2023 Toyota Prius Preview

LIKES

57 mpg combined
More efficient
More powerful
AWD option
Striking design

DISLIKES

Ride quality?
Passenger volume specs?
Cargo specs?
Price?

BUYING TIP

Pricing of the 2023 Toyota Prius will be announced late in 2022.

The 2023 Toyota Prius advances the fuel efficiency that made it an icon, but adds more power this time around and a whole lot more style.

What kind of vehicle is the 2023 Toyota Prius? What does it compare to?

The 2023 Toyota Prius is a five-door hatchback reimagined for a new and perhaps last generation of hybrid cars. A hybrid once so dominant it became an icon, the Toyota Prius and Prius Prime plug-in hybrid compete against everything from the Kia Niro and Toyota Corolla to the Hyundai Elantra and Chevy Bolt EV.

Is the 2023 Toyota Prius a good car?

Known for its fuel efficiency as much as its cult following, the Prius has stood out at the vanguard of eco-chic consciousness since it launched in 2001. We can’t say how good it is until we drive it late this year, but the modern upgrades and flowing new look flip the old egg-shaped Prius on its shell.

What's new for the 2023 Toyota Prius?

While some cynics foretold the end of the Prius after its latest seven-year run, Toyota doubles down on the fifth-generation hatchback to make it the most efficient and most powerful Prius yet. It rides on a new platform, sports a larger engine, features the latest technology, and, oh, right, it gets a Toyota-estimated 57 mpg combined in base form.

The new Prius looks strikingly and refreshingly different from the ovoid mouse-controller shape of its predecessor. It rides on a new platform and it measures 2.0 inches lower in height yet nearly an inch wider to scramble its eggy past for a sleeker wedge shape. Thin running lights hook around the hood, and Toyota reverts from garish grilles on recent new models to nearly a non-existent one in the new Prius. It has the face of an electric car, but with a small lower grille caught in mid sentence. Toyota moves the high point of the hybrid back to the B-pillar, so a low hood and long windshield angle gradually before curving back down to a less bulbous hatch. A body line runs in parallel with the roofline from under the front wheel up over the rear wheel and across the tail into a full light bar. It appears the awkward split-glass hatch has been retired, and block letters announce the Prius in full across the rear.

This is not your mother’s Prius, outside or inside. An 8.0-inch touchscreen with a new infotainment interface and operating system crown the dash, but most models will come with a 12.3-inch touchscreen proliferating throughout Toyota’s lineup. Climate and volume buttons remain, and the budget-based vibe of the old Prius gets cleaned up with fake metallic trim and less visual clutter. The recessed instrument cluster sits offset near the base of the windshield, same as in the bZ4X electric crossover.

The electric car vibes continue with a lighter, more compact lithium-ion battery pack replacing the nickel-metal hydride battery Toyota had used under the rear seat for more than two decades. The more potent pack feeds a front motor on base cars as well as a permanent magnet motor powering the rear axle on all-wheel-drive models.

Toyota swaps out the old 1.8-liter inline-4 for a 2.0-liter inline-4 that combines with the motor to generate 194 hp, which is a whopping 73 hp more than the outgoing powertrain with the 1.8-liter 4-cylinder. Toyota estimates the more powerful powertrain hustles the Prius from 0-60 mph in 7.2 seconds (7.0 seconds with AWD) compared to 9.8 seconds in the pokey Prius predecessor. Normal, Eco, and Sport modes return, and it remains to be seen if the cabin will be as loud as the old Prius.

That unquestioned quickness doesn’t cost the Prius at the pump, with a Toyota-estimated 57 mpg combined. Since there’s no L Eco trim offered in 2023, a similarly equipped 2022 Prius had a 52-mpg combined rating with front-wheel drive.

Prius Prime performance

The 2023 Toyota Prius Prime plug-in hybrid carries most of the styling and feature upgrades as the Prius hybrid, but it’s 1.0-inch longer and can be equipped with a solar roof. It has the same 2.0-liter engine as the hybrid, but Toyota was conspicuously scant on details on other powertrain components, except to say the range increases 50%, which would be an increase from 25 miles to 37.5 miles, by our calculation. Toyota also said the combined powertrain output increases to 220 hp from 121 hp, and it can hit 60 mph in 6.6 seconds.

Full specs weren’t revealed at press time on how the lower roof and wider body affect interior dimensions and passenger space, but we’ll update this review once we know.

Toyota equips the new Prius with its latest suite of driver-assist technology dubbed Toyota Safety Sense 3.0 that features new sensors and enhanced detection and lane-reading capabilities. Standard tech includes automatic emergency braking with pedestrian and cyclist detection, enhanced active lane control, adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitors, and automatic high beams. A system called Proactive Driving Assist suggests limited hands-free driving in some scenarios. Options include a surround-view camera system and a self-parking feature.

How much does the 2023 Toyota Prius cost?

Pricing will be announced late in 2022. With the base L Eco model trimmed from the 2023 lineup, Toyota offers the Prius in LE, XLE, and Limited trims. Expect the redesigned Prius to cost just under $30,000, including destination.

Toyota offers the 2023 Prius Prime in SE, XSE, or XSE Premium grades that follow similar trim logic as listed below. The 2022 Prius Prime started just under $30,000, and it was about $3,500 more than the 2022 Prius.

The Prius LE rides on 17-inch wheels and standard features include an 8.0-inch touchscreen with wireless smartphone connectivity and six USB-C ports.

The XLE adds heated front seats, synthetic leather upholstery, an 8-way power driver seat, a wireless smartphone charger, and the option to upgrade to the 12.3-inch touchscreen and to follow the EV trend with a fixed glass roof.

The top Limited grade has all of that, plus a JBL sound system, a heated steering wheel, heated and cooled front seats, and a power hatchback.

Where is the 2023 Toyota Prius made?

In Japan.

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