Toyota is expanding its lineup of Prius models, the v being the first of a new crop. With almost minivan proportions, the Prius v is designed to meet the needs of families.
In Toyota's bid to sell more Prius models, it expanded the range, coming out this year with the Prius v, a minivan version of the hybrid car. Next year will bring a compact-car version. The Prius v has familiar proportions in front, but an expanded cargo area.
The Prius v maintains the Prius design from the most current generation, with the Toyota badge on a bump and headlight casings with a slight boomerang on their trailing edges.
Just like the Prius hatchback, the Prius v uses a 1.8-liter, four-cylinder engine enhanced by an electric drive system. Net output is 134 horsepower. In the Prius v, that means between 40 and 44 mpg, almost 10 mpg less than the Prius hatchback.
Like the Prius hatchback, the Prius v has seating for five. But the rear cargo area is somewhat larger. The change in cargo space compromises the aerodynamics and is largely responsible for the reduction in fuel economy.
Toyota has changed up its head unit offerings for the Prius v, moving to its new lineup of Display Audio systems. This model has the top end of that lineup.
Buttons on the console let the driver choose Power and Eco modes. The EV button can be used no matter what other mode is currently activated. But EV mode will only stay on under certain conditions.
Toyota's power flow animation shows when drive energy is coming from the gas engine or the electric motor. It also shows when the battery is recharging during deceleration.
An new voice command system is easy to use and gives a lot of options, from entering destinations to placing calls by name to asking for music by artist.
This car came with Toyota's automatic parking system. Not very successful, this system requires adjusting before you can initiate parking. In real-world use, we could never get the parking frame to turn blue.