New Toyota Prius review

You’d be forgiven for thinking Hollywood stars would only choose to drive exotic or highly luxurious cars, but the Toyota Prius has famously won over quite a few celebrities with its eco-friendly image.

In fact, the Prius name immediately springs into many people’s minds when you mention the word "hybrid", and it’s undoubtedly a car associated with combining petrol and electric power to maximise fuel efficiency. 

This fifth-generation version’s rakish styling and more natural proportions make it far more visually appealing than its predecessor, and because it shares its underpinnings with the Toyota Corolla, it promises to be better to drive as well. The other big news is that the Prius is now available only as a plug-in hybrid (PHEV) so you can officially travel up to 44 miles on battery power alone.

This could be shaping up to be the best Prius yet, but these days there are plenty of strong competitors it must compete against in the cut-throat family and company car markets. Rivals include the Peugeot 308 Plug-in Hybrid and the VW Golf eHybrid, while the revised Audi A3 in 40 TFSIe form is also due to arrive.

The question is, does the new Toyota Prius stack up well against the best PHEVs – or indeed other family cars you might be considering? Read on to find out...

There’s only one engine option in the Toyota Prius and it’s a pretty good one. Under the bonnet there’s a 2.0-litre petrol engine that’s paired with an electric motor to produce a combined output of 220bhp. We managed a 0-60mph time of 6.9 seconds, which matched the VW Golf eHybrid tested on the same day.

In hybrid mode, the Prius sets off from stationary using the electric motor before the petrol engine chimes in as you build up speed. When the two are running in sync, the Prius responds keenly when you need a sudden burst of acceleration, and doesn’t feel as lethargic as a Golf eHybrid when the battery has depleted.

When you’re just running on battery power, the electric motor in the Prius has no trouble keeping up with low-speed traffic. However, when building up to higher speeds you need to press down on the accelerator pedal more liberally.

The 13.6kWh (usable capacity) battery has an official electric-only range of up to 44 miles, but during our real-world test, we managed 37.6 miles in a top-spec Excel version with the larger 19in wheels. The Design version on smaller 17in wheels should improve on this result by a small amount, but either version beats the 308 PHEV’s official 35 mile range.

Regenerative braking comes as standard to help recharge the plug-in hybrid (PHEV) battery when you lift off the accelerator. The Prius has a default adaptive setting that automatically uses the system to slow you down when approaching corners or to maintain a distance from the car in front of you.

To have a constant braking effect requires a simple nudge of the gear lever from D into B mode. An extra nudge increases the strength of the braking effect (with up to three levels of strength) and in its strongest setting, the Prius will slow down to a walking pace without being too aggressive. When you do need to press on the brake pedal, the meaty response is precise and it’s easy to come to a stop smoothly.

While the petrol engine in the Prius becomes quite vocal under hard acceleration, it’s quieter and less coarse than the unit in the Golf eHybrid. Road noise is relatively low and Excel trim comes with laminated side windows to help reduce wind noise, making this a comfortably quiet long distance cruiser. The CVT automatic gearbox also helps the Prius deliver its power more smoothly than rivals.

This is one of the more comfortable PHEV family hatchbacks around. The ride remains settled and the suspension rounds off harsher ridges and potholes with less of a thump than in a Golf eHybrid. Meanwhile, the Prius feels neatly tied down over undulating roads.

We wouldn’t describe the Prius as sporty by any stretch and there could be more outright grip, but the steering provides a good sense of connection with the front wheels. A smaller steering wheel also helps the response feel more direct, making the Prius feel more precise and engaging to drive than both a Peugeot 308 PHEV and Golf in everyday driving.

"I know we often see the Prius being used as a taxi, but this latest one is one I’d actually enjoy being the driver in." – Dan Jones, Senior Reviewer

It's easy for most drivers to find a comfortable seating position behind the wheel of the Toyota Prius.

All versions come fitted with powered lumbar adjustment to boost long distance comfort, while Excel trim comes with electric seat adjustment to make life a little more effortless. However, some drivers may find the steering wheel obscures the bottom of the 7.0in digital driver's display mounted high up on the dashboard, so you have to adjust the wheel awkwardly low to avoid blocking the view.

Visibility could also be better. While it’s easy to see over the low dashboard in the Prius, you don’t have to drive very far to realise the long and awkwardly sloping front pillars impede your view ahead more than in most family cars.

The view over your shoulder and out the back is limited by substantially chunky rear pillars and slightly smaller side windows than some rivals. At least front and rear parking sensors and a rear-view camera come as standard to help with low-speed manoeuvres.

Top-spec Excel also includes a camera mounted on the roof that can feed a live view out back onto a display integrated in the rear view mirror – handy, for when the rear windscreen is blocked by a passenger or luggage.

More positively, the layout of the controls on the dashboard makes them very easy to locate and use while driving. For example, adjusting the climate control system is very straightforward, thanks to a row of physical buttons below the central air vents.

Rivals that have climate controls integrated into the touchscreen, such as the Peugeot 308 and, for the most part, the VW Golf are less user-friendly. The buttons to select which hybrid mode to use is also located on the centre console rather than in a sub-menu in the infotainment system.

Speaking of which, the Prius's 12.3in infotainment touchscreen is easy to read, plus it has a column of icons close to the driver that makes it easy to hop between functions.

The menus listed on the far left hand side of the screen can require a bit of a stretch for some drivers, while some of the submenus could also be easier to find. You get wireless Apple CarPlay as standard and wired Android Auto but not wireless phone-charging.

Meanwhile, the digital instrument panel is clear and the main readouts are easy to read, but there are quite a lot of small icons in the settings menu and it doesn’t offer any customisation or a range of layouts. The Virtual Cockpit system you find in the Audi A3 and VW Golf are far more slick and impressive.

The Prius doesn’t feel as opulent inside as the best family cars (such as the A3 and BMW 1 Series) but it still ranks above mainstream rivals in terms of quality. It feels robust enough, while all the buttons and switches are well damped. There’s a good amount of soft touch material on the upper sections of the dash and on the doors, but it’s a shame it doesn’t look particularly upmarket or appealing from a distance. 

"The interior doesn't have that much in terms of wow factor, but it's very easy to use." – Darren Moss, Deputy Digital Editor

The Toyota Prius has plenty of space up front for six-foot tall adults to get comfortable but it doesn’t feel as airy inside as its rivals. That's partly because the top of the long sloping windscreen comes in relative close proximity to the front occupant’s heads, while the ceiling that curves down quite low to the side of the car means some will have to duck to get in or out of it.

There’s plenty of storage space up front, including a lidded central storage cubby that functions as an armrest, a narrow tray long enough to slot your phone sideways into, a pair of cupholders, and a tray ahead of it that lifts to reveal an extra hidden cubby underneath, labelled "#hiddencompartment".

Space in the rear is more of a mixed bag. There’s enough leg room for six-foot tall occupants to stretch out, but head room is so tight they’ll have their head buried in the head lining – a consequence of the car’s steeply sloping roofline.

All things considered, the Prius isn’t as cramped in the back as a Peugeot 308, but a VW Golf has a better balance of space overall. The Prius has a low central hump on the floor but it’s easy for a fifth passenger to straddle and climb over. Meanwhile, a Golf provides slightly more head and shoulder room to be a slightly better option overall.

The Prius comes with a larger boot opening than many of its hatchback rivals which makes it easier to load in bulky items, while Excel trim comes with a powered tailgate for added convenience.

The boot space has a long load area, but because it’s quite shallow, we only managed to squeeze in five carry-on suitcases under its load cover with the rear seats in place – a match for the Golf.

That said, there is a little more space left in the boot than a Golf for squeezing in a rucksack or the bag of charging cables. This is just as well, because there isn’t any space underneath the boot floor to stash them away. There isn’t a height-adjustable boot floor either.

More positively, the boot floor sits flush with the back seats when they’re folded down, which do so in a 60/40 split. You don’t get a ski hatch, though, which means you can’t thread longer items through from the boot between two occupants in the outer rear seats. 

"It’s a shame there isn’t that much head room in the back seats. I’m not quite six-foot tall and it already feels quite cosy." – Lawrence Cheung, New Cars Editor

For private buyers buying outright, the list price of an entry-level Toyota Prius is slightly less than the cheapest Peugeot 308 plug-in hybrid (in Allure trim) but a little more than a VW Golf Style.

As with all plug-in hybrids, the fuel economy you can achieve with the Prius will vary dramatically depending on how diligently you keep the battery charged up to cover as many miles as possible on pure-electric power.

Even with a depleted battery, we managed a real-world fuel economy figure of 53.8mpg (vs 48mpg for the Golf tested on the same day). However, it’s worth noting the Golf eHybrid is more efficient when running on battery power, so it costs significantly less to run on electricity than the Prius.

The Prius is predicted to lose its value far more slowly than a 308 PHEV and Golf eHybrid, so you should recoup more of your money back when it comes to selling. For company car drivers, the Prius costs a lot less per month when paying through a salary sacrifice than a petrol, diesel or even a regular hybrid hatchback. However, the Golf eHybrid’s lengthy electric range places it in an even lower benefit-in-kind rating.

You’re unlikely to feel hard-done-by for the standard equipment Toyota gives you. Entry-level Design trim offers adaptive cruise control, rear privacy glass, automatic headlights and wipers, keyless entry, ambient lighting and a six-speaker sound system as standard. Top-spec Excel adds 19in alloy wheels, ventilated front seats, a digital rear-view mirror and a powered tailgate.

The Prius hasn't been tested by safety experts Euro NCAP but it comes well equipped with a host of safety aids, including automatic emergency braking (AEB), traffic-sign recognition, lane-keeping assistance and blind spot monitoring. There’s also a driver attention monitor, which is particularly sensitive and frequently warns the driver to keep looking ahead.

The Prius is too new to have featured in the 2023 What Car? Reliability Survey but Toyota as a brand finished in second place (beaten only by Lexus) out of 32 car makers in our overall rankings. 

The Prius comes with a three-year manufacturer’s warranty as standard, but it can be extended for up to 10 years or 100,000 miles if you service it annually at a Toyota franchised dealer. 

"Unlike other PHEV rivals that run the battery completely flat, I like that the Prius reserves enough battery when it gets low and functions like a regular hybrid to keep maximising fuel efficiency." – Claire Evans, Consumer Editor

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