The 2023 Toyota Prius Appears to be like Like a Little Toyota Crown

The 2023 Toyota Prius simply had a serious glow up. The stalwart hybrid from Toyota has lastly gone by means of its awkward part and emerged as a glossy four-door automobile that boasts the excessive fuel-efficiency we’ve come to affiliate with the Prius badge, however with a twist: Toyota says the newest Prius will probably be a thrifty automobile that’s additionally quick and enjoyable to drive. That echoes a latest declare from the Japanese auto big, which it made good on with its revived flagship sedan, the Crown.

And I can’t shake the concept the brand new Prius is mainly just a little Crown. Name the brand new Prius the Crown prince or no matter cute title you need, however the newest mannequin of the long-running hybrid would hardly look misplaced within the lineup of Crown fashions that Toyota mentioned it could be releasing in Japan sooner or later.

Certainly, the brand new Prius seems lots just like the Crown “Sport Kind” of the Crown “Property Kind” that Toyota teased when it introduced the return of the flagship.

The brand new Prius simply occurs to be a smaller automobile that takes after its larger sibling, even with out the two-tone paint. The little taking pictures wedge Prius shares extra than simply the seems of the “full-size sedan” Crown. The Prius even seems just like the Crown on the within, and also will be constructed on the TNGA platform, although the dimensions distinction factors to a special variant of the bottom every automobile will probably be constructed on.

Each the Crown and Prius may even use an analogous drivetrain design, sharing new revisons of Toyota’s Collection Parallel Hybrid System with a brand new “E-4” system that grants each automobiles all-wheel drive. And regardless that the Crown’s out there engine choices are each extra highly effective than the two.0-liter Hybrid and a pair of.0-liter Plug-in Hybrid system within the new Prius, the PHEV will make as much as about 220 horsepower, which is fairly near the 236 HP of the slower Crown.

And it’ll reportedly dash from 0-60 miles per hour in 6.7 seconds, which is just one second slower than the 5.7 second dash of the sooner Crown. In fact, the upcoming Prius PHEV can’t compete with the efficiency of the Crown with Hybrid MAX total, which makes a whopping 340 HP, however that’s not the purpose.

The flagship Crown Platinum may even have a extra advanced suspension tuned for spirited driving, and it favors its rear wheels when distributing energy. So, whereas the brand new Prius will really feel sportier than any Prius that’s come earlier than, it most likely gained’t be the thing of many comparisons in opposition to the Crown Platinum.

The lower-spec Crowns (XLE, Restricted), alternatively? Properly, I’m not so positive. When you thought the Crown regarded good, however haven’t warmed as much as its tall stance or huge measurement, or in the event you thought the Crown ought to’ve had a elevate gate as a substitute of a trunk, then perhaps take a tough take a look at the 2023 Toyota Prius.