I've been hearing hints that the Prius will see a jump forward in 2009 or 2010, but in the meantime lines like the Corolla and Camry are going to have Hybrid options added and improved so that, with the Prius basically flooding the roads right now, you can start to pick the look you'd like for the most efficient car on the market.

If you want a hint at where the 2010 Prius will go, Toyota's engineers already mapped out that their dream is Fuel Cells. I wouldn't be shocked to find out the 2010 Prius ripped the Hydrogen off your gas with a catalyst and exhausted steam out the back.

My 3 requests for the Prius, in order of likelihood:

1) Improve blind-spot visibility! Redesign the back slightly so that the frame does not obstruct the most important area of visibility for changing lanes. It's not difficult.

2) Expose a port in the trunk to the electrical system that makes it simple for interested engineers to modify the Prius (for example, to turn it into a Plug-in Hybrid, to add batteries, to add solar, etc). A community has inevitably formed around this in the US and it's in Toyota's best interest to nurture it - the Prius is amazing sure but it's the community mods that make headlines, and make enthusiasts. Current mods are $10000-15000 and the primary reason is because the electronics are difficult to access; a minor design change could lower this to $2000. A change like this would solidify Toyota's leading position in the market not only because they'd be the only car manufacturer with a community this strong, but currently no one even builds a hybrid capable of taking advantage of these sorts of modifications.

3) Make a Mini! The Mini Cooper has disappointingly poor mpg for its size and it's because the engine is nearly full-size yet stuffed into a golf cart. It's a thrill to drive. A sport-style Prius would get far better mileage, be faster off the line, and it might even make the Prius look gain acceptance - that sleek exterior combined with that mean machine mentality could do away with the "weak hybrid" notion once and for all. I'd sure rent one to experience it - it would be a hell of a ride.

 

Toyota has announced a Lexus, two-door, two-seater sports car with a hybrid electric drive. It is supposed to be out in 2007 and will be an awsome ride.

Seriously, look at the Lexus line for the upscale, perforamnce designs. Recently, I read a Road and Track report comparing a Lexus with a manual transmission BMW. They had to use a manual transmission BMW to beat the Lexus accelleration speed. It is one of the common techniques used by auto-mags to make non-hybrids look 'less bad.'

Bob Wilson

 

Hello all,

In 2008, it'll be a Big Bang of Toyota Hybrids.
We'll see Li-ion and a lot more.
You know the Toyota strategy is they wiil offer the hybrid options on all vehicles.

We already have in the US...
RX 400h
Highlander
Camry
GS 450h

In Japan, others are...
Crown
Alphard
Estima

We'll see LS 600Lh soon.
Prius is the symbol of the Toyota hybrid vehicles.
It's target is the best fuel economy and affordable price/performance.
It's very minor.
Mileage is the first, visibility is the last.
Does Toyota or any car manufacturer like it?
Or, any car manufacturer did it before?
Or, the government would allow it?
A styling is subjective. But, is it consistent with the visibility?

Looking forward seeing the MY2009 Prius.

Ken@Japan

 

"Improve blind-spot visibility! Redesign the back slightly so that the frame does not obstruct the most important area of visibility for changing lanes. It's not difficult." - SoopahMan

Try adjusting your side-view mirrors as indicated elsewhere in this forum. Eliminates blind spots entirely.

"different controls on the steering wheel - I'd prefer having stereo power, and a "mute" button, and climate fan up/down, and losing stereo "mode" and temp up/down (or button could do temp if in "auto" mode and fan if not)" - Sweetbeet

The MODE button turns the radio on if it's off, and if you happen to have a cable plugged into the AUX in the center console, hitting MODE until AUX comes up will basically mute the stereo. But honestly, how hard is it to hit the power button on the dash? Those who'd rather have a POWER and MUTE than MODE are the ones who only listen to one type of media - radio or CD. The rest of us like a little variety.

As for the A/C and fan, as I've tried a hundred times to explain to my wife, if you want the fan higher, click the TEMP DOWN button 2 or 3 times, and the reverse to turn the fan down. The system doesn't have a "cold / colder" A/C setting - it just has A/C on or off, and when it hits the temp you've selected, it lowers the fan. She just doesn't get it...

 

Agree with this. I thought there might me some blind spot issues before I got the Prius but it is totally a non-issue.


Coming from a car that had a mute button on the steering wheel I find I miss it quite a bit in the Prius. I would like to see a mute button in addition to the present audio controls, not replacing any of them.

I find it amazing that just because someone wants a mute button you instantly can analyze their listening habits. Then go on the quite condescendingly tell us you like more variety. Give me a break.


By your logic why not just get rid of the steering wheel controls all together? Honestly, how hard is it to just hit the volume control, mode buttons etc. on the dash?

 

Ditto, Picasso. It's OK to love the car... but if someone has a different opinion about it you don't need to slam them.

As for the blind spot, I searched the Prius section for "blind spot" and "side mirror," neither turned up instructions on adjusting the mirrors - it did turn up others agreeing it's a problem. I was actually just driving tonight and a jeep snuck up on me; 45 degrees from the vehicle is a major danger, especially if the vehicle is moving into the lane next to you from a lane outwards and you're considering switching into the same lane.

Oh, I also searched the forum in general for "Prius blind spot" to no avail. I'd link to the searches to save you the time, but this forum's search links don't work that way... .

 

Not a chance.

 

I have seen rear-view problems in our 91 Camry, 01 Echo and 03 Prius. I am interested in updating the FAQ with:

(1) instructions on how to adjust and problem areas (aka., are tall drivers sitting at the rear limits most impacted? How about drivers sitting at the front rails?)

(2) after-market modifications that work

Do the experiment and post it here. I'll be happy to add it to our FAQ.

Bob Wilson

 

haha lakedude I'm with you - when I read the word "Hydrogen" and "Fuel Cell" in Toyota's write-up I immediately groaned... we've been hearing about that crap for a decade and seen nothing from it.

But, I started to reconsider when I looked into it a little more: there's at least one company that's got the exact technology Toyota's talking about working in a Vespa-like bike:
http://www.fuelcellmarkets.com/artic...1&subsite=6903
Note that the bike name is mispelled there, it's the "Vectrix," not Vetrix. I actually have an engineer friend who worked there a couple years ago and she says those fuel cells are the real deal.

At its size, that 500W fuel cell could be stacked, replacing the gas engine and Power Split Device. It's a good fit - and further that stack of cells could be distributed anywhere in the car if not all in the hood. The cost is right in line too - if Toyota wanted to sell the Fuel Cell Prius for say $35,000, they could do it with the current cost of those cells. 2010 seems realistic, especially if Toyota's had it in mind this long (well-planned).

 

The Toyota FCHV is real since 2002.
http://www.toyota.co.jp/en/news/05/0617.html

The fuel cell Vectrix is not real yet.

Ken@Japan