Today's debut of the Prius PHV (no, not Prius Prime or Prius PHEV) is kind of a big thing in Japan. Even though the car looks the same as the American model, it's got a number of changes under the skin.
For starters, Japan is a very disaster-prone country. So the PHV's battery can be used to power a home when the grid is down. It's also got a solar panel installed on the roof and the pure EV range is much larger than in the US at 68.2 kilometers (equivalent to 42.4 miles; US model promises 25 miles), but that's down to the driving cycle.
Perhaps more interesting than the car itself is the way it's being promoted. Taking a page out of your favorite Final Fantasy game, the Prius PHV travels to the African savanna for its "next mission," whatever that means. You've got a posse of odd looking people, a lion sidekick and a stampede of wildebeest following the car through the brush. What the heck is going on here?
The PHV still draws power from an inline four-cylinder 1.8-liter engine that produces 98 PS and 142 Nm on its own. Dual electric motors then come into play, one producing 72 PS plus 163 Nm and the other generating just 31 PS and 40 Nm of torque. One can push the car to 130 km/h in EV mode; the other makes electricity.
Unlike the regular Prius, the Prime has an 11.6-inch portrait navigation system and a heat pump. The battery supply model of the EV can provide power for a 1500W house for about a day. And as if a solar charger wasn't enough, the PHV also boasts a cool carbon fiber trunk for added lightness.
Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida. Full profile
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