Hades Freezes Over: Toyota Proves All-New Prius Is Legitimately Cool in New York

The 2023 New York International Auto Show was our first shot at checking out the new Prius in the flesh. A fresh start to production in the winter of last year means healthy shipments of this novel Toyota hybrid are bound to hit North American dealerships any day now. But just before the new Prius reaches every corner of the continent, Toyota's showing it off in the Big Apple as one of the brand's flagship vehicles. Among a proverbial sea of ICE vehicles, battery EVs, and plug-in hybrids, the new Prius stood out as the most striking production car in the booth.

With plenty of media-relations personnel eager to answer any questions we had about Toyota's booth at the Jacob K. Javits Center, you get the sense the company wanted the brand to shine in Manhattan in 2023. Unlike BMW and Audi, who, in different ways, presented their booths this year as if they only half-tried. We could only smile and follow our Toyota rep to the portion of Toyota's booth dedicated to the Prius and its plug-in cousin, the Prius Prime.

Even from a distance, there's a feeling the new Prius has a palpably different mystique than what we're used to from the first four model generations. Previous Prius generations were quite deliberately designed with softer, less aggressive styling lines to exude a "dove of peace" aesthetic instead of something more aggressive. In layman's terms, that's they the Prius used to look like a hard-boiled egg on wheels. But not this new Prius. Where blob-like, unimpressive quarter panels and front fascias once resided is now replaced by bold, swooping curves and a surprisingly handsome new front clip.

It's not often your average family car gives the illusion that it's wider at the rear end than in the front. You know, like a low-sprung sports car or something. From every angle that doesn't overexpose the thin front headlamps too much, the new Prius is visually appealing in ways economy cars almost never are. At least, historically speaking, they almost never are. Countless sketches were done by unsung-hero members of the Prius design team, like Manabu Hirokawa, Hideaki Iida, and Mario Majdandzic, and have final results that look downright desirable.

That's bad news if you're a Prius hater. But the new Prius can't actually be all that quick, right? That'd be preposterous. Except, you're wrong if you think that. Because the base Prius' two-liter four-cylinder engine, in conjunction with a battery-powered electric motor, cranks out 198 horsepower, while the plug-in hybrid Prius Prime manages even better with 220 horsepower. That works out to a zero to 60 mph time of 7.1 seconds in the base 2023 Prius. There are old sports cars from the late 60s and early 70s that can't put up numbers that impressive.

Is it enough to win the haters over? Probably not; people need something to make the focal point of their ire, after all. But who cares about the haters? Toyota built the new Prius for people who are at least amicable to positive change. These more open-minded people are treated to an interior just as enticing as the exterior of this all-new Prius. Prius models of old were known for their minimalist and borderline spartan dashboards and gauge cluster. Meanwhile, new models get the benefit of an eight-inch infotainment screen in base mode LE editions and a 12.3-inch display in upscale XLE and Limited models.

The rear passenger seat legroom felt acceptable in both the Prius and Prius Prime while sitting in them in New York this year. You get the sense there are far worse cars to sit in the back of during long road trips. Meanwhile, the driver will no doubt make use of the 57 MPG fuel economy on the highway and 56 in cities. It's some of the most competitive ICE-electric hybrid fuel efficiency figures in the sector.

With a base price of $27,450 for the most bare-bones Prius LE and up to $34,465 for the most tricked-out Limited, the non-PHEV Prius isn't out of reach for most middle-class American families. Meanwhile, you'll have to shell out $32,350 for the most basic Prius Prime and far more for a fully-loaded one. Even so, it's a price we think Prius fans won't mind paying. In truth, we've never been so happy to be dead wrong about a vehicle before. Seeing how the Prius has evolved from a "cringe-mobile" on four wheels to a legitimately cool vehicle should give us all hope for the future.

If we hold out for just a little bit longer in our own lives, maybe all of us can have the type of glow-up the Toyota Prius just had. If a Prius can be a cool car, you can drop 50 pounds, get a promotion, and marry the significant other of your dreams. Hades has frozen over, up is now down, and the impossible is now plausible. That's how momentous this occasion is.