Toyota Prius Prime

2017 Toyota Prius Prime: Efficient new hybrid shines

The 2017 Toyota Prius Prime, a plug-in gas-electric hybrid, is a new addition to the country’s largest selling hybrid family. It replaces the Prius Plug-in and it’s the most ambitious Prius on the market. Its exterior design, full of sharp angles and a unique narrow exterior light design in the mainstream automotive industry, removes the stodgy image of previous Prius models. The Prime is chock-full of technology, most visibly the navigation system and infotainment center. It’s an 11.6-inch vertically oriented high-resolution touchscreen, and it dominates the dashboard. It’s standard on the Prime Premium ($29,965) and top-line Prime Advanced ($33,965). It’s not available on the entry-level Prime Plus ($27,100). I drove the top-line Advance trim recently for two weeks during the

Read more
,

2017 Toyota Prius Prime: Into the mountains with ease

Eleven days into coverage of the Amgen Tour of California, I’ve surpassed 1,000 miles while driving the 2017 Toyota Prius Prime plug-in hybrid. My trip began May 10 in Sacramento, and the race just ended in Pasadena. The women raced for four days, including two days in South Lake Tahoe and two days ending in Sacramento. The men raced for seven days from Sacramento to today’s concluding high-speed finale from Mountain High to downtown Pasadena. As the newest and most technologically advanced Prius since the hybrid debuted in the United States in 2000, the Prius Prime is among the few affordable green vehicles that can change the automotive industry. It joins the all-electric 2017 Chevy Bolt and the luxury Lincoln

Read more
,

2017 Toyota Prius Prime has short shift, not short shrift

The transfer today for stage 4 of the Amgen Tour of California took me from Morro Bay to Santa Clarita, California, and I’ve now driven a 2017 Toyota Prius Prime plug-in hybrid for a week. I’ve covered 775 miles and averaged 55.9 mpg, nearly two miles per gallon more than plug-in hybrid’s rating. The route from Morro Bay was a coastal trek on Highway 1 and then a diversion to Highway 101 south for about two hours. The route then turned inland on 154 through small hamlets before rejoining 101. The final short stretch into Santa Clarita was a switch to smaller inland roads on state route 126. The drive covered 184 miles. With two brief stops to stretch and

Read more
,

2017 Toyota Prius Prime: Fuel efficient, safety galore

After nearly six full days of driving the 2017 Toyota Prius Prime plug-in hybrid during the Amgen Tour California, I stopped for my first refuel about two hours into a 3 1/2-hour evening drive from San Jose to Morro Bay, California. The route was primarily a long, straight haul north-south along Highway 101 before an undulating, often single-lane finishing 17-mile trek on Highway 41 into the ocean resort city. I stopped with about 90 miles left in the drive. I filled up the Prius Prime with 9.3 gallons at $3.09 per gallon for a total of $29.00. I’d driven 499 miles. The 2017 Toyota Prius Prime is rated at 54 miles per gallon. I averaged 53.3 mpg on my first

Read more
,

2017 Toyota Prius Prime fares well on the long, winding road

After two days of brief, round-trip commutes of only a few miles each way from Harvey’s to Heavenly Mountain Resort, I returned today from South Lake Tahoe to Sacramento in my test vehicle, a 2017 Toyota Prius Prime. It’s a plug-in hybrid. I’m driving the new vehicle, the most upscale Prius ever made, for the entire Amgen Tour of California. The women’s race began May 11 in South Lake Tahoe and ends May 14 in Sacramento. The men’s race begins May 14 in Sacramento and will advance to its May 20 conclusion in Pasadena. Driving the reverse route of the 103-mile haul from my home in Sacramento to South Lake Tahoe, I made two brief side stops on the way

Read more

2017 Toyota Prius Prime: Cool technology for modern hybrid

The 2017 Toyota Prius Prime plug-in hybrid is the most upscale addition to the Prius family. Its exterior design removes the stodgy image of many of the models in the country’s best-selling hybrid lineup. The Prime’s interior is chock-full of technology, most visibly the JBL navigation system. It’s an 11.6-inch vertically oriented high-resolution touchscreen. While not available on the entry-level Prime Plus, it’s standard on the Prime Premium ($29,965) and the top-line Prime Advanced ($33,965). I’m driving the Advance trim for two weeks during the Amgen Tour of California, May 11-20. It will take the women’s field from South Lake Tahoe to Sacramento over four days. The men’s race will begin in Sacramento on May 14 and progress to Pasadena

Read more

2017 Toyota Prius Prime named Green Car of the Year

For the second straight year, Toyota has been awarded World Green Car honors at the New York International Auto Show. The Toyota Prius Prime was named this year’s winner after its sibling, the Toyota Mirai, earned the award last year. The Prius Prime was chosen from an initial entry list of 12 new vehicles from around the world. Tailpipe emissions, fuel consumption, and use of a major advanced power plant technology (beyond engine componentry), aimed specifically at increasing the vehicle’s environmental responsibility, were all taken into consideration. Toyota is no stranger to the World Car Awards program, now in its 13th year. In addition to the Mirai’s win last year, the Toyota Prius earned “Top Three in the World” status

Read more

2017 Hyundai Ioniq Electric greenest of green cars

The unheralded Hyundai Ioniq, the new midsize sedan with the unusual name, has the smallest environmental footprint among 2017 vehicles, according to American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE). The 20th annual environmental ratings, available on greenercars.org, is a comprehensive list of the year’s Greenest, Meanest, Greener Choices, and best-in-class vehicles. “Anyone buying a new car now has plenty of options for making an environmentally smart decision,” said Eric Junga, Transportation Research Analyst at ACEEE. “Whether you are looking to purchase the greenest car available, or the greenest vehicle for your needs such as a minivan, or simply stay away from the bottom of the list, greenercars.org can help you.” The following vehicles comprise the Greenest List for 2017. Each car is given a

Read more
Previous