The Toyota Prius is still the champ, and it has been for 20 years running. No other hybrid matches its combination of mileage and cost-to-benefit ratio. You can buy one for just over $23,000 — about the same price as other midsized non-hybrid sedans and hatchbacks — and it gets nearly twice the mileage of a non-hybrid midsized car. Unlike an electric car, it never has to stop for hours to recharge because it can recharge itself (the hybrid car's most practical virtue).
The Prius is Toyota's famous hybrid, the first mass-produced petrol-electric hybrid vehicle to market (in 1997) and the hybrid with the longest continuous production.
Prices start at $23,475 for the base One trim. A top-of-the-line Four Touring has a $30,015 sticker.
What's New
After a complete redesign last year, the 2017 Prius has an all-new exterior high-performance lithium-ion battery pack that is lighter and smaller than the nickel-metal hydride unit. Safety features that were previously optional now come standard, including automated emergency braking.
What's Good
The new lithium-ion battery pack takes up less space, so there's more room for cargo.
The car uses less fuel than most motorcycles.
It's efficient and economical, unlike electric cars.
What's Not So Good
There are 3 inches less legroom in the second row — 33.4 inches instead of 36.
It takes about 2 seconds longer to get to 60 mph than the average non-hybrid midsized sedan with a four-cylinder engine.
Under the Hood
There's still a 1.8-liter gas-burning engine, a pair of electric motors and a battery pack. However, all have been revised for greater efficiency. The 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine uses exhaust heat to warm up coolant more quickly, which increases the thermal efficiency to 40 percent and, in turn, reduces its appetite for fuel. The electric motors — one at each front wheel — are redesigned to need less power to propel the car. The battery pack is now physically smaller, but it's a more potent lithium-ion unit.
Total output is down slightly: It gets 121 horsepower total (the combined effort of the gas engine, the electric motors and the battery pack) versus 134 horsepower for the previous model.
Just as before, a continuously variable automatic transmission is standard, and it has driver-selectable modes — Normal, Power and EV — controlled by the trademark toggle shifter mounted on the center stack.
The car accelerates about the same — zero to 60 mph takes about 9.8 seconds — but the new Prius uses considerably less fuel than the old model, and not just in terms of the published numbers, which are 54 mph city, 50 highway. The Eco model gets 58 city and 53 highway, with aerodynamic enhancements and a lower curb weight.
On the Road
The Prius has never been speedy, but it will almost go forever on a fill-up, and that has long been its chief virtue and main sell. I averaged 56.7 mpg during a weeklong test drive.
Though the new car is 2.4 inches longer overall, the turning circle has been tightened up by almost a full foot to 33.5 feet. That plus the ultra-light electric-boosted power steering makes it exceptionally easy to maneuver in close quarters, such as parallel parking on busy city streets.
At the Curb
Because the battery pack takes up less space and the other parts are smaller and more efficient, the car can be packaged differently. It looks sexier, too. Note the low-cut door side glass, which, interestingly, swoops down and forward.
There is substantially more cargo room now, too, as well as a bit more headroom in both rows and more legroom up front (43.2 inches).
The one negative is that the 2017 has 33.4 inches of back seat legroom, which is significantly less than the previous generation (36 inches).
The Rest
All trims get urethane, or SofTex synthetic leather, that has temperature-regulating properties. It feels cooler to the touch in summer and warmer to the touch in winter.
In all trims, the air conditioning system is smart and electrically driven. It can sense whether anyone's sitting in the passenger seat, and, if no one's there, it doesn't waste airflow on that direction. Eco trims get exterior glass that's treated to reflect infrared solar radiation, reducing the load on the air conditioning system.
The bottom line: The Prius saves you gas mileage and money.
Eric Peters' new book, "Don't Get Taken for a Ride!" will be available soon. To find out more about Eric and read his past columns, please visit the Creators Syndicate webpage at www.creators.com.
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