The Prius Evolves

A prototype of the future Toyota Prius Plug-in.

With all of these new hybrids and plug-in cars hitting the market in 2010, what�s going to happen to the quintessential hybrid model, the Toyota Prius? After a spate of complaints in late 2009 about poor braking, Toyota can't afford to rest on its laurels�even though the company continues to sell more Priuses than all other hybrid combined. Therefore, expect the Prius to continue to evolve.
With the Chevy Volt and Nissan Leaf threatening to steal the green car halo, the company is accelerating its plans for a plug-in version of the Prius. It won�t become available until 2011, but expect news about its trial run of 500 plug-in Priuses to continue to gain attention. At the same time, rumors of an entire Prius family of cars�from a subcompact hybrid to a crossover�will continue to percolate. We suspect those rumors to turn into real product announcement as early as the 2010 Detroit Auto Show in January. By the time a family of Priuses hit the market, the automotive world will be well on its way to offering 30 or 40 hybrids of all shapes and sizes, from low-cost to high-horsepower, from vehicles that barely save any fuel to ones that run almost exclusively on electric power.