Toyota Prius TSpirit Hybrid Synergy Drive Road Test Report

Performance

At first I was a little unsure how to quantify the term ‘performance’ when it comes to the Toyota Prius. It is not a car with performance in mind in the traditional sense of the word. However it’s combination of electric motor and 1500 CC petrol engine work well together with the switch between the two being effortless around town and stop-start driving bearing witness to the cars most impressive features.

Ride & Handling

Extremely comfortable ride as you would expect from a Toyota and surprisingly sharp handling into corners make the Prius an effortless car to drive around town. On the Motorway the relaxed driving experience seems to munch up the miles. Our car was the T-Spirit model which had Voice command, DVD Sat-Nav plus a JBL HI-FI stereo into the bargain. The controls, once you have become familiar with them seem pretty easy to comprehend and changing the settings of the car through the big screen positioned on the centre of the dashboard makes the Prius a lot simpler to operate than a conventional car.

Build Quality & Reliability

Absolutely rock-solid reliability has become the best known feature of owning a Toyota and the Prius shows no signs of offering anything different. The very fact that Toyota have attempted to turn the technological advancements they have made into an everyday car and pulled it off speaks volumes for the Brand.

Safety & Security

The Prius’ unusual layout and shape seem to add to the feeling of safety when driving the car. I wouldn’t like to have to try and break into it and drive it away as I would imagine it is pretty much impossible!

Space & Practicality

The layout of the car comes into the equation again here with interior space plentiful due to the high roof line and the unconventional dashboard giving the impression of plenty of space for the driver and front seat passenger. The Prius is also a very light car inside, lots of window and wind-screen space are the main reason for this . The stand-out feature for practicality on our car was the Intelligent Park Assist function which through a rear positioned video camera lets you see out of the back of the car when you engage the reverse gear. You can also actually programme the vehicle to assist in parking itself, with parallel parking and reversing into a tight space often the cause of bumps and scrapes I’m sure this will prove to be an extremely popular addition for the vast majority of Drivers on Britain’s crowded roads and car parks!

Ownership & Value

The running costs of the Prius are about as low as it gets. We have averaged 68MPG which is a combination of Motorway and Urban driving conditions. If you live in London you aren’t subject to the congestion charge and company car drivers will be delighted with the CO2 emission figures. At around £20,000 our car was the top spec T-spirit model but there are other cheaper alternatives in the T3 spec for example which offer the same car without some of the additional spec. Contract Hire rates and tempting finance examples from Toyota should make this car a more regular feature in company car parks than it already is.