{"id":26684,"date":"2021-01-21T13:20:25","date_gmt":"2021-01-21T17:20:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=26684"},"modified":"2021-01-21T13:20:25","modified_gmt":"2021-01-21T17:20:25","slug":"payne-toyota-prius-2020-edition-celebrates-20-years-as-a-electric-icon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2021\/01\/payne-toyota-prius-2020-edition-celebrates-20-years-as-a-electric-icon","title":{"rendered":"Payne: Toyota Prius 2020 Edition celebrates 20 years as a electric icon"},"content":{"rendered":"

Slipping into\u00a0the 2021 Toyota Prius special edition one night, I stared into the black abyss behind the steering wheel. No gauges. No instrument display. Just dashboard.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a reminder the Prius is the O.G. The godfather of Tesla Inc.’s Model 3.<\/p>\n

\"Toe<\/p>\n
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Prius was the first battery-powered vehicle to sell 100,000 units in the U.S. Indeed, it\u2019s hard to imagine Tesla and the dozens of other electron burners available today without the old-school hybrid Toyota. Before the Tesla moved all functions to its center screen, Prius moved its twin screens to the center console. Before Tesla was the green darling, the \u201cPious\u201d was the must-have tree-hugger accessory. Before Tesla rocketed from 0-60 mph in sub-3 seconds, well. . . .<\/p>\n

That was how Tesla transformed EVs. With performance that motorheads like yours truly couldn\u2019t ignore. Prius, on the other hand, was always the class geek. Tesla owners have posters of Chris Hemsworth on their wall, Prius owners ogle. . . Urkel. Its battery was channeled for efficiency. Stomp the gas pedal and the Prius yawned to 60 mph in 13.7 seconds.<\/p>\n

My latest gen, the 2021 Prius, is dubbed the \u201c2020 Edition\u201d to celebrate its 20 years as a U.S. icon.<\/p>\n

\"Before<\/p>\n
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Even as Prius sales have plummeted from a high of 236,655 in 2012 to a low of 43,525\u00a0last year, its hybrid torch has been picked up by more mainstream badges like Toyota\u2019s best-selling RAV4 SUV. RAV4 hybrid sales eclipsed Prius in 2019, and even hybrid RAV4s outsold standard RAV4s for a time last year.<\/p>\n

With their long range and peppy low-end torque, hybrid SUVs like the RAV4 and Ford Escape Sport have become affordable family options \u2014 and they don\u2019t make owners look like geeks.<\/p>\n

Despite its sporty XLE trim with blacked-out grille and wheels, my Prius tester still reveled in its nerdiness. For its fourth generation, 2015 remake, Prius shed its potato profile for the sci-fi geek look,\u00a0Tron tail lights, raked profile like a Jedi Starfighter, Pikachu fascia.<\/p>\n

I liked it.<\/p>\n

In this era of lookalike SUVs and soap-bar sedans, Prius stands out,\u00a0as a halo car should. The look only further polarizes Prius as the nerd at the high school ball, but get it on the dance floor and it can cut some rug. Credit a switch away from Prius\u2019\u00a0original wet noodle chassis to the tighter TNGA platform common to other Toyota sedans.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n
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The interior is much improved too. Gone is the toilet-bowl white console that greeted us in 2015. Prius XLE has a proper gray-with-black trimmed console \u2014\u00a0its horizontal dash design shared with big brother Toyota Highlander (which in turn borrows Prius\u2019 hybrid tech).<\/p>\n

The high-place instrument display offers useful graphic displays, including fuel-sipping stats. There\u2019s a Tesla-like digital readout for mph \u2014 no tachometer needed. Not that you would ever need it as Prius\u2019\u00a00-60 sprint is still a 9.8-second crawl.<\/p>\n

The display also illustrates what gear you\u2019re in \u2014 a\u00a0helpful guide since the shifter sticks out of the console like a joy stick.<\/p>\n

The back seat remains cramped for 6-footers like yours truly. But over its 20 years, Prius has made significant changes. Introduced as a sedan, it became a more utilitarian hatchback in 2003. It gained Eco and Power modes in 2009. Speaking of Power mode, my favorite Prius upgrade was undertaken by New York mod shop America Racing Headers, which stuffed an 800-horse\u00a0Hellcat engine under the hood. Called the SRT8, they bring it to the Dream Cruise each year to drag race down Woodward.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n
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The standard Prius may have been replaced by Tesla as class hottie, but don\u2019t count out its hybrid tech. As battery-powered cars mature, owners may return to hybrids for their ease-of-use. Never once did I worry about range.<\/p>\n

Over two decades, Prius has gained 6 mpg in efficiency over the 50 mpg original. At 44 mpg I didn\u2019t come close to depleting its 540-mile range tank \u2014\u00a0but if I had, I would simply have pulled into a gas station.<\/p>\n