Spy Shots: 2008 Prius
by Dan Roth on Jan 21st 2007 at 12:18PM 
Never content to rest on their laurels, Toyota has been applying kaizen to the Prius. Look for their next high-efficiency space capsule to bow in 2008 with significant tweaks and tweezes. The body shape remains familiar, though in actuality it's totally changed. Width is expected to grow an inch, while length will shrink the same amount. The artist's rendering depicts a nose that looks inspired by Lamborghini, while the shape of the greenhouse and rump retain their aero-friendly profile. We can understand not making drastic changes, it's not like the Prius's look is dated. Heck, some of us still can't get used to it. You know what it is when you see it, though, and Toyota's hard wind-tunnel work probably doesn't leave a ton of room for form variation. More exciting than the sheetmetal is what's underneath. The Atkinson-cycle four-cylinder will increase in displacement from 1.5 to 1.8 liters. That should help with long climbs in the hills and other situations where the battery pack is out of the loop. Toyota's way ahead of everyone else with their Hybrid Synergy Drive's software and calibration, and they intend to stay there. Changes to the HSD system along with new battery technology are rumored to bump city mileage to 80mpg. Solar panels in the roof for passive recharging as well as plug-in options are also being considered. We're curious how Toyota intends to nearly double the city mileage number, especially in light of the new EPA guidelines coming for 2008. Series Hybrid, perhaps? I guess we'll have to wait and see; rest assured that execution will be fastidious.
[Source: worldcarfans]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
David 11:45AM (1/21/2007)
Oh yeah! That's a nice possibility. The current model was not enough of an improvement over the first (Classic if you will) in terms of efficiency. This one looks like my next car.
Over 6 years with the original Prius...not problems to mention. What a great car.
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mluu510 12:44PM (1/21/2007)
i hope they make the car sharper. it will look like a gallardo.
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matt 12:46PM (1/21/2007)
good mpg gives me a boner
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big jimmy 12:53PM (1/21/2007)
The changes are more evolutionary than the total redesign between 1st and 2nd generation Prius, personally i think these cars look to futuristic for their time, anyway, Toyota sell these things buy the thousands anyway, at least this upcoming generation won't offend current generation Prius owners
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steve 12:58PM (1/21/2007)
Series Hybrid? I'm not sure about your terms and what you meant by this.
The current Prius is a parallel hybrid, meaning that either the gas engine or electric motor can independently propel the car. This setup would be required if the car was to add a higher-capacity battery and motor to become a plug-in hybrid.
A series hybrid, like Hondas that use their IMA system, cannot propel itseld solely with the electric motors. I can't see how this would increase city fuel economy, especially in light of a more powerful and larger displacement gasoline engine.
Most likely, the power of the electric motors and the capacity of the batteries will increase as well, allowing the car to run farther and faster while keeping the gasoline engine turned off.
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mike garcia 12:57PM (1/21/2007)
give us more reasons to make fun of people that drive hybrids... why do they have to look so stupid!
toyota, make a hybrid corolla! or hybrid yaris! so people actually take hybrids seroiusly.
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Toyota Videos 12:59PM (1/21/2007)
Looks like a compact Lamborghini Gallardo.
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Ed 1:05PM (1/21/2007)
I am not an asian-car-basher. I drive a Nissan. Wife drives a Toyota, which I like quite a bit.
But this car is UGLY. Flat-out, BMW 3-Series ugly. Not "a matter of taste" or anything like that. Just plain ugly.
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to each their own, ya know!? 1:21PM (1/21/2007)
I tell ya, there are tons of cars I think are stupid, useless vehicles, and ugly, to boot, but I don't care to flame them, by name, or anyone driving them.
Now, I KNOW an owner of the 04 Prius. Over 53,000 ... city 51-52MPG, hwy, 47-48, avg of 50 MPG.
No Problems at all.
I would not mind if my mid-sized sedan got avg/combined 50 MPG.
Plus it's a hatch.... better than a car with a trunk(more useful, IMHO).
Go to Edmunds, 2004 Prius, and long term... they STILL(2007) have the car, and almost 50,000 miles, and said they have achieved over 50 MPG at one time( last report on MPG was May 06, but they do monthly "drivers log" entries, and it was 50.1 MPG).
So, close to what our associate has got on her vehicle.
This may be our next ride, in 09-2010, when it's time to dump our vehicle.
Get's old getting "25-30" MPG or 33-34 MPG for a Mid-sized sedan in 2007. I thought small cars would get 60 MPG by now!
They got 30-40 MPG in the 70's!(yes, i know, engine and car sizes have increased, blah,blah, blah).
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bryan 1:15PM (1/21/2007)
my dad used to work for hertz rent a car and he drove lots of Prius's and he would check the thingy seeing how much it got 2 the gallon and he always seen them get 38-45 mpg. never higher.
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David 1:39PM (1/21/2007)
NOT A SPY SHOT
If you follow the link and read the article, it's an artist's concept of what it MAY look like. They just titled it SPY SHOT to get hits...
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LaughingTooHard 1:50PM (1/21/2007)
So no one is upset that they are getting less than the EPA numbers, since you are buying a car mostly for the millage? Most people who drive the Prius gently are getting 40's not 50. Funny how we I drove one, I couldn't break 40mpg. Then again I was keeping up with traffic and not being a road hazard.
Seeing the price difference between a Corolla and Prius means it will take over 200,000 miles until you make up your wise investment.
Here the study I find most useful:
http://www.edmunds.com/advice/fueleconomy/articles/116513/article.html
13.6 years at 15K/year. End of story. The Prius is a cash cow for Toyota and a drain on YOUR taxes. Funny how the GM and Ford entries are 2-6 years to recoup and the Toyota/Lexus group is 6-15 years. But please keep buying Toyota's overpriced cars. Good car or not - getting ripped off is not a sign of intelligence. Toyota sold 60,000 Prius using $3150 of YOUR tax money. That 19million dollars could have used for much better public works than lining their pockets with profits. Now they want to extend that rebate and are ready to introduce a new model that will not get EPA ratings either. Now that sounds like a good idea, dolts.
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Julio Orellano 1:51PM (1/21/2007)
That's not a spyshot, it's an "artist's impression". The title of this post is very misleading.
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chuck goolsbee 2:50PM (1/21/2007)
I wish they's add some technology to the Prius to prevent their owners from driving 62 MPH in the passing lane of Interstate 5 for miles on end.
--chuck
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Ross 1:56PM (1/21/2007)
Listen to Julio (#13). That's why it looks like a Gallardo. It has Gallardo headlights! Thank you, Photoshop!
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jacqueusi 2:25PM (1/21/2007)
Wow LaughingTooHard, what a lie of omission. If you're going to link and then quote the Edmunds article, how about including the following, "Comparing the Prius to the Camry LE, though, makes it a scene-stealer: only 2.1 years to break even, the shortest of any of our comparisons. But beware: The numbers here include the Prius' gigantic $3,150 federal tax credit, which will drop to $1,575 in October, because the number of total Toyota hybrids sold has reached a 60,000-unit-per-manufacturer cap."
The Prius is considered a mid-size (i.e. Camry) and not a compact (Corolla) car. Lets compare apples to apples please.
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James Sonne 2:26PM (1/21/2007)
Gas mileage is not the only reason to buy a hybrid. More independence from oil companies, maintenance scheduled at significantly wider intervals, practically zero emission on the interstate, and supporting the latest technology. If you want hybrids or electric cars to become the next best thing, then buy them now so that car companies know that they will sell.
I love sports cars, and have some money aside to treat myself to an EVO after the IX prices come down. But I also love the latest technology, and would be beside myself to own a Prius with plug-in technology and solar panels covering the roof, which I hope Toyota makes available as part of an option package. Aside from gas mileage, the above reasons are also reasons why I want to buy a Prius. You can easily redefine fun in a car by attempting to stretch out your mileage. It's the difference between sprinting and long-distance running.
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Turbofrog 2:28PM (1/21/2007)
Steve, a series hybrid (as in the Chevy Volt) uses the ICE solely to power a generator which charges a battery. There's no direct connection between the engine and the wheels. That way you don't need to worry about having flexible power delivery, you can just have a tiny engine that's super efficient and optomized for one rpm that it will charge the batteries at.
The Volt (and this potential PHEV Prius, if it is in fact a series hybrid) are a pretty good glimpse at the future of efficient cars. It makes a lot of sense.
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artie43 3:12PM (1/21/2007)
I expect great things from Toyota. I owned a Toyota back in 84 and it was an good car but then I needed more room and started driving Ford vans. Haven't owned another Toyota until 04. I have an 04 Prius and it is the best vehicle I have ever owned. No problems at all and the first major service is 120K. If my wife wasn't handicapped we would probably get another one. Instead we will probably get an XB. Whatever, it will definitely be a Toyota. Have a Honda too, but the Toyota is the best car IMO. Toyota for cars/vans and Honda for trucks/Suv's. Won't even consider any other brands no matter how low a price they have! For the last several years my life has been simple and trouble free in regards to vehicles. This is the way I want to keep it.
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jake 4:14PM (1/21/2007)
are they gonna do something about all the SMUG thats produced by Prius owners that think there saving the world, while only getting the same mileage of any other compact Toyota?
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