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The 2009 Prius, On the "Green" Horizon

By Professor Green, on 05-01-2008 00:00

Favoured : 19

Published in : Blog, Blog

In my opinion, the new Toyota Prius model is the most highly anticipated car in the world. Toyota announced some time ago that they would unveil a brand new Prius body style, along with a higher electric capacity, in 2009. Will Toyota appeal to a younger audience along the lines of their Scion series? This would obviously make the car more marketable if they were to choose to go in that direction. Or will the Prius come in various models that all carry the Prius name brand, once again along the lines of the Scion series? The rumors and questions have become rampant and the answers remain vague. A Toyota concept car called the Hybrid X was at first thought to be the 2009 Prius body style. While that is not exactly true, a version of the Prius may be based loosely on the look of the Hybrid X. Nevertheless it seems a sleek and sporty look for the Prius is on the horizon. The future of the automobile industry hangs in the balance. Toyota plans on continuing to advance their hybrids by increasing economy ratings and decreasing cost. In order to compete with Honda’s Fit hybrid concept for 2008, Toyota has doubled efforts to make the new Prius more appealing and efficient. It is said to get 113 mpg based on Japanese fuel economy ratings which may get ‘lost in translation’ by American standards. Some say that the 2009 Prius will ‘run longer and faster in pure electric mode’ and therefore will be more efficient overall[1][1]. The combination of a more appealing look for wider popularity, as well as improved fuel efficiency and even less emissions makes the new Prius a potential champion in the industry. It will be the next link in the evolutionary chain. If the Prius craze in North America gets even bigger than it is now that would put pressure on other manufacturers to compete. This will snowball into an expansion of consumer demand for hybrid cars in general.

The next generation of Prius has three distinct versions. They are currently known as Prius A, B, and C. Yet this will most likely change into more specific names in the future. These cars will debut in 2009, 2010, and 2011. When Toyota releases these cars on the market they will no longer have a need for hybrid versions of their other cars such as the Camry. These will become obsolete. Toyota hybrids will exclusively have the Prius name. All three of these versions are said to be less awkward and more practical than the current model. The Prius A will be the equivalent to a hybrid version of the Yaris, while the Prius B will be larger than the 2007, and the Prius C will replace the Camry hybrid. The C is the model rumored to take on the look of the Hybrid X concept car[1][2]. If so, I’ll be driving that one out of the showroom myself! The most important thing is that fuel efficiency and cleaner emissions continue to improve. Yet it is also important that future hybrids will continue to be able to run more and more on electricity. All electric vehicles will result in zero emissions, yet this cannot happen overnight for a variety of reasons. Hybrids will move little by little toward running on more electric until they are eventually obsolete and no longer hybrids, making way for all electric plug-ins. Currently it is the Prius that is leading the way. After seeing the 2009 Prius, I am confident that even more people will begin to drive in its path. The path towards a “greener” tomorrow!

[1][1] http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/News/articleld=109981

[1][2] http://www.automobilemag.com/features/ news/0706_future_toyota_hybrids/index.html

Last update : 05-02-2008 02:57