Prius is in its prime at last
It’s been a long time coming, but Toyota New Zealand has launched its first-ever new plug-in hybrid vehicle: a version of the latest Prius called Prime.
We say ‘‘new’’ because TNZ has been selling used-Japanese Prius PHV (Plug-in Hybrid Vehicle) models through its Signature Class programme since 2016. Based on the third-generation Prius, the PHV can cover up to 26km on electric power before reverting to petrol-electric operation.
The new Prius Prime has more than twice the electric range of the old PHV, with a claimed 63km possible on zero-emissions power. As with the previous model, when the lithium-ion pack is depleted the powertrain reverts to hybrid operation.
Prime’s official Combined fuel consumption figure (which includes a full battery charge) is just one litre per 100km.
The battery can be recharged in around four-and-a-half hours on a conventional household socket. There’s even a touch of the exotic in the Prime’s construction: it has a tailgate made entirely from carbon fibre reinforced plastic to reduce weight.
When the Series 10 Prius model was introduced in 1997 its CO2 emissions were 114g/km. The series 20 version of 2003 reduced it to 106g/km, the Series 30 in 2009 to 89g/km, Series 40 in 2016 to 80g/km - and now the plug-in Prius Prime achieves 22 g/km.
The Prime benefits from Toyota NZ’s new ‘‘no haggle’’ pricing structure: it has been launched at $48,490.