for every model in their lineup by the 2020s. The third-generation Prius will make current owners envious and ready to trade up, and may bring buyers into the fold.