TOKYO: The first undisguised look at Toyota’s fourth-generation Prius has leaked online ahead of the car’s Frankfurt Motor Show debut. Snapped in the process of being air-freighted from Japan.
Taking some styling cues from Toyota’s Mirai hydrogen fuel cell vehicle, the new Prius features bold new triangular headlamps, and rear lighting that reaches deep into the bumpers.
While the tear-drop profile remains, a blacked-out C-pillar gives the new Prius a ‘floating roof’ look. The two-piece tailgate glass of the previous two generations remains.
Two different specifications can be seen, with the silver car running smaller wheels, while the grey car picks up larger alloy wheels and front fog lights.
Under the skin the new Prius is based on the Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA), a modular platform that will provide the basis for a number of future models.
Weight savings from the TNGA platform should see the Prius tip the scales some 100kg lighter than the third-gen model.
The new Prius will most likely run a revised 110kW 1.8 litre four-cylinder petrol engine, in tandem with an electric motor that should be lighter and more efficient than the outgoing model.
Electric-only range should be boosted, and an even longer-range plug-in version is also expected.
Full details about the new Prius will be released at the car’s official unveiling on September 8, and we’ll bring you all the details as they become available.
