Toyota Preps Sport Prius, Ultra-clean Diesel for Paris
27 August 2004
Auto Industry UK. At the upcoming Paris Motor Show (23 Sep - 10 Oct), Toyota will unveil a sport version of the Prius as well as an ultra clean Diesel concept car.
The Toyota Prius GT actually first appeared in public in June at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in the UK, where event organizers used it as an official car, but has yet to appear at a major international auto show. Toyota replaced the standard Prius gas engine with a zippier 1.5 liter version that provides better response and results in a power gain of 29%, from 77 hp to 99 hp. Canadian Driver.
A beefier electrical system supports a more powerful 82 hp electrical motor. Toyota upgraded the battery to handle the extra power, and boosted the generator’s maximum speed from 10,000 rpm to 12,000 rpm.
The combination of the new gas engine and new electric motor yields a peppy combined 145 hp, better than most if not all 1.5-liter engines on the market. More power and less weight result in significant performance improvements, including 0 to 60 acceleration in just 8.7 seconds. Toyota claims that when driven at normal speeds, the Prius GT’s fuel economy and emissions are virtually unchanged from the stodgier production Prius.
The D-4D 180 Clean Power concept car highlights ongoining advances in Toyota’s diesel engine technology. The engine will move into a production unit to be launched next year.
The engine uses Toyota’s D-CAT (Diesel Clean Advanced Technology) systems (earlier post) to deliver nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter (PM) emissions respectively 50 and 80 per cent below Euro IV standards.
The new D-4D engine produces in the region of 183 hp and 400 Nm of torque, performance generally so far matched only by higher displacement V6 diesel engines. No word yet on the fuel efficiency.
If Toyota would make a slightly larger hybrid -- a small station-wagon size, with roughly the interior space of a Subaru Forrester) I'd buy one in a flash.
Instead, the car companies seem to be making either small hybrids like the Prius, or now hybrid SUVs -- which only get around 28 miles per gallon.
Why are they ignoring the huge middle market? A hybrid with a little more room, getting 40-50 mpg, would sell like hotcakes.
Posted by: Hudson | 30 August 2004 at 12:35 PM
Hudson wrote:
...the car companies seem to be making either small hybrids like the Prius, or now hybrid SUVs...
The Prius isn't really "small" anymore. The 2003 versions were compacts, but the 2004 model got upgraded to a full-sized sedan. It's got roomy seats, a sizable hatchback-trunk, and the back seats fold down to give a lot more room. It's not a station wagon, no, but it's got a lot more usable room and a lot more flexibility than your standard sedan.
Posted by: Athelind | 30 August 2004 at 01:29 PM
Hudson - if it's a larger hybrid or SUV you are looking for, then Ford now offers it's popular Escape SUV in a hybrid version for the US market (Canada soon). I imagine that Honda and Toyota will be following up with their own releases.
The Escape Hybrid is certainly not going to be nearly as efficent as smaller hybrids, but I guess it's just the thing for those who love their big, ground pounders... but cant afford the rising petrol prices.
Posted by: jon | 30 August 2004 at 01:46 PM
The 2004 Prius is a mid-sized sedan, larger than the Corolla and with about 95% of the interior room of the Camry. It also has more legroom than a Hummer H1.
Posted by: sodium11 | 30 August 2004 at 02:14 PM
Hudson's looking for the in-between vehicle. Something like a hybrid Outback or Forrester would really rock my boat. I previously owned a Prius, but had to give it up when we moved to rural New Mexico (the Prius just would not hold up well on our road). We're looking at the Escape, but the mileage improvement is dismal (~67% over the V6 model which they're comparing it to, but only 22% over the V4 model which is is very similar to). Why? Because it uses a virtually stock V4 2.3 litre engine. I'd rather see a lower power V4-like vehicle, than keep the V6 power and get slightly better economy. America's hang-up with "power" and inability to tradeoff for economy makes it difficult to get a really good car (witness that even the original Prius was tuned from its transition from Japan to the US to have higher power and lower fuel economy). Toyota's Highlander is the closest thing to what we're after, but it's not due until some time in 2005 (2004 should hopefully witness the arrival of the Lexus RX330h or 400h, whatever the new name is).
My real problem is not so much with the interior room, so much as AWD and ground clearance. Toyota's AWD hybrid van, the Estima) never quite made it to US shores, unfortunately. Even so, it had poor ground clearance. So, until Ford or Toyota does something miraculous, I'll probably stick with the Outback's 22/28 over the Escape AWD mileage of 28/33 (especially given that we just bought it a year ago). Hopefully something better will come along and change our minds.
Posted by: Norby | 30 August 2004 at 02:44 PM
The closest thing to that station-wagon format I've seen discussed is Mercedes’ “Vision” concept version of the new Grand Sport Tourer. The GST goes into production next year; the Vision GST is a diesel hybrid, with an estimated 30-33 mpg. (It’s a big wagon.) Even assuming they had the hybrid in production, there’s still be the issue of bringing another diesel to the current US market. They’ll probably want to see how the diesel Jeep Liberty and Mercedes E320 CDI do this year.
Posted by: Mike Millikin | 30 August 2004 at 10:04 PM
i was wondering about 06 hybrid camry. what will be the cost? how economical?
Posted by: ralf bernecker | 03 April 2005 at 03:49 PM
i was wondering about 06 hybrid camry. what will be the cost? how economical?
Posted by: ralf bernecker | 03 April 2005 at 03:50 PM
Toyota typically releases more information the closer they get to actual launch. So, for example, we just now (end of March/beginning of April) received pricing for the Highlander Hybrid as well as full specs, and it is going on sale in June.
So we’ll need to wait a little more...
Posted by: Mike | 03 April 2005 at 04:28 PM
With oil prices trending up, and "peak oil" projected to occur in the not too distant future, I've been giving some thought to investing in one or two companies that are taking the lead in hybrid technology and overall efficiency. I find particularly interesting the diesel hybrids that can run on biodiesel blends. The question is, which companies are really getting serious about these technologies? Toyota is one? I heard of a VW diesel hybrid that gets phenomenal fuel mileage, but who do you think will have an edge when fuel efficiency finally becomes sexy again in the U.S.?
Posted by: Allen | 04 April 2005 at 01:53 PM
the US needs more diesel engines can anyone help us?
Posted by: Greig | 17 April 2005 at 05:08 PM
I'm wondering when will it enter Asia? To be exact Indonesia? Anybody know?
Posted by: Alda | 27 July 2006 at 02:01 AM
Below is a link to see a concept illustration of a Prius Wagon modification.
http://liquidsoapdispenser.com/prius/index.html
There's a link at this page to sign a petition requesting a Hybrid Wagon!
Posted by: Rob | 30 May 2007 at 10:50 AM