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Prius v: A Hybrid with More Room
The Toyota Prius is the most popular hybrid car and the first to hit the market. While the launch of the Prius seems like yesterday, the 2012 models represent the third generation of the car. Many people have and love the Prius. But one of the common complaints with it is that it doesn’t have the space that people are looking for. Toyota listened to that complaint and responded with the Prius v (vee, not five). The v is a station wagon. The hybrid Ford Escape and hybrid Toyota Highlander crossovers are the closest to the V, all though they aren’t a direct alternative.
The Prius V is longer, heavier and bigger than the Prius. It is 3.3 inches taller and 6.1 inches longer. While it might not seem like a lot, it really does add up. With a storage size of 67.3 cubic feet of space, with the back seat folded down, it has more than 50% more storage space than it’s little brother.
The Toyota Prius hybrid is known for its fuel economy, that’s the car’s reason for living. The Prius gets an average gas mileage of 50 mpg. The Prius V, because it is heavier, weighing 200 lbs more than the Prius, and bigger has a lower mileage rating. Its rating is 44 mpg in the city and 40 on the highway, for an average of 42 mpg. That’s still much better than other similar cars.
It’s not a fast car. It takes a whopping 10 seconds to go from 0-60, but that helps keep the gas mileage down. It handles just like the regular Prius. It’s build on the same drive train. The hybrid engine has 134 hp. When it’s used in its electric car mode is slower. Electric mode is just one of the four available on this car. The driver can get about a mile of silent driving while in electric mode. It’s silent, but it is slow. One improvement in the V is that it has a “pitch and bounce control” feature. This is designed to give the driver the smoothest ride by negating the effects of bumpy roads.
The Prius V comes with a plethora of extra features. It has the Prius push button start. But it also has all the extra storage features that people look for in a minivan/crossover/station wagon. It has 5 cup holders which means everyone will have their own. There are also 2 gloveboxes to hold everything needed on a trip. For people who are old school and listen to CDs in their car the console will hold 23 cases.
The newest feature is the Entune multimedia system. It syncs up with a smartphone to allow access to popular apps including Pandora and other streaming media app. However, if the car is driven through a patch with no phone service this feature will be disabled until it’s got reception again.
The Prius V is the car for the person who wants a hybrid and wants to have plenty of storage space. It’s due to become available in the US in the fall of 2011.
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