Toyota Prius C – Hybrid with 1.5 litre Engine from Toyota
The fierce competition between Toyota and Honda for the sales of hybrids to Malaysian buyers takes on a new turn with the introduction of the Prius C, with Toyota bringing the fight closer to the Honda Insight by offering an almost irresistible price of RM97, 000. Whereas there used to be a RM40+k gap between the Insight to the bigger 1.8 litre Prius, the Prius C will be fighting tooth and nail with the Insight, and the newly launched Honda Jazz Hybrid. I guess it finally boils down to brand loyalty when it comes to the purchase decision, although there are some distinct differences between the Toyota and Honda hybrid systems.
The most distinct difference between the two is in the air-conditioning system. In the Honda Insight and the Jazz hybrid, the air conditioner runs on a standard belt-driven compressor – which means that when the engine is stopped (when the battery charge is adequate) at a traffic light, the compressor does not run, and all you are getting is the blower pushing air through the cabin – the air remains cool for a while, and then starts to warm up as the temperature inside the blower fins start to warm up. If you want the air-conditioner to function as normal, then you have to take your foot off the brakes, thereby invoking the engine to restart, and turn the compressor. This will negate any fuel saving for the time that you are stationary.
In the Prius and Prius C system, the compressor is electrically operated, and in the same situation, the battery powers the compressor whilst your engine is stopped. This will go on until the battery runs low on power, after which the engine will automatically turn on.
Next difference is that the Prius C can go fully electric at low speeds, whenever there is enough charge in the battery, although in my testing, it was only good for a couple of kilometres, and up to around 50 kph only, and only on very light throttle. Both have the ECO-drive modes, wherein the engine management system tries its best to minimise fuel consumption. Enough about differences – let’s go into my test session of the Prius C.
From the exterior viewpoint, the Prius C looks good, although the tyres do look a little skinny – a fact dictated by the fact that skinny tyres have less rolling resistance, and therefore promotes fuel economy – I guess the designers have worked out the balance between road-holding and good fuel economy here. The base platform comes from the Yaris, (which is another name for the Vios) which means the Prius C, in terms of size, especially for the interior, would be close to that of the Vios, except that it is a hatchback – however, it does not look exactly like the Yaris, as some key features have been re-designed for product differentiation. I would venture to say the Prius C looks better than the Yaris.
Inside, it is quite obvious some great efforts have been made to reduce the production cost, evidenced in the lower quality materials used for the interior trim. They look decent, though I may say that this is not a car I would rave about as far as interior quality goes. I suppose there has to be a balance between what is nice to have versus the price one has to pay. Insofar as the technology is concerned, I would say that the drive train and hybrid system is first class. The salient features that drive the hybrid are much the same as in the bigger Prius – when you switch on (by pressing the START/STOP button), all you are doing is turning a switch ON, like in an electrical appliance – there is no sound, and only the radio and air-conditioner starts if you left them on previously. When you accelerate, the Prius C takes off silently on its electric motor drive, and the engine kicks in seamlessly when required. In my test drive, as long as there was enough charge in the battery, I could go as high as 50 kph before the engine kicked in. However, if you have a heavy right foot, and step on the throttle pedal a little harder, the engine kicks in immediately – sensors in the system assume you need more power, and activate the engine to do just that.
There is an ENERGY MONITOR mode on the display screen (which you invoke by pressing on the MODE button on your steering wheel) that will tell you what is happening to the energy in your car. You can have totally power coming from your battery, or battery and engine combined. When you lift off or brake, you will see (digitally) the engine shut off, and energy being recycled back into the battery, and of course, the level of charge in your battery – something I find quite fascinating. With another screen, you can see your performance, your average fuel consumption, and plenty of information related to your driving. With this information constantly on call, you can really ‘tune’ your driving style to get the best fuel economy.
On the road, the Prius C drives decently, and handling is quite good for a car of this size and capacity. Top speed I achieved was 170 kph (indicated), which is quite decent, considering its capacity (1.5 litre with motor assist). When push comes to shove, it will be about on par with a good 1.8 litre engined car. On outstation trips, it will return anything from 16 to 18 kilometres per litre of fuel, but when driven around town at low speeds, the Prius C is in its element – the hybrid system works all the time to save fuel for you, and if you just drive normally, with a light throttle, you will get great numbers – we got as high as 22 kilometres per litre just puttering around the city without trying too hard.
All thing said, the Prius C would make an ideal city run-about car – with all the traffic jams and stop and start traffic, the Toyota Hybrid Synergy drive system will be in its element, and where other cars are burning fuel unnecessarily, you can have that smug look on your face, knowing that you fuel bill will be around 10 to 12 sen a kilometre. If you travel a lot out-station – you might want to consider the 1.8 litre Prius.
